ESata port on Lenovo Ideapad y560p

Question

I have Lenovo IdeaPad Y560p with eSata port. Now I was thinking about upgrading the hard disk, currently it has 500 GB 5200RPM disk.

For this I was thinking of going with SSD option, but then I am told that I can only have 1 HDD in the laptop, so basically I would have to remove the HDD to put in 2.5" SSD. The SSD I have is mere 256 GB and I can not afford to have this much disk space, so I need to find a way to utilize both.

I find out that this laptop has eSata port on it, so I want to know is it possible to utilize this with SSD? Any suggestion what can I do to make both work with the laptop.

Answer 1

Although I'm not an expert I can try to help you.

I believe it will work perfectly but beware if eSata carries power or not. It depends on your computer's eSata Port.

If your port doesn't supply power, then you need you need to get it via a USB port (typically 5V). Cable for this will have both eSata and USB plugs in one end and Sata on the other end.

Alternatively your computer can have an eSataP port, combines both eSata e USB in one port. Thus here you need to get an appropriate cable too (eSataP to Sata cable). I think this article will clarify the issue for you: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA#eSATA

Connect the eSata (with or without USB according to needs) to the 2.5" Sata drive.

I advise Leaving the SSD for the operating system and possibly applications (speed critical ones) and use the external drive for data.

Remember regarding speed Sata III is faster ( >) than Sata II > Sata. SSDs can be either Sata I, II or III so make your choice (price wise as well ;) ).

Godd luck!