In case no one here has mentioned it I have found that I am able to connect my iPod (5 or classic) with the camera kit and access the hdd. I am currently using my old 30G iPod as an external hdd. I have a 4th gen but my drive is dead or I'd try that one too.

ifile is also able to detect my psp as an external drive.

Originally Posted by DontUnderstandMyIpad

IFile can read my thumb drive with iPad 1 4.3.1, so probably not much has changed from 4.2.1 to 4.3.1 in this regard.

Just remember, only very few types of thumb drives work now... Out o the 8 or so, I've tried, only one works (the rest "require too much power")...

Originally Posted by jtrosky

Just remember, only very few types of thumb drives work now... Out o the 8 or so, I've tried, only one works (the rest "require too much power")...

Must have been extremely lucky. Only tried 1 and it worked, even though it had an indicator light.

But it is worthwhile to keep this limitation in mind.

Originally Posted by DontUnderstandMyIpad

Must have been extremely lucky. Only tried 1 and it worked, even though it had an indicator light.

But it is worthwhile to keep this limitation in mind.

Of the four I have sitting here in front of me - only one works:

PNY 8GB (Tiny little thing): Too much power
SanDISK Cruzer 4GB: Too much power
MicroCenter 8GB: Too much power
MicroCenter 2GB: Works!

Not sure if has to do with capacity or class of the memory stick maybe?

Very helpful thread here

I damn near started dancing a jig when I got my hard drive to work again! lol. Now if they would just come out with a 2TB 2.5" drive I would be happy.

After playing around with external hard drives, USB sticks and SD Memory cards using the Camera Connection Kit on iOS 4.3.1 (iPad 1), I've come to the conclusion that CCK SD Card reader is by far the easiest, fastest and "cleanest" way to access external files on your iPad. Connecting a USB hard drive to the iPad is about as practical as a family of 20 buying a sports car. WIth all of the cables going everywhere, it's just such a mess and a PIA to connect up.

THe CCK USB reader is nice, but Apple screwed that up with iOS 4.2.1+ by reducing the amount of power supplied to the USB port, so only a handful of USB thumb drives actually work now.

Then enter the SD reader - it seems to work with any SD card I've thrown at it, no wires, very compact and it even mounts automatically! Using the "Create Link" method in iFile, you can then access the files on the SD memory card directly from any app (jailbreak app or appstore app)! Basically, you just gave your iPad unlimited storage!

Just two cents!

I bought a 3rd party CCK with an SD slot & USB combined (Gen 1, I found out). Doesn't work...

I bought a new CCK, with SD slot, mSD slot, USB, micro USB and AV out (5 in 1 - Gen 2, they said). Tested it with all my SD & mSD cards... works perfect. Shows up in CAMERA under PHOTOS if I have a DCIM folder in the memory cards. Also shows up in iFile as Flashdisk. Gotta be formatted to Fat32 tho. Maybe FAT works also, but NTFS definitely does NOT.

Tested it with my 16GB Data Traveller Flash Disk & 4GB SanDisk Cruzer with LED. Both does not work giving the too much power error.

Then I tried with a USB mini-keyboard. It gave the error: Device is not supported, but it works. I'm able to type with it in NOTES... very happy

Have not tried the micro USB & AV out yet... as I don't have the AV out cables. But being able to read my SD & mSD cards makes me a happy camper

I am looking for a piece of software to allow me to connect a hard disk to my iPad2, any suggestions would be appreciated

Originally Posted by Bernardm

I am looking for a piece of software to allow me to connect a hard disk to my iPad2, any suggestions would be appreciated

You need the Camera Connection Kit and a Cydia app called iFile. Note, you hard disk must be externally powered. The iPad cannot power a USB powered drive like a laptop can. Obviously, your device also needs to be jailbroken as Apple do not allow this on stock devices. If your iPad2 is not already JB, then it must be on IOS 4.3.3, otherwise you are out of luck. See out sticky here for more info on JB - Jailbreaking Methods for the iPad