Looking For Very Small Hard Drive For Dos Laptop...

I am looking for a hard drive for a very old DOS laptop. I know it takes a 2.5" hard drive but don't know the connection type. I also want it to be between 350 and 500 MB. I looked on eBay, and nearly all the matched were in the many GB range. Also, the lowest search range started at IIRC 20GB. The best I found was at 1800MB. Where can I go for the hard drive I want? BTW, how do I determine the connection type?

 

If it's originally a DOS laptop, the2.5" hard drive is almost certainly PATA (Parallel ATA or IDE) interface. Do you still have the original hard drive? The PATA/IDE drives will have a single 40 Pin connector on the rear; The SATA (Serial ATA) drives all use two connectors, on the rear, (a larger one for power, the smaller connector for data) the same as standard SATA drives for desktop computers. (I don't think SATA was available when DOS computers, [desktop or laptop] were originally built.
PATA drives are all going to be "used" or refurbished; they haven't been manufactured on a LONG trime.

 

I don't have the original hard drive, as the laptop didn't come with one. You're right that they don't market them anymore. I want to know my options. I want tested quality, i.e. no errors, and a low price. It can be used, though. BTW, I live in the U.S.

 

It WILL be used considering the age. I was able to get a "refurbished" 320 GB drive for about $25.00, but that was through (either eBay or Amazon, not sure) and that was several years ago. Due to the IDE drives becoming rare, they probably are more expensive now.Just look for "refurbished;" that's the best you can do; Amazon probably doesn't have IDE drives anymore, but it's worth a try there. (If it was a desktop, there would probably enough room in the case to allow an adapter that would allow you to use a SATA drive, but it would never fit into a laptop.) I wish you luck in your search.

 

Well, I just checked with Amazon, (O "googled "computers>small IDE 2.5" hard drive) and they do have some IDE drives available. So choose what might be best for your needs, and check if they are refurbished, or just "used." Good luck.

 

Thank you.