What would I need to get a 2.5" into a front loading 3.5" bay?

[Rummy]

So...HDD's are still pricey and I'm deciding to try and clean up/sort/organise and utilize the space on my other three drives in addition to my computer's! My computer has a front loading HD bay, though it would seem to be fore 3.5" drives, I was wondering if there's anything out there that is suitable for me to try and convert/replace the bay/tray so I can put a 2.5" drive in it instead? I've got a 500GB sitting in my laptop that I don't use very often at all, but no caddy for it(taken up by another old laptop drive), and I'm thinking it'd be faster running through the front bay over usb anyway.

 

I have no idea what would be suitable to get for this purpose however, I keep finding cables or what appear to be internal brackets, and I'd imagine those aren't right for this. Can anyone help out? I'll attach pictures of the front tray if it'll help make sense of things.

[Sméagol]

I use [scythe twin mounters] to get 2 (2,5") SSD’s in a 3,5" bay.

[Rummy]

The thingy looks like this;

 

 

It's more like a removable drive...without the drive yet, really. I don't know how drives usually mount inside a computer compared to this, so would those still be suitable like? The connector/port is in a kinda fixed location, so it has to essentially fit into a very specific spot, as it's not just like a cable I can move to reach.

[Sméagol]

The things I posted, and all products like it, are supposed to go in a 3,5" bay, pretending to be “one 3,5" harddisk”. If that thing you posted normally accepts 3,5" harddisks, than the twinmount I posted should fit in. That said, if it’s really a tight fit, and it’s a mm off, you can try another product, and will only have lost a few pounds. I liked these because they were so simple. But I suspect you can’t really go wrong if you search for 2,5" to 3,5" convertors on your favourite techshop. The ones I posted are simply the ones I use and fit perfectly in my drivebays.

 

Sorry, wasn’t realising you wanted to use a frontal loading 3,5" HDD bay. I don’t have experience with those, but I’m guessing they connect your HDD in a specific way that’s not very flexible, and convertors may not work. I should see the outer shell of that thing, in other words, the inside of your HDD bay. Don’t happen to have a picture of that do you? :p. Perhaps it’s not a problem if you’re willing to give up the loading feature (i.e. keep your 2,5" HDD exactly where it is). Is the HDD bay part of the case, or is it an 3rd party product? Any brand / type / link you could give? If you have a spare “normal” HDD bay that would be easier.

 

Edit:

For fucks’s sake I should learn to read properly! :p You already commented on the regarding issue.

 

Eh, yes. Regardless, a spare normal bay would be easier. That said, if there’s an opening in the outer shell of that bay, and you can get both the sata connectors through it, it may work, as long as you accept you can’t use the front loading feature anymore, but I’m pretty sure it’s not going to fit. Apart from a spare normal bay being easier, it’s probably also easier to replace that frontloading bay you have with a normal bay. There are probably specific products for your problem, I’ll have a look.

 

Edit:

I’m going to assume your front loading bay is a 5,25" bay itself. You could replace that thing with something [like this].

Edited January 15, 2012 by Sméagol

[Rummy]

This thing is basically it. The computer came/comes like this. It goes in the front of the computer just like that with a drive in it! Looking inside the gap, it seems the connector is on the right hand side(my right looking at it). I think I was wishful in hoping there might be something to do that job, just a shame I have a fairly useful 2.5inch AND a potential better way to connecting it than USB, but can't.

 

Literally the way this thing works is I press the button, cover flaps down on my computer, and I pull it out as you see it above. The lever with the orange bit is the handle of sorts for pulling it out/pushing it in. It's a bit silly I guess.

[McPhee]

I just screwed my 2.5" hdd on to one side of a 3.5" bay. Not the most secure solution, but it's been like that for a year with no issues and it saved me a few quid on a caddy.