Can NTFS external drives be used with a MAC? at DVinfo.net

George Odell · February 23rd, 2007, 10:00 AM

PC person asking a question of you MAC types. I have a client who we shot several hours of DVCAM material for. He would like us to supply him with all the material saved to an external (USB/Firewire) hard drive that he can then import into FCP on his MAC laptop.

I have Quicktime and can convert the files into .DV (dvstream) no problem but I can only format the drives as NTFS on my PC system.

1) First off, do MAC's use the same USB connector as PC's if I was to purchase the drive?

2) Can his MAC read NTFS drives if they are externally connected and if not is there a utility I can recommend to him that will allow this to happen?

Thanks for the help on this!

Dick Campbell · February 23rd, 2007, 12:21 PM

1. yes - I use an Iomega 260Gb drive. I have noticed that when you buy these drives new, they are already formatted FAT32.

2. yes - but read only (altho this might be OS dependent, I don't know. I have the latest OS on a Mac Pro and this process works just fine)

February 23rd, 2007, 10:00 AM	#1
George Odell Major Player Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 270	Can NTFS external drives be used with a MAC? PC person asking a question of you MAC types. I have a client who we shot several hours of DVCAM material for. He would like us to supply him with all the material saved to an external (USB/Firewire) hard drive that he can then import into FCP on his MAC laptop. I have Quicktime and can convert the files into .DV (dvstream) no problem but I can only format the drives as NTFS on my PC system. 1) First off, do MAC's use the same USB connector as PC's if I was to purchase the drive? 2) Can his MAC read NTFS drives if they are externally connected and if not is there a utility I can recommend to him that will allow this to happen? Thanks for the help on this! __________________ "the difference between an amateur photographer and a professional is the amateur shows you all his pictures"

February 23rd, 2007, 12:21 PM	#2
Dick Campbell Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 117	1. yes - I use an Iomega 260Gb drive. I have noticed that when you buy these drives new, they are already formatted FAT32. 2. yes - but read only (altho this might be OS dependent, I don't know. I have the latest OS on a Mac Pro and this process works just fine)