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Can a USB port drive a HDD? I'm looking at sata drive caddys and USB cables but some don't seem to have external power supplies. Do they need an additional power supply? Cheers.
USB can power a HDD, portable drives are USB powered, and they use a normal HDD.
Not sure about specifics, but I guess it depends on whether the USB connection accepts a power-supply via the lead or not.
I'm sure a proper expert will be along shortly to correct my assumption. 😀
Depends on the power requirements of the drive. Last one I bought was a 2.5" drive that was USB-power only.
The last caddy I bought came with a USB cable with two connectors at the computer end for suck juice out of two USB ports if the drive needed it.
Both my normal 2.5 inch external hdd and my 2.5inch drive from a laptop which now resides in a caddy are both happy on juice from one USB port.