I think this kind of conversation always needs to highlight the use case/cost. Like, if you just want to cache some content that you could re-download, aren't attached too emotionally, and get a used hard drive for a steep discount? I'd say go for it. Especially since there are generally better chances of indicating failure with hdds.
SsDs have an annoying habit of just dying, at least on me. No warning and no chance of recovering data. Maybe there a good use case out there where you would be willing to run that risk, especially if they are cheap enough, but most of the ones I can think of I'd just grab a new drive anyway, would have to be a hell of a discount .
Hi, i use tubearchivist a lot. My usecases:
- I follow several video essasist types whose content has been removed for various reasons- reviews of media Claimed, hit with 'inappropriate content' (spuriously, usually). In two cases, there are creators who removed a lot of their older content for reasons that I completely understand, but also want to be able to reference because they made good points.
-Another creator i follow had their channel hacked, all content replaced with bitcoinshilling. The older videos were eventually restored, but there were a couple days where the content was completely unavailible, and the restoration was not exactly guarenteed.
-i use youtube for background noise a lot. This might be one of the reasons i rewatch a lot of essays and reviews or music videos. While yes, i can use regular youtube for this, tracking, ads, etc are an issue (yes, adblockers exist, but youtube is escalating the war with them). It's easier to just pull up and watch on my own server instead.