Hdd and eSATAp question

[Kaelan002]

I have an old maxtor maxline III HDD and my laptop has a eSATAp (aka esata/usb) port meaning i can connect both the data port and the power port to it with a single cable instead of connecting just the sata data port and having to power it seperatly. The problem is on most laptops they only supply 5v (desktops supply 12v), enough to power up to an average 2.5" drive, this one is 3.5".

so...

-on the drive it says

does that mean its 5v or 12v?
-what will happen if i try to power it with 5 when it needs 12, will it just slow down or not work at all?
-Can i test the power of the eSATAp port with actually buying the cable and plugging it in?
-if it isnt sufficient how can i supply power to the drive without buying a costly transformer?

thanks

[MrsSekhmet]

Costly transformer?

No need for that, just buy this cable. Conceptronic 2L Serial ATA & IDE to USB Adapter


It only costs around 25 € here in the netherlands..

It could be that the HDD has a switch in it so it will work on 5 and 12 volt. But i do not know for sure!!.

[Kaelan002]

Thanks for the help, that would be great but id rather use the sata port as it uses power from the laptop but more importantly its transfer speed is ALOT (atleast double if not triple) faster than usb2.
Also its four times the price of an esatap cable

The hdd does have what apears to be an (unmarked) jumper, can anyone think of anything else it might be for apart from changing the voltage?

[Seven.]

USB = 5v

eSATAp = 5v

Copied from Wiki because I'm lazy:
eSATAp stands for powered eSATA. It is also known as Power over eSATA, eSATA USB Hybrid Port (EUHP), or eSATA/USB Combo. An eSATAp port combines the 4 pins of the USB 2.0 (or earlier) port, the 7 pins of the eSATA port, and optionally two 12-volt power pins.[22] Both SATA traffic and device power are integrated in a single cable, as is the case with USB but not eSATA. Power at 5 volts is provided through two USB pins; power at 12 Volts may optionally be provided. Typically desktop, but not notebook, computers provide 12 volt power, so can power devices requiring this voltage, typically 3.5" disk and CD/DVD drives, in addition to 5 volt devices such as 2.5" drives.

IDE/(E)SATA = 12v

You're safe.

[Kaelan002]

thanks for the help but your kinda just saying what i said in the first post, maybe you misread it?

eSATAp = 5v
IDE/(E)SATA = 12v
You're safe.

e(external)SATA
-doesnt provide any power at all, so you have to use a separate transformer

e(external)SATAp(powered)
-does as its an esata port combined with the four usb pins that provide 5v of power, enough for a 2.5" (ie laptop) hddrive.
-In desktops (and some laptops) in addition to the esata and usb pins there are also two 12v ones, providing enough power for a 3.5" drive or a cd/blu-ray drive.

What im asking is how can i find out if i have the extra 12v pins as i have a laptop and a 3.5" drive