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HP Recommended
Microsoft Windows 7 (64-bit)

I tried to find a close match to my old WD with IDE cables with a new WD blue series with IDE cable. The new one has more storage but they're both 3.5. My problem is the cables don't seem to match. Would I need to buy a different hard drive or just different cables.

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HP Recommended

So far there has been very little actual information about what you actually have/need.  What is the model number of the PC?  An 80Gb drive is really too small for practical use on most PC's nowadays.

 

If you bought a SATA drive, an external case for USB should be used to make it usable for another PC.


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The old IDE cabled hard drives were standardized, so if the cable does not match the drive then perhaps it is not an IDE drive that you bought.  IDE ribbon end to match the drive would look like this:

https://www.amazon.com/HDE-40-Pin-Ribbon-Internal-Transfer/dp/B009D010GQ

 


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@BIRDIES

 

Hello;

Allow me to welcome you to the HP forums!

 

You're mentioning "IDE Cables" -- and these are drive cables that have wide, flat connectors that take two rows of lots of little brass pins.

 

Are we taking about the same thing?

 

Asking because all IDE drive connectors are essentially the same.

 

So, I don't understand what you mean when you say the cables "don't match".  You need to explain the differences.



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80GB Western Digital Caviar Blue 3.5-inch IDE/PATA desktop hard drive (7200rpm, 8MB cache)
 
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I'm trying to post a picture41fdOcNPJvL.jpg

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old driveold drivenew drivenew driveblack IDE cablesblack IDE cables

HP Recommended

The top picture is an IDE drive.  The next one down is SATA and they are not interchangeable.  The bottom picture is not clear enough but it definitely looks too small to be IDE connections.  Try again with a clearer picture


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Do you know if they still make replacement for my old drive? and if I could get it from HP. Also if I keep the new drive can I use it as an external drive to a different computer. I just don't want to have to return it.

HP Recommended

So far there has been very little actual information about what you actually have/need.  What is the model number of the PC?  An 80Gb drive is really too small for practical use on most PC's nowadays.

 

If you bought a SATA drive, an external case for USB should be used to make it usable for another PC.


I'm not an HP employee.
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HP Recommended

You're right about 80Gb being too small but it's bigger than the old S ATA drive. Not really sure why the drive was failing because it was virtually empty and didn't do much work but at the same time we've had it for a long time (since 2009). I've already ordered a new computer so right now I'm just tinkering with the old one to see if I can get it going without spending too much money.  So far I've only invested $39, the price of the new IDE drive. But thanks for your help.

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