extra storage on laptop

john_doe.

hi,

i would like to add extra storage to my old laptop mainly to be used in a htpc, the laptop wont be moving either its left under the tv.
There is no esata connector on the laptop so i am left with USB2 or NAS

USB has is disadvantage i.e if drive fails im screwed.
are there playback issues of video files e.g MKV over usb?

The Nas option seems good, i was looking for a 2TB drive or more that was mirrored and came across this on the bargain alerts forum:

http://www.serversplus.com/servers/server_bundles/658553421-4tbnas

Its the proliant with 2x 2TB drives but the price is ex.VAT. Is this a good option?

Is there a cheaper way to build my storage solution, i dont mind buying seperate drives and building a box, but i know feck all about NAS.

Serephucus

I'd go for a self-built NAS box, personally. It'll probably work out a bit more expensive (I'd say in the region of €250, including an OS drive, excluding storage drives) but it opens up a lot of possibilities - backups for your whole network, media serving, web hosting, game servers, etc.

Something like this:

Item|Price
Intel Celeron G530 2.4GHz LGA1155 2MB|€43.36
Corsair 430 Watt CX430 V2 Builder Series 80 Plus Power Supply|€40.50
Kingston 8GB (4 x 2GB) HyperX DDR3 1600MHz 240-pin DIMM CL9 XMP|€38.44
ASRock S1155 Intel H61 DDR3 mATX|€42.74
OCZ Technology 60GB Vertex Plus Series SATA 3Gb/s 2.5" Solid State Drive|€70.46
XIGMATEK Asgard III Case with Window|€36.64


Or, from HWVS:

Item|Price
8GB-Kit G.Skill PC3-10667U CL9|€32.66
Intel Celeron G530 Box, LGA1155|€36.72
Corsair Builder Series CX430 V2, 430 Watt|€38.40
ASRock H61M-HVS (B3), Sockel 1155, mATX|€41.11
BitFenix Merc Beta|€32.61
OCZ Octane 64GB 6,4cm (2,5") SATA II|€66.08