External Hard Drive not working in USB 2.0 Ports

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oneputt Posts 1 Registration date Friday February 7, 2014 Status Member Last seen February 7, 2014 - Feb 7, 2014 at 07:06 AM
 Sekica - Feb 14, 2017 at 02:42 AM
My External Hard Drive is a Sony HD-E1. It uses a USB 3.0 cable. I have been using it for nearly a year now on my laptop and TV with no issues and both only have USB 2.0 Ports. Recently it has stopped working on both devices. My laptop says all my USB drivers are up to date. I tried the Hard Drive with 2 other laptops that have both 2.0 and 3.0 usb ports. The Hard Drive was recognised and working without any problems in the 3.0 ports but did not on the 2.0 ports. Can anyone help me with this issue or an expaination as to why this would happen.

Thank You
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1 response

xpcman Posts 19530 Registration date Wednesday October 8, 2008 Status Contributor Last seen June 15, 2019 1,825
Feb 7, 2014 at 12:29 PM
A USB 3.0 port supplies more power than the 2.0 version. It's possible the hard drive is getting older and now requires move power than the 2.0 port can provide.
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I had the exact same problem on my WD Elements 1TB, after a couple of years it suddenly stopped working on USB 2.0 ports but working just fine on USB 3.0.

The reason was the faulty cable. When i plugged it in with friend's Transcend USB3.0 cable on my WD it worked just fine on both USB 2.0 and USB 3.0.

Hope this helps :)
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