Anyone using Blue Ray?

[Adcadet]

When I recently re-built my computer I used a cheap $25 DVD burner. I still have a few spindles of CD-Rs that I've never used, and a few dozen DVD-R and -RWs. I couldn't see Blue Ray being useful to me for anything other than perhaps watching movies, but for that I now have HTPC. So far I've burned a total of 4 DVDs in the past few months, all for a single project, and haven't felt the need to burn anything higher capacity.

However, I'd like to backup my most precious files (pictures, home videos) to give to family to store "off site." I've been planning on using an old-ish 500 GB hard drive I have, but I realize that right now I only have ~150 GB of stuff, although it is growing quickly thanks to HD video. It looks like a 15-pack of 25 GB media is ~$20, making the cost to use Blue Ray <$10 per backup, plus of course the $80+ for the burner. And nobody I know has a Blue Ray drive to read the media.

Is anybody using Blue Ray? Is it maturing as a technology to the point where people might actually burn optical media again?

 

[BingBangBop]

I wouldn't bother with a backup that requires feeding multiple disks. I haven't been willing to do that since floppy drives. It just takes too much hand-holding time. I'd only consider blue-ray when I have 150GB and media that is significantly bigger than that to compensate for data growth over time.

 

[ddrueding]

I'll second B³... 500GB external hard drives are <$50 each, and much easier to deal with.

 

[Santilli]

Bluray for backup? Not with what the media costs.

Last burning I did was using dual layer DVD disks.

I use hard drives to store Bluray, not vice versa. With current pricing, I use 1.5 gig-2 gig drives(shop) and use that for storage. I also have non-critical backups on these drives. If it's really important, I back it up on two drives, or three, not on media.
Media, DVD's at this point have a distressing habit of failing around the 3-5 year mark.

 

[Stereodude]

If you do decide to use Blu-Ray as a back up be sure to stick to quality BD-R discs like Verbatim (non LTH) discs. They're about $2 each though they can get as low as $1.50 or so on sale.

 

[MaxBurn]

All my backups involve backing up to another computers drive. I don't think I would be willing to backup to media that I would have to pay for over and over again.

External drives in the 1TB USB3 run only around $80. So fast and easy.

Once you consider imaging your OS or whole computer to external disk your backup needs may grow quite a bit beyond your cited 150GB.

 

[Bozo]

If you do decide to use Blu-Ray as a back up be sure to stick to quality BD-R discs like Verbatim (non LTH) discs. They're about $2 each though they can get as low as $1.50 or so on sale.

In a program about the Smithsonian, they 'aged' two CDs from the same pack of CDs. One was fine, the other was worthless. Seems it's a crap shoot to how long disc will last.

 

[Handruin]

How decent is your ISP and how do you expect to change in the time-frame between backups? I see your total estimate is around 150GB. Would an online backup service work for you?

 

[Mercutio]

Honestly, I think the best thing to do for basic backup is just to stick another internal drive into a desktop and to anoint that drive as "the drive that holds backups."

I say internal because the simple fact is that external drive power supplies are so crappy and accidents are so frequent in home scenarios that it just makes more sense to do things that way.

 

[Handruin]

However, I'd like to backup my most precious files (pictures, home videos) to give to family to store "off site." I've been planning on using an old-ish 500 GB hard drive I have, but I realize that right now I only have ~150 GB of stuff, although it is growing quickly thanks to HD video. It looks like a 15-pack of 25 GB media is ~$20, making the cost to use Blue Ray <$10 per backup, plus of course the $80+ for the burner. And nobody I know has a Blue Ray drive to read the media.

Is anybody using Blue Ray? Is it maturing as a technology to the point where people might actually burn optical media again?

Honestly, I think the best thing to do for basic backup is just to stick another internal drive into a desktop and to anoint that drive as "the drive that holds backups."

I say internal because the simple fact is that external drive power supplies are so crappy and accidents are so frequent in home scenarios that it just makes more sense to do things that way.

Maybe an internal drive with a hotswap bay?

 

[Santilli]

I've been using Antec Hotswap bays, at someone's suggestion here.
http://www.vendio.com/stores/goldduo/item?lid=16587667&source=Vendio:Google Product Search

They work well, but, I don't hotswap. I turn the computer off, switch drives, then turn it on again. Perfect setup to back up your files, then put the backup in a safe.

 

[Bozo]

I've been using Antec Hotswap bays, at someone's suggestion here.
http://www.vendio.com/stores/goldduo/item?lid=16587667&source=Vendio:Google Product Search

They work well, but, I don't hotswap. I turn the computer off, switch drives, then turn it on again. Perfect setup to back up your files, then put the backup in a safe.

Same here, both at home and work.

 

[Adcadet]

I currently backup to an additional internal hard drive (Hitachi 7k2000, 2 TB, was debating RAID1, but decided against that) - this takes up a bit over 500 GB right now. Really important stuff (right now ~150 GB, I suspect this will double every year) also gets backed up to my HTPC upstairs and to my wife's computer and I want an additional copy that is not connected to the power lines, and preferably is off-site. I am planning on using an old 500 GB hard drive (Seagate 7200.11) to occasionally put into one of my two hot swap bays (I have a CoolerMaster HAF-X and have plugged in both hot swap bays), copy the 150 GB (and growing) of really critical stuff, and then store about 100 miles away in some sort of appropriate box (shipping container?). And finally, I'm getting a Toshiba 1 TB external drive (USB3) that I think I'll also use to store the critical 150 GB, in my home but rarely plugged in/powered on. I admit that I'm a little paranoid.

I've thought about online stuff, but haven't found something I like yet. But that would satisfy the paranoid very well. Carbonite seems reasonable, $60 per computer (I'd just back up mine), unlimited storage, and has some nice perks (keeps deleted files for 30 days, can access files on the web). Backblaze is also $60/year, unlimited storage.
Crashplan is $50/year for unlimited storage. Mozy is expensive for large volumes - $10/month for up to 125 GB. I know some around here have used online backup before, does anybody have strong feelings?

 

[Handruin]

I've thought about online stuff, but haven't found something I like yet. But that would satisfy the paranoid very well. Carbonite seems reasonable, $60 per computer (I'd just back up mine), unlimited storage, and has some nice perks (keeps deleted files for 30 days, can access files on the web). Backblaze is also $60/year, unlimited storage.
Crashplan is $50/year for unlimited storage. Mozy is expensive for large volumes - $10/month for up to 125 GB. I know some around here have used online backup before, does anybody have strong feelings?

I canceled my Mozy account due to the price increase and got a deal on a CrashPlan account because they were offering specials to Mozy refugees. So far I like Crashplan. It seems minimally invasive, somewhat fast to backup, and it offers good features for backing up to other local media/drives and will also let you share space on your computer with friends/family so that they can backup to your machine.