Upgrading PS3 Hard Drive.

irish_stevo815

I have an 80gb (fat) PS3 and the inevitable is finally happening, my hard drive is finally getting full, I have about 5gb of free space left. Now I know I could just delete some saves, etc. but that's just gonna get annoying.

So I'm just wondering has anyone upgraded to a bigger hard drive themselves? I know it's a relatively easy process but just wondering if any hard drive would do, i.e. from an old laptop or external hard drive. Or is there a specific hard drive that is compatible with the PS3?

AlmightyCushion

It has to be a 2.5" sata drive with a maximum height of 9mm (some have a height of 12.5mm which won't fit but they are rare). You should be able to get a 500GB one for ubder €100.

irish_stevo815

Thanks for that. I'll have a look around and see what i can find.

tman

Western Digital Scorpio 320GB is pretty much the drive of choice.

Larger drives can cause issues for some, as can 7200rpm drives, so you're better off just sticking with a 320GB model imo (unless you really really need all that extra space...)

Actually fitting it is a piece of piss, but be careful when removing the screws! (they're made of butter!)

Fizman

I've this WD 500gb one in mine. Works like a charm and seems to be a very popular choice for those who do go ahead and upgrade. Upgrade process is very straightforward.

http://www.komplett.ie/Komplett/product/ZKB_01COM/11_HDD/06_INTHD25/productdetails/20000013/WD_Scorpio_Blue_WD5000BEVT_Hard_drive_500_GB_-/WD5000BEVT/default.aspx

irish_stevo815

Just looking at a 320gb drive from Peats for 69.99. Would this work ok?

http://www.peats.com/cgi-bin/catalog.cgi?view_product=1&id=21069&sid=14&cid=116&scid=305

AlmightyCushion

irish_stevo815 wrote: »

Just looking at a 320gb drive from Peats for 69.99. Would this work ok?

http://www.peats.com/cgi-bin/catalog.cgi?view_product=1&id=21069&sid=14&cid=116&scid=305

It doesn't say the height but I imagine it's standard height. If so it'll work fine.

F1ngers

irish_stevo815 wrote: »

Just looking at a 320gb drive from Peats for 69.99. Would this work ok?

http://www.peats.com/cgi-bin/catalog.cgi?view_product=1&id=21069&sid=14&cid=116&scid=305

Yes.

As has already been stated, BE CAREFUL WITH THE SCREWS.

AlmightyCushion

F1ngers wrote: »

Yes.

As has already been stated, BE CAREFUL WITH THE SCREWS.

Have to re-iterate this. Those screws suck balls. I nearly rounded the crap out of a few of them when I was upgrading mine.

irish_stevo815

F1ngers wrote: »

Yes.

BE CAREFUL WITH THE SCREWS.

Nice one, I've heard the screws for the Hard Drive are pretty soft alright.

penguinpoppers

I wish someone had warned me about the screws! I upgraded to a 500GB and after casually securing the new harddrive I noticed the screw driver was spinning without getting any grip. Im 90% ill need pliers and alot of force if I ever want to get that harddrive back out. BE CAREFUL!

tonydude

ive 160gb internal hdd and a 1tb external hdd connected to my ps3 , its all the space i need

Krusader

Buy a 2.5 Sata HDD case aswell so you can use your 80GB HDD as an external drive with your PC or PS3. This is wot I did

You would want a size 0 philips/pozi screwdriver to open them screws without rounding them

Scráib

My only problem with the upgrade was that the lads/machine who put the screws in did the job too well, I had to bring the hard drive into town to get the bracket removed they were in so tight. And also, the treads are now mangled.

Upgraded to a WD 250Gb, good investment. It means a hell of a lot more enjoyment when you don't have to worry about the game installs or saved files clogging up the HD.

irish_stevo815

Ok so my new 320gb WD hard drive is ordered and on the way but i have one quick question before i back up my ps3 files onto my external hard drive.

Does the hard drive to which I back up my files have to be totally empty or is it ok if there is stuff already on it - ie. movies, music, pictures.
The external hard drive i'm using is already in FAT32 format by the way

F1ngers

irish_stevo815 wrote: »

Ok so my new 320gb WD hard drive is ordered and on the way but i have one quick question before i back up my ps3 files onto my external hard drive.

Does the hard drive to which I back up my files have to be totally empty or is it ok if there is stuff already on it - ie. movies, music, pictures.
The external hard drive i'm using is already in FAT32 format by the way

I backed mine up on my ipod, full of songs.
I know it's a different backup device from what you are using, but iirc, it created it's own folder.

stephendevlin

I have upgraded to a 500gb Samsung hard drive last year. Brilliant for media I have my whole collection on there (over 350 movies tons of music and my entire photo collection. I reserved 10gb for linux but the feckers put out a new release which means I can load it on now.

Overall the ps3's browser could be updated a bit more and maybe a few apps invented to get the most out of an already enjoyable machine!

I have a bluetooth keyboard with built in mouse for surfing the net which is good (i was using a wireless mouse and keyboard seperates which was ****!!)

Changing the drive was a piece of piss. took me a little bit to prepare the drive but apart from that it was easy! Any help needed just ask!

irish_stevo815

Cheers for all the feedback guys. I have successfully upgraded my PS3 with a Western Digital 320gb hard drive. The only slight problem i had was the damn blue screw holding in the hard drive. But a pliers and some patience worked...now it's flying.

The only weird thing was, I had an 80gb hard drive originally and was just about full, but when i put in my new 320gb hard drive, it said i only had 200gb free space. I know that a 320gb drive only actually has 298gb of memory, but what happened to the missing 18gb????

F1ngers

irish_stevo815 wrote: »

Cheers for all the feedback guys. I have successfully upgraded my PS3 with a Western Digital 320gb hard drive. The only slight problem i had was the damn blue screw holding in the hard drive. But a pliers and some patience worked...now it's flying.

The only weird thing was, I had an 80gb hard drive originally and was just about full, but when i put in my new 320gb hard drive, it said i only had 200gb free space. I know that a 320gb drive only actually has 298gb of memory, but what happened to the missing 18gb????

That's reserved specifically for OtherOS...:p

irish_stevo815

F1ngers wrote: »

That's reserved specifically for OtherOS...:p

Well that's odd becasue didn't the last software update (before 3.30 - the Trophy update, 2.21 i think) remove the use of other OS on the PS3?

stephendevlin

It is reserved for running the system. I know thats a basic answer but thats just it. Its needed for playing games and playing hd movies etc. Its same as virtual memory.

stephendevlin

F1ngers wrote: »

That's reserved specifically for OtherOS...:p

You could only reserve up to 10gb before the new update... 18gb is used for virtual memory

moonboy52

Cheers for the usual information guys. I must put a new drive into mine also

prettyboy81

Would anyone recommend a shop in Dublin City Centre, preference North of the Liffey that can do this upgrade? As easy as you all make it sound just dont' trust myself to do it.....

CombatCow

Seriously you can't really go wrong with this upgrade, check some youtube video's aswell just to see how easy it is....

F1ngers

prettyboy81 wrote: »

Would anyone recommend a shop in Dublin City Centre, preference North of the Liffey that can do this upgrade? As easy as you all make it sound just dont' trust myself to do it.....

If you are careful with the screws, you can do it. Waste of money paying someone to do it for you.

Have a look here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B1mQ21XXLE

.

pablomakaveli

prettyboy81 wrote: »

Would anyone recommend a shop in Dublin City Centre, preference North of the Liffey that can do this upgrade? As easy as you all make it sound just dont' trust myself to do it.....

I recently upgraded mine to a 320GB and believe me it was easy. It only took about 10-15 mins to do. Just as long as you have the right size screwdriver given the screws are so soft it's simple to do.

prettyboy81

Cheers for the advice & youtube vid, we will give it a go next payday when I get d new hard drive....

weiland79

Hi guy's I'm picking myself up the 320gb hard drive today. The only thing that concerns me is backing up my data. i.e I don't know how to do this.
Can anyone point me in the right direction. Cheers.

Ian.

Otacon

Do you have an external HDD that you can connect to the PS3? Either USB-powered or plug-powered? Does it get picked up by the PS3 when you connect it? Is it as large [in MB etc.] or larger than the current PS3 HDD?

If so, simply plug in the HDD and connect it to the PS3. Go to the Settings section of the XMB, scroll down to System Settings and again scroll down to Back-Up System [or something like that] then follow the instructions to back-up your data.

Once the new HDD has been installed and formatted, connect up the external HDD, go to the same area as before but select the Restore option and it should automagically detect the restore file.

EDIT: What make and model is the new HDD? Have you made sure it works with the PS3?

weiland79

Otacon wrote: »

Do you have an external HDD that you can connect to the PS3? Either USB-powered or plug-powered? Does it get picked up by the PS3 when you connect it? Is it as large [in MB etc.] or larger than the current PS3 HDD?

If so, simply plug in the HDD and connect it to the PS3. Go to the Settings section of the XMB, scroll down to System Settings and again scroll down to Back-Up System [or something like that] then follow the instructions to back-up your data.

Once the new HDD has been installed and formatted, connect up the external HDD, go to the same area as before but select the Restore option and it should automagically detect the restore file.

EDIT: What make and model is the new HDD? Have you made sure it works with the PS3?

Well i was just going to pop around to petes in dublin on my lunch break and have a chat with them.

Otacon

Fair enough. They should be able to help.

F1ngers

Otacon wrote: »

EDIT: What make and model is the new HDD? Have you made sure it works with the PS3?

weiland79 wrote: »

Well i was just going to pop around to petes in dublin on my lunch break and have a chat with them.

HDD requirements:
• 2.5" SATA (aka a laptop hdd)
• 9.5 mm height
• speed: 5400 rpm or faster
• cache: 8MB or more
• size/capacity: as much as you want

Get a caddy also, so that when you take out the HDD you can then use it as an external HD.

Dacelonid

Otacon wrote: »

If so, simply plug in the HDD and connect it to the PS3.

Has to be formatted as FAT32 from what I remember though.

weiland79

F1ngers wrote: »

HDD requirements:
• 2.5" SATA (aka a laptop hdd)
• 9.5 mm height
• speed: 5400 rpm or faster
• cache: 8MB or more
• size/capacity: as much as you want

Get a caddy also, so that when you take out the HDD you can then use it as an external HD.

Sorry but can you explain what a caddy is? And do you mean that i can use the old drive as an external?

F1ngers

weiland79 wrote: »

Sorry but can you explain what a caddy is? And do you mean that i can use the old drive as an external?

A caddy is an outer casing for a HDD. When you take out your HDD from the PS3, put it into said caddy and you then have an external HDD. I assume you have a 40,60 or 80 gig HD, why waste it when you take it out?
http://computers.shop.ebay.ie/Hard-Drive-Caddies-Enclosures-/86758/i.html

stephendevlin

Im using my 80gb from my PS3 in my Dreambox. I also have another hard drive which I bought an external case for (which I use for backing things up) Make sure its all on FAT32 and use SWISSKNIFE to format the hard drive as windows will not reformat anything bigger than 32gb. If its a brand new drive you also have to activate it (in windows device manager)

Kintarō Hattori

I'm sure it's been said but be very careful with the screws in the PS3, they are like butter and can be destroyed really easily. Make sure you use a correct fitting screwdriver and don't apply too much force.

eclipse05

stephendevlin wrote: »

Im using my 80gb from my PS3 in my Dreambox. I also have another hard drive which I bought an external case for (which I use for backing things up) Make sure its all on FAT32 and use SWISSKNIFE to format the hard drive as windows will not reformat anything bigger than 32gb. If its a brand new drive you also have to activate it (in windows device manager)

True, windows won't format HDD for bigger partition than 32GB.
Around 2years ago I used Partition Magic 8.0 and I was able to get 192GB FAT32 for external drive and it worked perfect!
Now, I used a newer free application and it was able to format my external drive for 500GB in FAT32! :eek:
I thought there will be something wrong with it but it wasn't! I am playing 720p, 1080p movies from this drive, I made a backup of my PS3 drive and restore it without any problems at all!

stephendevlin

eclipse05 wrote: »

True, windows won't format HDD for bigger partition than 32GB.
Around 2years ago I used Partition Magic 8.0 and I was able to get 192GB FAT32 for external drive and it worked perfect!
Now, I used a newer free application and it was able to format my external drive for 500GB in FAT32! :eek:
I thought there will be something wrong with it but it wasn't! I am playing 720p, 1080p movies from this drive, I made a backup of my PS3 drive and restore it without any problems at all!

Only issues are HD are big files. FAT files system cant handle files bigger than 4gb

eclipse05

Sure, but when converting videos to play to PS3 just thick box "cut file every 4gb" ... or something like that

MKV2VOB it's not a problem to cut files for FAT32

cabrwab

Finally got around to upgrading hdd today, some pain!

One of the screws appeared to be slightly rung when first installed the first threads on the screw where not in the best of shape, a long nose pliars was used to remove it!

Then came the restoring the back up id done!

The hard drive/media player i used to put the back up data on had an issue when the ps3 restarted at the start of the process.

Im glad i got a case for the hard drive that came out of the PS3 so i was able to copy over the back up info over to it.

Its currently restoring i hope it all goes well!!

Not having to delete the game data to play games is going to be great!

mayotobo

anyone have a good link to a free swissknife download? every one i look at requires a code

tman

http://download.cnet.com/CompuApps-SwissKnife-V3/3000-2248_4-10070864.html?tag=mncol

mayotobo

sorry but that one dosent work. it keeps saying that the program has stopped working....poo

johnmcdnl

I'm thinking of upgrading my 40GB drive to a 320gb drive around christmas time - but I know full well I'm gonna feck the screws up

anyone know where I could get a new set of screws that will fit in advance because I'm going to break these screws no matter how careful i am

Varik

johnmcdnl wrote: »

I'm thinking of upgrading my 40GB drive to a 320gb drive around christmas time - but I know full well I'm gonna feck the screws up

anyone know where I could get a new set of screws that will fit in advance because I'm going to break these screws no matter how careful i am

Be careful and don't force it, it's not going to get stripped by looking at it funny. I think Sony can give them free, or at least the do in the U.S and possible out of warranty.

cabrwab

Careful have the right screwdriver and a long nose pliers you'll have to get the screws out first is where I struggled.

Get a nice big hard drive its easy to do and dont worry you'll be fine but take your time

Notorious97

Ok so i am nearly out of space on 40GB (500MB left on it!) and i was intending to trade in and put like 200 towards a new PS3.

From reading this thread it makes obvious sense to just buy a new HDD, costs half of what i would need. However i am an idiot for this as i havent done it before, if i buy a HDD from the ones recommended in this thread how do i format this to ensure it works with PS3. Also is it really as easy as stated to unscrew it (very carefully i can see) and put it in, close it back up and transfer datet from old HDD to new PS3 HDD provided i buy a caddy for old HDD?

Cheers for the help!

Varik

It'll format it the first time you turn it on.

It shows the format at 5:00 min

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2d3JCMHL4o

Notorious97

Varik wrote: »

It'll format it the first time you turn it on.

It shows the format at 5:00 min

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2d3JCMHL4o

Thanks i will check this out when i get home!

Also on a side note, i currently have a 1TB external harddrive i have yet to use, can this be used via USB with PS3 or am i better off going with the plan to replace the internal harddrive with one of those recommended in this thread?