Something wrong with my new Asus laptop?

[jyeh74]

I got a Asus u47a

There are 3 USB ports. 2 on the left side and 1 on the right side.
All 3 ports will work with my 8mb thumb drive.
However, only the right side will work with my WD 1TB external HD.
The left two will not find it.
It's not like the 2 left ports doesn't work because it will read the thumb drive.

Is it a compatibility with the USB 3.0 Western Digital HD?

[MOVIEGEEK]

The specs say two USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0:

http://www.asus.com/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/U47A/#specifications

I suspect it's a typo, probably one USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0. Check the website for firmware update.

[aedipuss]

are you sure it's a usb3 hard drive? i have lots of usb2 things that aren't recognized in usb3 ports even though the ports are "supposed" to be backwards compatible.

[jyeh74]

Interesting.
My friend got the ux21 which states that it has 2 USB 3.0

http://www.asus.com/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/ASUS_ZENBOOK_UX21A/#specifications

For some reason, the ux21 CANNOT read the WD external drives 3.0 USB. None of the USB drives can read it. Why?

[aedipuss]

bad usb3 cable? or incompatible with the usb3 chipset used on the motherboard.

[MOVIEGEEK]

It's probably the WD firmware because all NTFS devices should support 1TB:

http://support.wdc.com/product/download.asp?wdc_lang=en

[jyeh74]

The specs say two USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0:

http://www.asus.com/Notebooks_Ultrabooks/U47A/#specifications

I suspect it's a typo, probably one USB 3.0 and two USB 2.0. Check the website for firmware update.

I think its is 1 USB 3.0 and 2 USB 2.0 because my WD only works on 1 of the USB drives.
What is strange is that on the WD, there is a sticker that says "USB 3.0 compatible with USB 2.0" It doesn't seem to be the case here......hope my new ASUS laptop is not faulty.

[jyeh74]

are you sure it's a usb3 hard drive? i have lots of usb2 things that aren't recognized in usb3 ports even though the ports are "supposed" to be backwards compatible.

Yup, it is a USB 3.0 for the Western Digital 1 TB personal external drive.
Interface should be both USB 2.0 and 3.0

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=640

But it is suppose to be backwards compatible, and work on the USB 2.0 on my laptop. For some reason, it only works when I plug the hard drive into the one 3.0 USB drive. The other two USB 2.0 drives do NOT recognize it.

[oldfart13]

USB 3.0 Hitachi Touro 1TB works on both my USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports on Asus U36S. Is the WD drive powered? Might not have enough power. USB 3.0 standard says 900 ma per port. Might have to use a powered hub. Could also be a bad cable. Have had that happen on some Retail Plus drives.

[jyeh74]

The WD is not powered. It is just a usb cord.

I think something is wrong with my other USB ports. It doesnt even pick up the WD 1TB external hard drive when I plug it in. I understand it wont read at 3.0 speeds, only at 2.0 speeds. But it won't even read it.

[hello_hello]

Is the drive making signs it's alive when you plug it into one of those USB ports. Any LEDs light up, can you hear it spinning up etc? If not, it's probably not getting power from those USB ports, or enough of it.

Have you tried another USB device with those USB ports to confirm they work? A mouse or a USB thumb drive etc?

[jyeh74]

Yes, I tried a thumb drive on the two USB ports on the left. Both work.

When i plug in harddrive, it doesn't spin nor do the lights come on.

[usually_quiet]

Yes, I tried a thumb drive on the two USB ports on the left. Both work.

When i plug in harddrive, it doesn't spin nor do the lights come on.

From your description, the hard drive seems not to be receiving enough power from the laptop via its USB connection. That is likely because the laptop is designed for low power consumption for longer battery life and can't supply enough power for an external hard drive. Connecting the hard drive to the laptop using a USB hub that receives power from a wall plug, as suggested by oldfart13, might solve your problem.

[jyeh74]

Yes, I tried a thumb drive on the two USB ports on the left. Both work.

When i plug in harddrive, it doesn't spin nor do the lights come on.

From your description, the hard drive seems not to be receiving enough power from the laptop via its USB connection. That is likely because the laptop is designed for low power consumption for longer battery life and can't supply enough power for an external hard drive. Connecting the hard drive to the laptop using a USB hub that receives power from a wall plug, as suggested by oldfart13, might solve your problem.

Yes but one port (right side) reads it. The two ports (left side) do not read it.
Can the ports just be corrupt?

[Wolfen]

This really is a forum for video problems. You're best bet is to go to the ASUS forums you'll have a better chance there of solving your problem. This is your third try at this.

[smrpix]

Are you using the laptop plugged into the wall? I'm betting it's a power issue (as others have mentioned) and if you run on batteries none of the ports will work. USB ports are frequently marginally powered.

If they're reading other devices they're not corrupted.

[bendixG15]

This really is a forum for video problems. You're best bet is to go to the ASUS forums you'll have a better chance there of solving your problem. This is your third try at this.

Good idea

[jman98]

This really is a forum for video problems. You're best bet is to go to the ASUS forums you'll have a better chance there of solving your problem. This is your third try at this.

Good idea

I disagree.

Most of us know what the problem is. The problem is that the drive isn't powered. If jyeh74 will get off his butt and get a powered enclosure for the drive, the two "bad" ports will magically be able to find the drive. He's just another guy who doesn't want to listen to the advice he's given. I've seen his type before. He doesn't actually want his problem to be solved because he's ignoring the solution. What he wants is personal validation, that is, someone to tell him that the ports are bad on the laptop and he's a genius for figuring that out. I'm in the business of solving problems. I'm not in the business of stroking jyeh74's ego.

jyeh74 - Either buy a powered enclosure or go away. Continuing to offer advice is useless if you're not going to take it.

[jyeh74]

This really is a forum for video problems. You're best bet is to go to the ASUS forums you'll have a better chance there of solving your problem. This is your third try at this.

Good idea

I disagree.

Most of us know what the problem is. The problem is that the drive isn't powered. If jyeh74 will get off his butt and get a powered enclosure for the drive, the two "bad" ports will magically be able to find the drive. He's just another guy who doesn't want to listen to the advice he's given. I've seen his type before. He doesn't actually want his problem to be solved because he's ignoring the solution. What he wants is personal validation, that is, someone to tell him that the ports are bad on the laptop and he's a genius for figuring that out. I'm in the business of solving problems. I'm not in the business of stroking jyeh74's ego.

jyeh74 - Either buy a powered enclosure or go away. Continuing to offer advice is useless if you're not going to take it.

Chill out man. I did buy a power enclosure today and tried it again. The two that do not work are USB 3.0 ports. You would think that USB 3.0 cords work with USB 3.0 ports but it doesnt, even with a power enclosure. No one is stroking anyone's ego.

[usually_quiet]

If a self-powered enclosure didn't help, then perhaps there is a problem with the drivers for the usb 3.0 controller. You might check the ASUS support website to see if updated drivers for the USB controller have been issued for your laptop.