External vs Internal HDD?

I was wondering, because i believe that ALL external hard drives have an internal in them with a board/adapter to use usb. But i am wondering, is the hard drives in them are exactly the same as a internal without the adapter? Meaning, if i shell out the external and i get the hard drive in it, is it the same as buying an internal with the same size of the hard drive? I am asking because i can get a 120gb for like $30 at walmart and i can shell out the case and use the actual hdd inside and use it for my xbox 360 slim 4gb.
Help please?

help?

DeaconFrost said:

I'm still not exactly sure what you are trying to do, but yes, the drives inside are the same as internal drives. Just be aware that many times, by opening the external case, you void the warranty of the product.

I am trying to get the cheapest price for a 120gb HDD 2.5 5400rpm so i can use it for my xbox 360 4gb slim. I cant play games like halo reach co op and black ops is coming out soon and i would need to get a hdd that can work with my xbox 360 instead of coughing up $150 for a 250gb official microsoft branded one.

Have you looked for Bare HD's at NewEgg, TigerDirect, Fry's, eBay ?

DocBrown said:

Have you looked for Bare HD's at NewEgg, TigerDirect, Fry's, eBay ?

I know where i can easily get one cheap. But im just curious is the two is the exact same. I would have to try to see if its plug and play or i would need a flash software to get the hard drive to work with the xbox 360. The main point of this thread is that the external is the same as the internal hard drive?

I am not familiar with xBox Hd's so, I hope some member that is can help you.

DeaconFrost said:

Internal and external drives are the same...there's no difference in the actual drives. The only real question I'd have is if the drive was compatible with the Xbox 360. If so, you'd be fine.

Western Digital, Hitachi and some other brands work. They just show that it works but no work to get it to work. I hate the hard part =/

DocBrown said:

I am not familiar with xBox Hd's so, I hope some member that is can help you.

Its the exact same size as the laptop hard drives.