Confused about external storage

Thailanddex

Thailanddex

Thailanddex

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23 Feb 2019
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Ok, not entirely tech savvy and the more I read the more confused I get about positives and negatives of external storage, any help appreciated before I waste money I don't have spare haha
So, I recently purchased a laptop to serve as both a work and gaming rig. I travel a lot and decided to go with a slimline form so obviously had to make certain sacrifices regarding power/specs etc.. But I remember my shoulders aching from 7 years ago carrying my old goliath 18 inch gaming laptop through airports so the trade off I'm happy with.

I expect to play most if not all of my games through steam and was wondering about the viability of installing everything on an external drive, thinking either a 2.5" SSD or an M.2 SSD with an enclosure. This would mean I can use the limited on board storage for work stuff.
The new laptop has a thunderbolt 3 port which is supposed to be lightning fast but from what I have read this will make no difference because all data transfer will be limited by the speed of the ssd/enclosure anyway which is about 500mb/s read?

I had no idea what m.2, thunderbolt 3 or anything was yesterday but it seems that the interface is superior to the storage options so I may as well just plug it in a USB 3(also new to me ) port.
I'm obviously not a hard core gamer and won't be going toe to toe with the cs:go guys anytime soon , so basically asking what my options are and if I'm understanding what I'm reading correctly. Would be nice to have 1tb with steam catologue and space on laptop for all work stuff.
Thanks in advance for any help or advice you guys can give
 
Hi welcome :)

Can you not just upgrade/change the internal storage ? That would be a lot easier than carrying an external drive around. Maybe take the back cover off and see what is installed.
 
Still waiting for it to arrive, just ordered it but no spare ports unless I pull out a ram stick and replace it with a SSD.
Just trying to figure out options, but not sure what using an external means for my performance, if it slows it down significantly then it kinda defeats the purpose of buying a fast laptop and graphics card

Thanks for the reply and the welcome :)

Edit: not planning on carrying the hard drive round, just leaving it in room or house as if I'm out and about with laptop then just using it for work :-)
 
USB Type C devices are compatible with Thunderbolt 3 port.

There are some external SSDs with USB Type C. Like WD My Passport Portable SSD 1TB.

Hardware Canucks tested one in 4 games and found it just as good as the internal Corsair SSD, with no negative repercussions.

If we knew the name of the actual laptop, you may get better advice.
 
Thanks for the reply
I have an msi gs65 stealth with a gtx 1070, 32 gb ram and a 512 internal ssd. It has a thunderbolt 3 port and I've been looking at the 1tb Samsung T5 as a potential external drive for steam library.
Also been looking at buying an enclosure with USB 3 type c compatiblity and stuffing a sata 3 ssd in there.

Mainly using it for work and will need the internal daily, will only be gaming when I get time at home which is why I was leaning towards the external as long as I don't sacrifice too much performance.
Appreciate your reply, I'm kinda learning this as I go lol
 
Thailanddex said:
Thanks for the reply
I have an msi gs65 stealth with a gtx 1070, 32 gb ram and a 512 internal ssd. It has a thunderbolt 3 port
and I've been looking at the 1tb Samsung T5 as a potential external drive for steam library.
Click to expand...

Bit more expensive but fits the bill too.

The MSI GS65 Stealth Thin 8RF (is that the full name?) comes with two slots for M.2 drives. I would imagine that even if a stick of RAM needs taking out to place the M.2, that afterwards the RAM could be replaced? Something to confirm anyway as a 1TB M.2 internal would be cheaper.
 
Yes that's the full name 8rf.
MSI GS65 Stealth Thin 8RF Core I7-8750H 32GB 512GB SSD GTX 1070
Wow, I was working under the impression that all slots were filled.
Says 4 slots on specs I read, I was assuming 1.for graphics, 2 for 2 16gb sticks and 1 for ssd. I had the option to choose a 1tb hdd but would have sacrificed half of the ram. I don't know much about pc specs in last 10 years but more ram is always welcome right?
If what you say is possible that would be perfect, I never even considered I would have a slot free.
Thank you very much for your reply, I really appreciate it, I will open it up as soon as it arrives Tuesday
 
Don't know, might depend on your SSD choice. If it's a 2.5" Sata SSD there may be no M.2 slots usable. If it's a 512GB M.2 SSD then good chance of another.
 
Not sure if your laptop is the same as the one below, but it gives you an idea. You can just take the back cover off to check. Looks like a bit of messing about involved to install a new NVMe SSD though.

**Just noticed that one of the screw holes has a sticker over it (#15), so just make sure it isn't a warranty sticker**


 
Good spot. Don't want to void warranty on the first day.

If that's the case, best cover your **** and contact MSI to let them know you need to open it to add another drive. Keep the communications as proof of why it was opened.

Crucial MX500 1TB M.2 or WD Blue 1TB M.2 would make for a good games drive. And below £120. You won't see any benefit for that purpose with a more expensive NVME M.2.
 
Thailanddex said:
l open it up as soon as it arrives Tuesday
Click to expand...
I said that with so much confidence and that video looks so tricky haha
Really appreciate the input and advice. Guess I'll give it a go and call msi to confirm warranty status.
Crucial drive seems a great price, I'll probably go with that one
Thanks again guys, so helpful
 
A plastic spudger* with a bit of flex is ideal to remove the little ribbons. If you use metal the extra force can damage the sockets if not really careful. Picked up that tip from Louis Rossman's videos on YT (after I'd already partially broken a socket using a metal flat tip screwdriver lol - glued it together and it was fine though). They tend to be very flimsy.

* Search for "laptop spudger plastic" and you'll find some.
 
I'm nervous thinking about it, my hands are going to be shaking haha
OK so I'm pretty sure I'm gonna do it now and probably go with the crucial drive you recommended. It makes sense and as long as I'm super careful and take my time I'm 90% sure I shouldn't break anything.
I watched the teardown video and it looks straightforward but very delicate, I'll probably take an hour to do what the guy did in 15 minutes just to be sure but am reasonably confident and as long as it doesn't effect warranty then may as well give it a go.

The teardown video led me to another video and now I'm thinking if I've got the back off anyway and it's such a pain in the ass to do, I may as well put a high quality thermal paste on while I'm there. Again seems delicate and precise job but straightforward enough.
I figure do as much as I can so I don't have to open it up again lol
 
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