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At least the RDX connector is made to withstand several thousand insertions (USB clearly can't). I suppose that the makers take some precaution to give some she

by wazoox 13y ago

At least the RDX connector is made to withstand several thousand insertions (USB clearly can't). I suppose that the makers take some precaution to give some shelf durability to the drives within, too, but that's just a guess.

beagle3 13y ago
I am unconvinced. If your archival media is going through thousands of insertions, then it's not archival - it's the most inefficient swap device ever. But I've connected/disconnected my laptop's USB mouse and keyboard a couple of thousands of time (several times a day over the last few years) and neither connector nor socket seem to be suffering. Furthermore, most of my cold store drives are of the self-powered USB 5400 RPM variety (getting a decent 30-40MB/sec on USB3) - if something breaks, I replace the $1 cable that connects drive to computer. Seriously, RDX seems like an awful choice - does someone here actually know differently?
- hga 13y ago
  Yeah, it's not at all clear to me that USB connectors aren't worth "thousands" of insertion/removal cycles. They look very well thought out, plenty of contact area. Looks like it depends on the thickness of the gold contacts, per this supplier: http://www.globalconnectortechnology.com/usb-connectors/ http://www.globalconnectortechnology.com/usb-connectors/ USB2.0 Full Size: 1,500 mating cycles, gold flash plating. USB2.0 Mini: 5,000 mating cycles, 15µ” gold plating. USB2.0 Micro: 10,000 mating cycles, 30µ” gold plating. USB3.0 Full Size: 5,000 mating cycles, 30µ” gold plating. USB 3.0 Micro: 10,000 mating cycles, 30µ” gold plating. With an added comment: Why Micro types offer better durability? Accomplished by moving leaf-spring from the PCB receptacle to plug, the most-stressed part is now on the cable side of the connection. Inexpensive cable bears most wear instead of the µUSB device. Plus as you note, it's easy to make it a cheap replaceable part. Use a USB extension cable on the computer side and you won't be wearing that out (I've done that trick in times past).

by wazoox 13y ago

beagle3 13y ago

I am unconvinced. If your archival media is going through thousands of insertions, then it's not archival - it's the most inefficient swap device ever. But I've connected/disconnected my laptop's USB mouse and keyboard a couple of thousands of time (several times a day over the last few years) and neither connector nor socket seem to be suffering. Furthermore, most of my cold store drives are of the self-powered USB 5400 RPM variety (getting a decent 30-40MB/sec on USB3) - if something breaks, I replace the $1 cable that connects drive to computer. Seriously, RDX seems like an awful choice - does someone here actually know differently?

hga 13y ago
Yeah, it's not at all clear to me that USB connectors aren't worth "thousands" of insertion/removal cycles. They look very well thought out, plenty of contact area. Looks like it depends on the thickness of the gold contacts, per this supplier: http://www.globalconnectortechnology.com/usb-connectors/ http://www.globalconnectortechnology.com/usb-connectors/ USB2.0 Full Size: 1,500 mating cycles, gold flash plating. USB2.0 Mini: 5,000 mating cycles, 15µ” gold plating. USB2.0 Micro: 10,000 mating cycles, 30µ” gold plating. USB3.0 Full Size: 5,000 mating cycles, 30µ” gold plating. USB 3.0 Micro: 10,000 mating cycles, 30µ” gold plating. With an added comment: Why Micro types offer better durability? Accomplished by moving leaf-spring from the PCB receptacle to plug, the most-stressed part is now on the cable side of the connection. Inexpensive cable bears most wear instead of the µUSB device. Plus as you note, it's easy to make it a cheap replaceable part. Use a USB extension cable on the computer side and you won't be wearing that out (I've done that trick in times past).