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3TB Western Digital External Hard Drive (USB2.0) $159 @ JB

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3TB Western Digital External Hard Drive (USB2.0) $159 @ JB
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kheob on 23/02/2012 - 17:30 jbhifi.com.au (1947 clicks)
Last edited 24/02/2012 - 13:51

Nearly as good as the Amazon deal from a few weeks back! It's a few bucks more expensive and isn't USB3.0, but it is Australian stock.

Pricematch @ Officeworks for $151.05 (thanks to BertTom and Tessai): http://www.officeworks.com.au/retail/products/Technology/Dat…

Disassembling guide (thanks to Kuric, we aren't responsible if you botch it!): http://bychaw.blogspot.com.au/2011/02/how-to-take-apart-your…

UPDATE: Looks like OW has change their price to match JB's. No more pricematching :(.

Not sure if you should get a WD or Seagate?

WD - Average of 4 stars with 13% 1 star ratings (1,431 reviews): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004SH5VQ4/ref=s9_simh_gw_p…

Seagate - Average of 3 stars with 31% 1 star ratings (436 reviews): www.amazon.com/SEAGATE-Expansion-Desktop-External-STAY300010…

Computing 3TB Computer Peripheral External Hard Drive Western Digital

Related Stores

JB Hi-Fi
JB Hi-Fi

closed Comments

  • Chris McMahon on 23/02/2012 - 17:43
    +4

    Cheaper than a bare 3TB drive. Don't forget price matching at Officeworks if you're not local to a JB.

    • kheob on 23/02/2012 - 17:48

      Yeah, I think most people who buy this will crack it open. I just find that 3.5" externals are quite impractical as you need to lug around a power cable.

      • voter1 on 23/02/2012 - 19:11
        +1

        where can u get a 3tb drive where you dont need a power cable? I think every household should have one of these drives that are used for backups. Photos/documents etc.
        Keep it in a safe place (fireproof if you have it) Best insurance you will ever buy.

        The difference is only that most users dont need 3tb and people that do will most likey want them in other applications.

        • Zidago on 23/02/2012 - 22:27
          +1

          Best insurance I will ever buy?

          Cancelling my Medibank Private account now!

        • fookos on 24/02/2012 - 09:31

          There gets a point where you don't want all your eggs in the one basket. I would prefer three X 1TB drives so it one does fail you don't lose your entire backup.

      • Gnostikos on 24/02/2012 - 03:40
        +1

        Who the hell lugs around AC powered drives anyway?

        These are for porn connoisseurs, period.

    • geek001 on 23/02/2012 - 17:48
      +1

      Is this the same drive?

      http://www.officeworks.com.au/retail/products/Technology/Data-Storage/Desktop-Hard-Drives/WDAU3000BK;jsessionid=(J2EE5996400)ID1199038654DB00628676054466222954End;saplb_*=(J2EE5996400)5996454

    • matt777 on 25/02/2012 - 07:59

      Bought at my local Officeworks, it was same price of $159 for exact same product.
      Must have adjusted there price.

  • jhova on 23/02/2012 - 18:12

    not bad……very tempting…hmmm

  • Kuric on 23/02/2012 - 18:28
    +4

    Here is the guide to take apart these enclosures to extract the drive.

    http://bychaw.blogspot.com.au/2011/02/how-to-take-apart-your…

    Not sure if the actual HDD has warranty though if something goes wrong.
    Can anyone verify if the drive has a separate warranty?

    If so, I'll get me some of these :)

    • tigersrock on 23/02/2012 - 21:15
      +2

      Owned a Computer Store for 6 years; know for a fact that you void the warranty when you remove it from the casing. Sorry.

      • Scratch2k on 23/02/2012 - 23:53

        Your personal experience may be different but you are wrong. I removed a drive from a Seagate external enclosure and ran it in my PC for a year or so, it died and I sent it back to Seagate as a bare drive, they sent me back a brand new external drive. I suspect that their systems only care what the serial number on the actual drive is, if that serial comes from an external enclosure you are still covered by warranty. Other manufacturers may have different policies. This was about 3 years ago.

        • Gnostikos on 24/02/2012 - 03:42
          +4

          No you're wrong.

          They have long since changed the serials/MACs to distinguish between bare drives and cased drives and they will simply reject any external drives that are RMA'ed without a case.

          You will void the warranty doing that.

        • the discombobulated… on 24/02/2012 - 09:18

          Amar's right. Feel free to check your HDs serial number on their website to see how much warranty it has if you do not believe this.

    • blueonion on 24/02/2012 - 14:18

      Thanks for the link! It looks simple enough, will try it at home tonight… does this mean if the drive stuffs up, we just gotta put it back in the case and voila? :)

    • 51722 on 24/02/2012 - 20:22
      +1

      Ok… just removed the drive and attached it into my PC.

      Very simple under Win 7. Just delete all existing volumes on the drive and then convert the disk to a GPT Disk.

  • Tessai on 23/02/2012 - 18:47
    +8

    Thanks op. Just pricematched at OfficeWorks for $151.05

    • chyawala on 24/02/2012 - 09:19

      OW Free Delivery* - for orders placed online, phone and fax over $55.

      *For online, phone and fax orders, all deliveries are made on business days. Free Delivery and Same Day Delivery are only available for order before 11:30am Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays) to metro customers in Brisbane, Melbourne, Geelong, Perth & Sydney dependent on postcode,

  • Tessai on 23/02/2012 - 18:47

    Double post.

    • robertpc on 23/02/2012 - 19:14

      OMG, double rainbow. lol

      • the discombobulated… on 23/02/2012 - 20:38

        It's a unicorn with two butts!

      • Mikinoz on 24/02/2012 - 09:06

        thanks for the reminder, best laugh ever!

  • bcdk on 23/02/2012 - 19:08
    +1

    anyone price matched this at officeworks in melbourne? its coming up as out of stock for me

    • Dee on 24/02/2012 - 11:12

      Just picked up one at Officeworks on Kingsway, South Melbourne. They had 3 left, now they have 2.

      • bcdk on 24/02/2012 - 14:23

        Thanks, on my way but looks like I'm too late for matching :(

  • ozb-442 on 23/02/2012 - 20:40
    +1

    Nice find kheob!

  • Coops1 on 23/02/2012 - 20:55
    +1

    great price, most shops selling same internal drive for $190-$220. Unfortunately none at OW in Hobart, so off to JB tomorrow :). Looks so easy to take apart and use as an internal storage drive. Thanks OP.

  • dan76n on 23/02/2012 - 20:59

    So what deal was better than this on Amazon a few weeks ago?

    • UFO on 23/02/2012 - 23:07

      I think he means this one…. http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/63033

      But in all honesty, if you are cracking the thing open (I think most people are), who cares if its not USB 3.

      (plus i'd take WD over Seagate anyway, but thats just me…)

      • kheob on 24/02/2012 - 14:03

        Yeah, that's the one.

  • jamescrysis on 23/02/2012 - 22:33

    Woo just did a price match at officeworks and pulled it apart straight away. Awesome price.

    • geek001 on 23/02/2012 - 23:16
      +1

      Can you please tell me the model number of drive that is inside the casing? Pretty please?

  • geek001 on 23/02/2012 - 22:52

    Tried to pricebeat at OW in Brisbane City after work but they say they don't sell 3TB version. Will either try another OW or get JB to pricematch OW? :)

    • chyawala on 24/02/2012 - 00:37
      -1

      Try price match at OW by phone order with free delivery.

  • Black Hole on 23/02/2012 - 23:36
    +1

    What HD inside the enclosure?

    • AMLagonda on 23/02/2012 - 23:52

      Probably something like a "blue"???

      • phatsteve on 24/02/2012 - 00:22
        +3

        It's a Green.

        • UFO on 24/02/2012 - 08:34
          +1

          Nothing wrong with the Green's folks. I have 3 of them in my HP media box (thanks ozbargain :)).

          Quiet, low power, low heat, perfectly acceptable performance even on Full HD Bluray rips.

          Would I use it as the boot drive to a high spec gaming rig? Nup. But for all other purposes the Green drives are great. $50 a terrabyte, cant go wrong.

          It's the USB that's the killer. 3Tb @ USB 2.0 would take you for ever to transfer anything big.
          Either rip it out and use it as an internal, or be prepared to wait.

  • yaleguan on 23/02/2012 - 23:54

    anyone know if this is a 7200 hard drive or 5400 hard drive?

    I will definitely take one if it is 7200!!!!!!!!

    • 51722 on 24/02/2012 - 00:09

      Its definitely a 5400… no way its a 7200.

    • phatsteve on 24/02/2012 - 00:22
      +4

      Sadly yes, it's a 5400 RPM

      USB2 probably wouldn't get the full potential of a 7200RPM disk.

      • llama on 24/02/2012 - 02:43

        Nowhere near it. USB 2.0 = about 25MB/sec. 5400rpm drive in a SATA controller = about 90MB/sec

  • grizz_li on 24/02/2012 - 03:45
    +1

    This is a great price.
    Given it's $159, you can't expect it to be anything but a Green drive. Fine for storage.

  • k3y4n on 24/02/2012 - 08:53

    Do you guys know if this product is MAC compatible?

    Thanks.

    • Kaboda on 24/02/2012 - 09:19
      +1

      Format it for to Mac Journal Partition

      • k3y4n on 24/02/2012 - 09:27

        Thanks!

  • [Deactivated] on 24/02/2012 - 08:55

    Perfect timing, thanks OP for posting! I'll be trying at Officeworks.

  • massari on 24/02/2012 - 09:03

    I am happy with my 3tb i purchased last year for 120$ :) The seagate one :D

    • Black Hole on 24/02/2012 - 11:05
      +1

      I did buy 2 but wishing that I bought 4. It has a Barracuda® XT 3T costing $400 for just the drive alone.

      • massari on 24/02/2012 - 14:34

        Yea I bought one. I regret not buying all of them :p Ahh well :) Still havnt filled it up so its all good.

  • [Deactivated] on 24/02/2012 - 09:07

    Not bad if you're just using this for backup or you want to put it in a raid 0 config. But I wouldn't advise using this drive for your computer unless you don't care about performance of your PC. I've used one of these before when price is an issue and it's not unbearable but it does hurt productivity.

  • Kaboda on 24/02/2012 - 09:18

    Would do well in a HP microserver

  • MrPants on 24/02/2012 - 11:04

    FYI for those people that want to price match at OW, just gave them a call, they have 58 left in the whole of QLD. None in the city or Milton. Their online store has one, Woolloongabba has 3-4, Mt Gravatt has 7-8. Good luck! I just ordered mine from JB online

  • antkappa on 24/02/2012 - 11:43

    Hmm considering 2 of these to rip open and stuff into my microserver :S

  • legham on 24/02/2012 - 11:58

    Thanks for this I've needed an external drive for a while

  • [Deactivated] on 24/02/2012 - 12:42

    Priced matched at my local OW. Can confirm they're WD Green drives. Really simple to open up, just need a small flat head screwdriver or similar tool to pry up various clips.

  • blueonion on 24/02/2012 - 13:21

    I just visited Collins st Melbourne OW and bought this at $159 , no price match!

  • impoze on 24/02/2012 - 13:34

    officeworks at parramatta had already changed the price to $159 but he still gave me extra 5% on top anyway

  • uraha on 24/02/2012 - 13:40

    is it a WD30EZRX?

    • [Deactivated] on 24/02/2012 - 14:35

      Yes

  • blublu on 24/02/2012 - 13:43

    no extra 5% off from OW since price was updated in WA :(

    • panderiz on 24/02/2012 - 13:54

      same here in VIC

  • flipfire on 24/02/2012 - 16:29

    OW didnt have this in stock but JB matched their price match anyway. I picked up two of these for $151 each from JB pitt st mall, Sydney. They still have maybe 10 left.

    I cracked them open when i got home, the first drive was WD30EZRS(Sept 2011). The second drive was WD30EZRX (Oct 2011). No difference between them other than the SATAII/III interface.

    There seems to be a plastic tab thats looks like a tamper seal. I broke it when opening the first enclosure.

    • blueonion on 24/02/2012 - 16:54

      what did you use to open ? screwdriver?

      • mrsnrub on 24/02/2012 - 18:46

        I used a flat bladed butter knife (no serrations) and despite watching the video on cracking these open found it much easier to slide in on the long side and gently lift the bottom away. Didn't make a single mark so if it does need to be returned I can just put it back in the case.

        Serial number on the bottom of the plastic box matches what's printed on the hard drive.

        It is a WD30ERZX manufactured 08 OCT 2011.

      • flipfire on 24/02/2012 - 21:48

        I used several flat wide plastic tabs to pry it open so it doesnt leave a mark. Its not what you use that snaps the tab but how you open it.

  • gavbro on 24/02/2012 - 17:36

    JB Garden City Westfield (Qld) still had a heap of these on the shelf when I was there this arvo around 3.

  • Coops1 on 24/02/2012 - 17:47

    On my way to JB to get the WD and thought I would stop off at DSE, luckily saw the Seagate @ $159 and bought it. Just popped the bonnet and found the Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm ST3000DM001 - http://www.seagate.com/www/en-au/products/desktops/barracuda….
    Took a couple of minutes to remove from the external case and is now an internal drive, GPT converted and formatted to 2.72TB :). Happy as (well my son is!)

  • lonewolf on 24/02/2012 - 18:45

    IS it safe to get these shipped?

  • lonewolf on 24/02/2012 - 18:52

    So the WDs are better quality but the Seagates are faster? (in this scenario as the seagates are 7200rpm)

  • lonewolf on 24/02/2012 - 19:19

    Sound like the problem mainly lies with the case / PCB rather than the drives… I was just going to take the drives out anyway so perhaps wont make much difference then.

  • bcdk on 24/02/2012 - 22:31

    Went to the 3 officeworks in melbourne CBD today + the south melbourne one, none left

    • chyawala on 24/02/2012 - 22:52

      Dick Smith price match should save you 5%. OW offer free metro shipping on this so should be available online or by phone.

      • bcdk on 25/02/2012 - 00:11

        got colesmyer gift cards to use up :( thanks though might just do that anyway..

  • derp on 25/02/2012 - 15:06

    ? are they meant to be already partitioned? Because the one I bought has 3 partitions in it already?

    • the discombobulated… on 25/02/2012 - 15:07

      Ooooh. You may have gotten a… hmm… "broken in" model. :)

      • derp on 25/02/2012 - 16:01

        how is that possible? it was completely sealed when I bought it from JB Hifi?

    • flipfire on 26/02/2012 - 00:50
      +1

      No thats how its broken down because you need to convert it to a GPT disk in windows to have partitions bigger than 2TB.

  • lonewolf on 25/02/2012 - 15:35

    It might be how WD do it as in they may have specific software on specific partitions or something to do with a backup software etc. OR it may have been a refurbished one or something.

  • Ragnarok1983 on 09/03/2012 - 18:49

    I got mine today, JB actually sent me a USB3.0 3TB! SCOREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

    • Ragnarok1983 on 09/03/2012 - 20:16

      Btw, just before I jump for joy. The USB3 enclosure has a default encryption built in, which you CANNOT turn off.

      If you're planning to use the left over USB3 enclosure, forget about it. If you ever have a enclosure failure, the HDD data is good as gone.

  • chuneeperformance on 20/03/2012 - 14:40

    on a seperate note has anyone that ordered 4+ more drives from JB recieve the drives in 2 seperate boxes? like 2x hdds per box?

    reason i ask is that i ordered 4x drives in the seagate 3TB offer and i just got home and i got 2x drives in the box and there are supposed to be 4?

    iv been on the phone all day tracking the box and that took me hours on the phonr with Vic stores and they had no idea when the eta was… no i only have half the order… really frustrated seeing i placed the order on the 14th and was given the run around…dont want to stay on the phone for another hour or so…

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