TarDisk? has anyone tried this

[MadForMac]

Hi I am new to the Forum I was need to add space to my rMBP 13 and was looking at MiniDrives I cam across a new one called TarDisk (tarDisk.com) anyone they this?

 

[pigoo3]

Maybe I'm missing something…but this "Tardisk" product just looks like a fancy micro SD card holder/adapter. It certainly is "fancier" than a typical micro-SD card holder…but I don't think that it offers any additional functions/features.

One thing I'm not 100% sure of (maybe someone else can offer an opinion)…is how reliable micro-SD cards are for continuous use as a "storage-expander" inside a computer. Compared to the durability/reliability of the built-in storage.

- Nick

 

[vansmith]

Like pigoo3, from what I know, micro SD cards don't do well with continuous read and write operations. You might want to find another way.

 

[MadForMac]

Ya does look fancy the idea is that it sits flush in a mac

The Idea of the device is that it sits flush in your macbook (the rMBP13 has a really short sd port), most cards stick way out there is a company called Nifty that makes the same thing but charges $40 and another TheMiniDrive is $30 for a capped adapter, this one looks nicer than both and is only $25 so I thought it would be worth checking out.

Also last Nifty I bought only worked for an hour

If no one has tried the new one maybe I'll buy one its not that much after all

 

[MadForMac]

Samsung has a new 64GB that boasts 90 mb/s read and 80 mb/s write which should be fast enough for a VM of windows

 

[pigoo3]

The Idea of the device is that it sits flush in your macbook (the rMBP13 has a really short sd port), most cards stick way out there is a company called Nifty that makes the same thing but charges $40 and another TheMiniDrive is $30 for a capped adapter, this one looks nicer than both and is only $25 so I thought it would be worth checking out.

Also last Nifty I bought only worked for an hour

If no one has tried the new one maybe I'll buy one its not that much after all

Yes I realize that this product is "prettier". But you are putting "prettiness" ahead of function…and you mentioned reliability of a previous setup only lasting an hour.

The reliability concern is due to things like USB sticks, SD cards, and micro SD cards are mostly made as storage devices that you put something on it & access it on an infrequent basis. I don't think that they are made to be rugged enough for continuous reading & writing that happens when we operate our computers.

These products being discussed are only adapters for micro SD cards. With the main "point of difference" being that they are flush & look pretty. These products are fine if someone just wants a portable method of storage for moving data or files from one device to another. But this may not be the best way to "add storage" to a single devices storage capacity.

Yes…the storage in retina MacBook Pro's is not easily upgradeable (technically it is not supposed to be upgradeable at all by the end user)…this is why rMBP's need to be configured with lots of storage up front. But…the website macsales.com does sell some storage upgrades…so you might want to check them out.

The other solution is…simply don't store everything on the computers internal storage. Off-load what isn't needed frequently onto some sort of external storage device…freeing up internal storage.

- Nick

 

[MadForMac]

I figured it might be useful for Time Machine backups, and didn't want to buy more iCloud space which seems to be just what Apple wants me to do.

 

[vansmith]

An SD card is a poor choice for TM backups. They are, for lack of a better word, brittle. You'd be much better off with an external hard disk.

 

[MadForMac]

But MicroSD cards are waterproof and shock proof I don't know that i would trust an external hard drive falling off the table or getting wet. Also a fast 64gb MicroSD is cheap about $30 and the whole point is onboard portable storage boost if I could quickly add 64GB for less than $60 and not have to use one of my other ports its a win.
I got the retina because it was small and lighter and faster than the non retina pro I don't want extra usb drives that I have to bring with me to work and I don't want to spend more than 50$ bucks this looked cheaper than Nifty but it doesn't have any reviews so I was curious if anyone had tried it, looks smarter no tool and the price is half Nifty's and still less than TheMiniDrive. I'm going to order one if anyone is interested let me know and I'll tell you what I think.

Thanks for the feedback though

 

[pigoo3]

"We can lead a horse to water…but we cannot make him drink!"

- Nick

 

[harryb2448]

Well suggest you go ahead and try one out. Nothing, nothing, beats an external hard drive for TM and cloning backups. And 64GB is really not big enough for any backups.

But by all means go ahead and try it and report back in say January for the information of others.