Using my tablet/phone to connect to external hard drive

I know both my Galaxy Note 4 phone and Nexus 7 tablet support USB OTG

I was wondering though, is there a way I could plug in BOTH a card reader AND a portable hard drive, and transfer between them directly, without having to copy to my device then my device to drive?

I believe that if you connect both a card reader and hdd via a USB OTG hub you can transfer between the memory card and HDD. Whether you copy the files to your tablet first then to the HDD or copy directly probably won't affect performance much, because even when copying directly to the HDD the tablet has to read the file off the memory card then write it to the HDD. The only benefit is you don't need all that free space on your tablet to do the copy, as only one file gets transferred at a time.

The problem you will have is that the USB OTG hub will probably not provide enough power to spin the USB HDD. If your HDD did not come with a 12VDC or 120/220V AC power adapter you will need a USB Y-cable, USB A to B extension cable, and a power source (USB car power adapter, 120/220 AC wall outlet power adapter, or a USB power bank) to make the HDD work.

If you can work using SD cards instead of CF you can get a USB OTG hub that also has an SD card reader built-in, saving you one bit of gear.

would something like this be easier to use?

http://www.dpreview.co​m …h-built-in-sd-card-reader

edit*

I am assuming SD card here as i dont actually know what cards are in a 5D MKIII

I suggest the device ($13) at http://www.amazon.com …rd_r=04A02VZ2PK​PYWMVW0XPQ.

It supports simultaneous access of peripherals: Ensures simultaneous operation of two or more peripherals. If high-performance devices are attached, an external power augmentation is mandatory. The external power augmentation point can't be emphasized enough and is again mentioned in a caution at the bottom of the page; "you need an external power supply when connecting an external hard drive." This is because the phone or tablet just doesn't have the capability to supply most, if not all drives, with the power they need to function. Some phones have been reported to be damaged by the user making the attempt to connect an non-powered external hard drive.

There is more info at the manufacturers site...http://www.inateck.com …otg-hub-with-card-reader/.

I do note one review stating the device has no power in port, so the external drive itself has to be external power capable.

Smurff wrote in post #17558387
would something like this be easier to use?

http://www.dpreview.co​m …h-built-in-sd-card-reader

edit*

I am assuming SD card here as i dont actually know what cards are in a 5D MKIII

TH 5D3 has one CF and one SD slot. Most people use CF for higher performance and capacity.

I've seen the WD My Passport Wireless. The reviewers and other forums have lots of complaints that the SD card reader doesn't work well: extremely slow, doesn't copy all the files off the SD card, files on the HD wind up being corrupt, slow and unreliable WiFi. I have a WD My Cloud which is very similar to the Passport Wireless except no battery or SD card slot, and frankly I tend to believe the poor reviews. Both WD products are great in concept but poor in execution.

John from PA wrote in post #17558425
I suggest the device ($13) at http://www.amazon.com …rd_r=04A02VZ2PK​PYWMVW0XPQ.

It supports simultaneous access of peripherals: Ensures simultaneous operation of two or more peripherals. If high-performance devices are attached, an external power augmentation is mandatory. The external power augmentation point can't be emphasized enough and is again mentioned in a caution at the bottom of the page; "you need an external power supply when connecting an external hard drive." This is because the phone or tablet just doesn't have the capability to supply most, if not all drives, with the power they need to function. Some phones have been reported to be damaged by the user making the attempt to connect an non-powered external hard drive.

There is more info at the manufacturers site...http://www.inateck.com …otg-hub-with-card-reader/.

I do note one review stating the device has no power in port, so the external drive itself has to be external power capable.

I saw that and was going to suggest it, but not having personal experience with the device makes me hesitant to offer a recommendation.

That's good to know, i had considered buying one, they are quite expensive here in NZ but if there not reliable, then its definitely not worth it.

It will work fine all you need is a small powered USB hub like this: http://www.amazon.co.u​k/dp/B0061RSACG .

The data is then transferred between the SD or CF card and the hard drive. I use this all the time for backups on the road and it works great.

Steve