Good CF card Reader/USB-IDE interface?

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madc0w
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Good CF card Reader/USB-IDE interface?

Post by madc0w » Sun Oct 15, 2006 8:23 am

Ok, my friend recently gave me an Ipod harddrive from a distroyed Ipod he got from a random guy at school. The harddrive is still good though. I would like to use it as a 20gb external harddrive, but I need a recommendation. I need a link to a cheap CF-USb or IDE-USB converter. I looked on circuitcity and newegg, but all of them were too bulky or had too many readers (like an 8 in one reader.) I also don't want an inclosure, because I am planing to put it in an altoids tin. Thanks in advanced!
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Post by Indigno » Sun Oct 15, 2006 8:31 am

lot of the enclosures and stuff that was too bulky often times has a lot of empty space in them. You could try finding the smallest of them and cracking it open. If it's still too big you could always try chopping the board (If you're hardcore enough).
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Post by bicostp » Sun Oct 15, 2006 8:42 am

Will an iPod hard drive even fit in an Altoids tin? I have an old 4 gig IBM laptop drive here, and it's about a quarter inch too big on all sides to fit.

An enclosure is probablly the best way to go; even if you don't want to enclose the drive, you still have the converter board inside (and you can use the case for other things...)

<a href="http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications ... =0">Here's a few I found on TigerDirect.</a>

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Post by Sparkfist » Sun Oct 15, 2006 9:52 am

Well I found two that would work, one thing a enclosure and the other being just a USB addapter, and if the hard drive is just like a compactflash card it should work. Here's an enclosure. And here is the USB adapter.
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Post by Harshboy » Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:13 pm

Would it be possible to Install Windows XP or Linux onto an iPod Video (Like the iPod, not just the HDD) and with that, could i take the iPod with me, hook it up to a computer via USB, and boot from it in the BIOS? It'd be cool to take my Linux/XP with me :D

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Post by tom61 » Sun Oct 15, 2006 1:11 pm

The 1.8" harddrive interface is not the same as CF, a CF adapter will not work. Also, the enclosure linked is for the Hitachi style 1.8" HD, and not the Toshiba (the one in the iPod) style, and will not work. I've only seen the proper adapters on eBay.

Harshboy, yes, you can install an OS to the iPod's drive and boot off it. Plenty of guides on the internet for how to do this.

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Post by madc0w » Sun Oct 15, 2006 3:40 pm

I would do pin relocation, CF is the same protocol as IDE with different pinouts. I think I'm going to get a cheapo enclosure, and hack the board apart, like the guy on hackaday did. Also, the ipod harddrive fits in with a little wiggle room on each side widht and lengthwise.
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