Thinkpads Forum

Don't often post on the site. Recently got a X220 with the ultrabase 3 (DVD-RW). I want to add a hard drive for backups to swap with the DVD. Getting confused as to what I need.

Thought I need a caddy for 9.5mm drive, as seen on ebay, + hd of my choice (2.5 inch. 9.5mm height)?
Also i am not sure what HD would be best (or one of several). X220 has the 320gb 7200 rpm unit. I was thinking 500-750gb for the ultrabase.

Thanks for helping. So many folks here with so much knowledge.

You are on the right track.

In my opinion get the largest hard drive that fits your budget.

Check eBay for your 2nd hard drive adapter. They are fairly inexpensive and I never found one that didn't work. If you want to go OEM expect to pay 3 to 5x the price. They would work too.

Brad

I used to use an Ultrabase with my X220 but swapped it for a Mini Dock Series III with USB 3.0 earlier in the year, and have found a hard disk connected via USB 3.0 to be much quicker (subjectively and objectively).

(Of course, the above only applies to the i7 X220s as other variants don't support USB 3.0.)

Thanks for the help. Mine is an I5, so no USB 3.0 support.

The correct ThinkPad Option is ThinkPad Serial ATA Hard Drive Bay Adapter III. A feature possibly found in aftermarket substitutes, is activity LED.

Looks like most new drives are SATA III. Will that work OK with X220; just slow down the transfer?
Thanks, got a lot to learn.

Almost all drives are backwards compatible, so SATA III will also work under II or I

Thanks for all the tips. Think I can handle it now.