First off a minor pet peeve, the computer is not a CPU, it is a computer. Years ago the CPU was a big box and then memory was another box and storage another then you had a CPU chassis, but in any personal computer all those are in the one box and the CPU is a little chip on the main board. So the box is the computer not just the CPU. Sorry, too many years of working with computers.

Anyway, the important point. I personally would never plug a hard drive with any data of mine into someone else's computer as I have no way of knowing what kind of crap might be on that computer. I'll take my 3lb laptop and a 1lb power supply for it knowing I can plug it in and know my data is safe and isn't going to get wiped by a virus or spread to someone else by spyware or corrupted by the poorly written hotplug subsystem in MS Windows. Next time you are going to buy a new computer take portability into consideration and instead of buying that 8lb desktop replacement "laptop" spend a little more and buy a 4lb or less true portable laptop so you can bug out with it.