LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk 1.5 TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive 301425U (Aluminum)

by LaCie

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 9 x 6.8 inches ; 5.6 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B001KFH6IS
• Item model number: 301425U
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (327 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: November 12, 2008

Product Description

Size: 1.5 TB

From the Manufacturer

The LaCie d2 Quadra 1.5 TB External Hard Drive features plenty of storage space for your large files, as well as four interfaces for universal connectivity. The versatile d2 Quadra also features a stylish, space-saving design that complements many laptops and desktops and enhances the look of any work space.

The d2 Quadra 1.5 TB offers: 1.5 TB of total disk space. Fanless aluminum heat sink design for superior heat dissipation. USB 2.0, FireWire 400/800, and eSATA connections. High-speed 7,200 rpm drive performance.

The d2 Quadra can be rack mounted to save space and fit into A/V setups. View larger.

1. The stylish aluminum enclosure dissipates heat. 2. Four interfaces offer versatile connectivity.

Four Interfaces to Fit Your Setup
The drive features USB 2.0, FireWire 400, FireWire 800, and eSATA interfaces, ensuring universal compatibility with any Mac or PC. USB 2.0 offers up to a 480-Mbps transfer rate, while eSATA provides superior transfer speeds of up to three gigabits per second. And the two FireWire ports let you daisy-chain a second drive easily. For speed-critical work such as video editing, eSATA provides the performance you need to work directly onto the drive, while the other interfaces ensure that you'll be able to connect your drive to any computer no matter where you are, and access your files.

Speedy Drive Performance for Complex Files
This high-speed drive has a 1.5 TB of space and can hold thousands of music, video, and photo files. A rotational speed of 7,200 rpm and a cache of at least 16 megabytes makes it fast enough to edit music and video directly on the drive, so it's perfect for professionals, and its easy setup makes it simple enough for anyone to use. If you don't need quite so much space, the d2 Quadra also comes in 1 TB and 500 GB capacities.

You can configure the d2 Quadra to fit your needs by daisy-chaining multiple drives, which can give you RAID 1 potential for data redundancy and protection or RAID 0 for even greater speed.

The d2 Quadra also offers three power management options: "auto" for energy efficiency; "on" for instant access; and "off" for data protection. A smart fan automatically turns on and off depending on the temperature, ensuring that the drive stays cool and quiet. The drive also lets you back up files or launch applications with a simple push of the blue button on the front. This shortcut button can be configured to launch any document or application or to initiate automated backups.

Smart, Elegant Design
Styled by renowned product designer Neil Poulton, the d2 Quadra looks stunning and complements any system. The durable aluminum casing offers excellent heat dissipation. And thanks to the drive's detachable stand, it can be placed vertically to save space or horizontally to stack multiple drives. The drive can even be rack-mounted to fit into audio/video setups.

Measuring a slim 1.7 x 6.3 x 6.8 inches (WxHxD) and weighing 3.31 pounds, the drive is compact enough to transfer your multimedia files between home and work or to back up multiple machines at home.

Works with Windows and Macs
The LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Drive is compatible with Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Mac OS 10.2.8 and higher, and it is bootable when using FireWire or eSATA. It is also compatible with Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard and Time Machine.

Included with the drive is Genie Backup Assistant software for Windows and Intego Backup Assistant software for Mac.

The LaCie d2 Quadra 1.5 TB Hard Drive is backed by a three-year limited warranty.

About LaCie
Established in France in 1989, LaCie is a leading manufacturer of computer peripherals for Windows, Apple, and Linux users. With offices and plants in the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, Europe, Singapore, and Hong Kong, LaCie develops and manufactures external storage solutions and color monitors that help professionals and everyday people easily manage their digital lives. LaCie has distinguished its products through original designs and leading-edge technology.

What's in the Box
LaCie hard disk, eSATA-to-eSATA cable, FireWire 800 cable, FireWire 400 cable, USB 2.0 cable, external power supply, drive stand, LaCie utilities CD-ROM, and backup software.

Product Description

The LaCie d2 Quadra External Hard Drive is fully loaded with all the best interfaces¿eSATA 3Gbits, FireWire 800, FireWire 400, and USB 2.0¿this all-in-one professional hard disk offers universal connectivity for PC and Mac users. For easy setup, the LaCie Setup Assistant helps format your disk according to your needs. Perfect for digital content creation, audio/video editing, DVD authoring, Web animation, etc., the d2 Quadra can handle multiple demanding professional tasks. It can be daisy-chained via FireWire or connected to your DV camera and is even bootable in FireWire for Mac and in eSATA for Mac/PC. With the LaCie Shortcut Button***, you can easily launch any application in one push, such as the included Genie Backup Assistant software with data restore for Windows or Intego Backup Assistant software with data restore for Mac. The unique, fanless aluminum heat sink design with 60% more surface area for heat dissipation keeps it quiet and safe. Box Content: LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk, eSATA-to-eSATA cable, FireWire 800 (9-pin) cable, FireWire 400 (6-pin) cable, Hi-Speed USB 2.0 cable, Drive stand for upright use, External power supply, Utilities with User Manual (preloaded on the drive): LaCie Setup Assistant, Genie Backup Assistant software with data restore for Windows 2000, XP, Vista, Intego Backup Assistant software with data restore for Mac OS X 10.4, Quick Install Guide.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

167 of 176 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very nice external drive, December 17, 2008

By 

Bertilak - See all my reviews

This review is from: LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk 1 TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive 301442U (Aluminum) (Personal Computers)

This is a newer version of an earlier model that is very similar (LaCie 301827U d2 Quadra 1 TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 External Hard Disk). I talked to a salesman at J&R Computers and he told me the only difference is that this model has 32MB cache and the older model has 16MB cache. The older model has over 100 reviews so you may want to look there as well.

COST:

This costs more than some other external hard drives of the same capacity but there are good reasons: You are paying for the multiple interfaces (eSATA, Firewire 400, Firewire 800 with second daisy-chain port, USB 2.0) and the complete set of cables that come with it. The eSATA support is 3Gbits compared to 1.5Gbits for less expensive drives. The well-constructed case may also add some cost. I'd like to think that the included disk is of a higher quality too, but have no way to judge.

PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS:

The drive has been working fine for about a month now.

It feels VERY sturdy. It is heavier than other external drives I am familiar with.

It is only slightly warm to the touch when running. The all-metal construction with the exterior ridges seems to do a good job of keeping it cool.

It is VERY quiet. If not for the blue light I couldn't tell that it was turned on. Even when I put my ear right next to it I can hear very little. Even when it is actively seeking it is basically silent. There is no fan.

It does make a few noises when starting up or shutting down. I THINK one of the noises I hear is the heads parking and unparking.

I am using it as a USB 2.0 device right now. I have an eSATA card on order and will update this review to let you know how that goes. UPDATE: The drive works just fine when connected via eSATA. I have not done any performance experiments.

It does have a slot in the back for one of those Kensington cable locks. I didn't see this mentioned in the sales literature, although other external drive manufacturers make a big deal of it. There are a lot of those locks available, especially if you consider the clones. The following is probably the best: Kensington 64343 MicroSaver DS Notebook Computer Lock with Keys (PC/Mac).

Oh, yes, one more thing. The blue light reminds me of HAL in 2001 Space Odyssey, except that HAL had a red eye.

UPDATE 15 Sep 2010:
There are a number of reviews mentioning power supply failures, and I don't want to deny that there is a problem here. I do want to point out that I have had mine for 22-23 months now and it is still running strong. My setup includes an APC BACK-UPS RS BR1500LCD 1500VA/865W UPS System and both the LaCie and its power supply sit out in the open so get plenty of air circulation. My usage is for daily backup via the eSATA interface, so although it is powered on 24/7/365 it only gets about an hour (probably less) of active use each day.

73 of 74 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Piece of Equipment, January 28, 2009

By 

zugzwang - See all my reviews

This review is from: LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk 1 TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive 301442U (Aluminum) (Personal Computers)

I finally received my LaCie hard drive. This is a well made piece of equipment - it has a solid, heavy construction and an elegant appearance.

I was relieved that the light is a pleasant shade of blue and is not bright at all, unlike other hard drive lights with blindingly bright LEDs.

This drive is not silent, though it is fairly quiet. I can clearly hear the drive running from several feet away but it's not disturbing. The fellow who said that he can't hear it with his ear right next to it, well the drive must not have been running at that moment.

I'm using this as a Time Machine backup drive. With a Firewire 400 connection to my old G5 iMac, it backed up 270 GBs in under 5 hours. At first the Time Machine backup was dog slow. Then I remembered to turn off my virus software, AND most important, I changed the Spotlight preferences by selecting the Privacy tab and adding my backup drive to prevent Spotlight from indexing/searching it. After that the backup process just flew!

After writing data for 5 hours the drive was warm, but not hot. The aluminum heat-sink case seems to cool the drive very well.

Eventually I will attach it to an Apple Airport Extreme via USB to use it as a network drive for wireless use by my laptop as well. Unfortunately the Airport Extreme wireless router does not provide a Firewire 400/800 connection - just ethernet or the much slower USB 2.0. I'll provide an update on the performance at that time.

All in all, I am quite happy with this purchase.

155 of 166 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Where to begin here..., June 8, 2009

By 

MattSh (Far off Europe) - See all my reviews

This review is from: LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk 500 GB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 Desktop External Hard Drive 301440U (Aluminum) (Personal Computers)

I would love to give this a better rating. But this is the best I can do.

Bought this LaCie less than 1.5 years ago. Set it up, plugged it in, and worked just fine on my Mac. It was used as a backup drive and a place to store larger files. And everything worked well for 1.5 years.

About 5 weeks ago, my internal HD was showing an imminent failure, so I switched over to the LaCie until a replacement was obtained. In the meantime, life occurred, and it took me four weeks to get a replacement. Got the replacement on a Thursday, but when I went to replace the internal drive on Friday, the LaCie decided it no longer wanted to cooperate. The blue light came on, some disk sounds for a few seconds, but nothing else happens.

Both the local LaCie dealer and LaCie HQ agree it's the power supply (Warning: Power supply problems are not an isolated occurrance with these LaCies). So hopefully I haven't lost anything except some time and patience. And they have agreed to send me a new power supply, under warranty. However, neither the local dealer or LaCie HQ have the power supply in stock. There's a minimum of 2-4 weeks wait. And since I'm currently out of country, shipping is at my expense.

If you currently have this drive or similar, buy yourself a backup power supply. Do it now. The sanity you save might be your own.

~~~~~ Updated review, October 9, 2009 ~~~~~

Obtained a new power supply from LaCie, plugged it in and hoped for the best. And it worked. For about 6 weeks. A different problem, and LaCie again sent me another power supply. AND, I bought another power supply as a backup. (Numbers 3 and 4) But alas, it was not meant to be this time. Power supplies #3 and #4 gave me the same results as the ill-fated power supply #2. So that likely means that it's the internal electronics in the drive enclosure itself. It's likely not the power supplies. To further save my sanity, I'll likely pull the drive from this enclosure and install it in another.

If I could, I'd change the review to a one. But it seems I'm stuck with two stars too.

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