This 2020 blog post is about removing a hard drive from a TalkTalk DN370T Huawei YouView set top box.
Introduction
I purchased this set top box second-hand at a car boot sale. Recently I decided to stop using this box and I’ve removed the 2.5” SATA hard drive for use in either a desktop, laptop or to place in an external enclosure. I’ve already used a cable from the box in another project and will consider using other parts. For the time being I’m going to store the remaining parts of the box until I decide what to do with them.
It was easy to gain access to the box, by unscrewing some screws and then removing part of the case. I thought I would take some photos, which some people might find of interest.
The hard drive
The hard drive in the box I own is a 320GB West Digital WD AV-25 WD32000BUCT 2.5” SATA hard drive.
Opening up the box
I found getting inside the box easier than old Sky set-top boxes that I’ve previously opened.
On the bottom of the box there are six screws (one hidden under a label) and at the rear, some more.
You don’t need any special screw driver and I used my screwdriver with a removable bit to remove the screws. Then it was quite easy to remove the lid.
Removing the hard drive
As you can see, the hard drive is raised above the board with the data cable and a power lead. The piece of rubber material across the top of the drive easily peels away.
There are four screws securing the plastic ‘riser’ that holds the hard drive. Once you’ve removed the cables and removed those four screws, you can then gain access to the underside, to remove the four screws that holds the hard drive. In the photo below I’ve already removed the hard drive.
Final thoughts
Before I took the box apart, I actually think even in 2020 it’s an okay set top box. It felt a bit sluggish, but I didn’t mind using it. I’m currently doing a lot of tech projects and I’ve found removing parts from this set top box useful.
I hope you’ve found this blog post helpful.
These hard drives are garbage – and if you want to replace the inevitably failed WD drive in there, you can’t as it’s hard coded to the serial number. Thanks Huawei.