Harddrive Upgrade question...

Okay, curiosity has bitten me in the butt. I read another forum posting and rather steal his post, I'll create my own. I'm now looking to upgrade my PS3 Harddrive, I wasn't before, but I am now, espeically as I've been told it's easy. I have found four contestants and would value your input on telling me which one is your recommendation, purely because I am not all that technical minded, I know how to use a computer, solve basic problems, but when it comes to shredding these things alive and ripping out their guts, I fall short of the technical knowledge, so without further ado.... here are the contestants...

1: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Western-Digital-Scorpio-Serial-5400rpm/dp/B000VNCEPA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1226237704&sr=8-3

2: http://www.amazon.co.uk/250GB-Scorpio-5400rpm-Notebook-WD2500BEVS/dp/B000VKXH36/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1226237704&sr=8-7

3: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hitachi-Travelstar-250GB-SATA-drive/dp/B0013E5HKU/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1226237704&sr=8-12

4: http://www.amazon.co.uk/WD-Scorpio-WD3200BEVT-internal-SATA-300/dp/B0011U65F2/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1226238022&sr=8-17

So those are the brave souls who will find themselves enclosed in my PS3 till death do us part and to test thy knowledge even further... here are some teasing questions, which if you have time, I would appreciate them answered as well...

1: How long would it take to install the PS3 operating system?

2: Would I be able to keep all my crap that is saved on the current harddrive?

3: What can I do about myPS gamertag and the content I bought on the PS store

4: Would changing harddrives affect gameplay in any manner?

5: What are the risks of having a fat ass harddrive, can they corrupt more easily?

Thank You.

They are all the same specifications. So, if I were you I would go with this one: http://www.amazon.co.uk/WD-Scorpio-WD3200BEVT-internal-SATA-300/dp/B0011U65F2/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1226238022&sr=8-17

Same speed as all the others with more space and not being all that more expensive, so if you've got the extra pounds, go for that one. Go big or go home.

And on to your questions.

1: How long would it take to install the PS3 operating system?

To install the PS3 OS itself would take about 5-10 minutes, basically as much time as it would take you to update.

2: Would I be able to keep all my crap that is saved on the current harddrive?

Yes, but you must have an external storage device (such as a USB Flash Drive or External Hard Drive), the bigger it is, the better. If it is large enough, you can backup your entire PS3 using its built in Backup/Restore Option in System Settings.

3: What can I do about myPS gamertag and the content I bought on the PS store

Just make sure you remember your email address and password. All you have to do is sign in and you will be able to go to your Download History and retrieve everything. Of course, if you do the Backup and Restore method with a large enough external storage device, everything will be kept and you will not have to redownload.

4: Would changing harddrives affect gameplay in any manner?

Not in your case as the harddrives you chose are not faster than the original one in the PS3.

5: What are the risks of having a fat ass harddrive, can they corrupt more easily?

No, there isn't any more risk than having any other hard drive.

I guess I'll chime in as well.

I would go with the 320GB Western Digital Scorpio Blue (the best value IMO).
There's also a Black version which operates at 7200 RPM (as opposed to 5400 RPM), but it's more expensive.

1. The installation/formatting process was pretty quick. I believe it gives you the choice of doing a backup as well.

2. Ideally, it's best to save a PS3 backup to an external hard drive or USB flash drive (if the backup isn't very large).
Alternatively, you could just transfer several things over at a time (to your computer) using a USB flash drive or an iPod.
Lastly, you could simply buy an external enclosure for your soon-to-be old PS3 hard drive; once your new hard drive is installed, you can simply attach the your old hard drive via USB to the PS3 and transfer all your stuff over.

3. The PS3 retains your login information even after you install the new hard drive.
Also, any content you bought is saved on your account. You're free to re-download them as often as you'd like (select the "View Downloads" button in the PSN store to see all your downloads/purchases).

4. No, unless you opt for the 7200 RPM hard drive. Actual game performance isn't affected, but you'll notice slightly faster system boot-up time, slightly faster game load times, etc. However, it comes at the expense of a little bit of extra heat generated and slightly louder noise due to faster operating mechanical parts. Nothing extremely noticeable.

5. None at all.
aflakian

This is the winning answer - no need for me to repeat what he said. :)

If you choose a different drive than the one he recommends - or two I should say - Black or Blue it's up to you...

Anyway if you go with a different one all you need to do is make sure it is a 2.5" drive (laptop drive) and is a SATA (Serial ATA) drive. Regular PC's use a 3.5" drive and those won't work - has to be a laptop drive.

All in all though the drives he recommended are ideal.

:)

well.... I went and purchased myself the new 320 Gig hard drive off Amazon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0011U65F2

I currently have a 40 gig model and still have 18 gigs left, (I truthfully haven't got a clue where the hell it has all gone) but the 320 gig should be more than enough for everything. The whole thing cost 57 pounds, so all and all, not bad I think....amazing really when the 120 gig harddrive for the Xbox is 100 pounds to buy in the stores.

Anyhow, I play the waiting game now, hopefully when I get my harddrive, I shouldn't have any problems, hell Sony gave us the option to upgrade our harddrives so, they had to make the process as easily as possible.