Any disadvantage to using an internal HDD as a backup drive?

[modernwar99]

Need a new backup/transfer drive since my current one is too small for all my data. By "transfer" drive I mean transferring large files (like a flash drive but more capacity) between my two computers.

Going to buy a 1TB drive to store my stuff on. I checked amazon and most decent 1TB external HDDs are $70+. This seemed odd to me considering internal 1TB HDDs are like $45-$50 and quite a bit faster. So I was thinking why not just buy a 1TB internal drive and back my data up on that instead. I would store the drive in a drawer (in a protective sleeve of course) rather than leaving it plugged in 24/7.

Besides the slight inconvenience of transporting it between my computers as opposed to a simple plug-n-play external HDD, I'm not aware of any other downsides to this method. I guess is there any other downsides in doing so?

 

[USAFRet]

So you're going to open the PC and remove this drive all the time?

1. Eventually, the connections will wear out.
2. Eventually, you're going to drop it.

If these two computers are on the same LAN, just transfer over the LAN.

 

[jossrik]

What I recommend is that you get the internal drive, but also buy a USB 3.0 adapter for it, they cost like 20 - 30$ US for something decent, you'll get good transfer speeds, and provided you don't drop it (which is a concern even with standard external drives, not sure why you would be more prone to drop an internal than an external...) Anyways, mechanical drives will all eventually fail whether you use them or not, they degrade over the years, just keep getting new drives periodically while the old ones work, depends on how important the data is you're saving. Mission critical, get an internal SSD, something good, and a USB 3.0 adapter for it. Back up frequently. Not so mission critical, get a mechanical HDD back up often.

 

[jsmithepa]

Costco has a 1TB external Passport for 60 bux.