The Raspberry Pi is a tiny, low-power, low-cost computer. But in order to keep the price of the $35 computer low, the developers have left out some key features… like built-in storage. Users need to install an SD card for the operating system and a USB drive if you want additional storage space.

Want a simple way to add a lot of storage? The Western Digital PiDrive is a 1 terabyte hard drive designed specifically for Raspberry Pi computers.

It’s available for $80, but the folks at BitTorrent Sync are offering a coupon code that could save you 35 percent.

wd pidrive_01

So what makes this kit different from any other hard drive? First, it comes with a 4GB microSD card which you can use for operating system files. Second, it comes with a special USB 3.0 cable that’s designed to connect to the USB port of the Raspberry Pi and the power port of a Raspberry Pi and a power adapter.

This lets you use a single cable to connect the hard drive to the computer and to power both devices.

Western Digital says the drive is compatible with the Raspberry Pi Model B+ and the Raspberry Pi 2 Model B.

via /r/Android and FatWallet

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10 replies on “WD PiDrive is a 1TB hard drive kit for the Raspberry Pi”

  1. Doesn’t one of those Pi clones come with an eSATA port?

    What I want is some big name manufacturer or some company we know and trust to build a decent ARM desktop box. My what I term “always on box” is first gen Atom, ARM latest chips are ahead of that aren’t they? We have Intel going off the rails politically and I don’t want to give them money. And AMD seem to be in a time bubble all of their own making……….

    I have read rumours that the next Mac Mini might be ARM box, but that would mean giving money to them.

    Surely somebody out there sees the need for a decent ARM box?

    1. Look into the Bananapi for that feature. I believe it’s a full SATA port and power.

      1. Thanks. I think like many I am waiting for a “big name” ARM PC. We need to escape this Intel bubble.

  2. Seems an over complicated solution to me. A standard WD Elements 1TB drive works perfectly well with a Raspberry Pi using one simple USB cable, if you back-feed the power to the Pi through another USB port. I have a small stack of 1TB servers which all work that way. Seems to work with any type B except the very early ones with USB fuses, which would need by-passing.

    1. and it’s network-performance is poor
      nearly as poor as it’s usb-storage-performance

      but by far not as poor as if when you try to use both at once

      1. Well the network is technically on the USB bus so that’s unfortunately understandable…

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