Question How do i know if my hard drive is 3.5 or 2.5

yyoussef101

Commendable
May 23, 2020
43
1
1,535
Hey, i have two hard drives, 1 is installed on the pc the other is not, how do I know if they are 2.5 or 3.5?

I think things will be easy with the installed one, but how about the other one, is there a way that I can know without installing it, is there anything written on it that can tell me if it's 2.5 or 3.5?

Thanks!
 
The physical size will let you know if it is 2.5in or 3.5in. Additionally, you can google the model number given in software if you cannot see the drive.

Desktops typically use 3.5in hard drives, laptops use 2.5in and cannot fit 3.5in hard drives.

main-qimg-5b2f6aa2c03eab8fb19f6e5976e6e1ee

Left is 3.5in, right is 2.5in.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
oh really? I wanted to buy a SATA to usb cable , but the seller says it doesn't support a 3.5 hdd, should I just ignore that?
Connecting internally in the PC, they are the same.

Connecting via USB is different.
For a 3.5" drive, you need a powered dock or cable.

Like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Docking-Station-Support/dp/B0099TX7O4


What, exactly, are you going to do with this drive?
If we know, we can suggest the proper cables or connections.