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    Hard drive recommendations and benchmarks: 5400 rpm and 7200 rpm.

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Phil, Aug 19, 2008.

  1. Paulxp

    Paulxp Newbie

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    Hello, i want to buy WD3200BJKT model and i dont know find it on any online store which is available in stock :(
    I think e-store in USA
     
  2. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Seems to be out of stock everywhere. Maybe consider a Seagate 7200.3.
     
  3. t30power

    t30power Notebook Deity

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    Help me decide between these 2 drives:

    1. WD3200BEVT -
    2. 5K320 -

    My current T61 have a WD800BEVS.

    What's the difference between the BEVS vs BEVT Western drives. I've always been a fan of Hitachi drives, but I can get the WD320BEVT locally (I don't live in the US) for a modic $115USD. Would this drive be as quiet as my 80GB, is it single platter. I'm primarily concerned with noise/heat and transfer rates.
     
  4. MXandSXracer21

    MXandSXracer21 Notebook Consultant

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    Ive been looking for a cheap one everywhere, and all the good deals have been sold out last time i checked. Do you know of any good deals on the 7200.3? (either 320gb or 250gb)
     
  5. Andy

    Andy Notebook Prophet

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    In short, the WD BEVS is slower, and older than the BEVT. The BEVS probably uses 125GB platters, whereas the BEVT uses 160GB platters, but this is not confirmed since WDC datasheets do not reveal any info regarding the HDD config.

    The Hitachi 5K320, is a good performer, and very cool and quiet.

    The WD3200BEVT is cool and quiet as well, but is said to have the highest power consumption among all the 320GB HDDs. I have seen users having temp and acoustic issues with this drive. (Although I own this drive myself, and the temp is 40*C max, and quiet)

    The WD3200BEVT: 2 Platters (160GB); 4 Heads.
    The WD1600BEVT: 1 Platter (160GB); 2 Heads

    5K320: 2 Platters (160GB); 4 Heads. (I believe this is the better drive)

    NBR Choking again ?! :p
     
  6. Phil

    Phil Retired

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  7. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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  8. Phil

    Phil Retired

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  9. Andy

    Andy Notebook Prophet

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    Well, what sort of nomenclature will Hitachi adopt ?!
    There is already a 5K500. :p
     
  10. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    5k500.2 ;)
     
  11. Andy

    Andy Notebook Prophet

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    LMAO !! :D

    a
     
    Last edited by a moderator: May 8, 2015
  12. NGH

    NGH Notebook Evangelist

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    Seagate 5400.6 what's the expected price?
     
  13. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    WD5000BEVT is going for $185 and Seagate is usually a bit cheaper than WD.
     
  14. goofball

    goofball Notebook Deity

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    E5k500? :p
     
  15. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    the E series is essentially the same as the non e series. The only difference is the E series is designed to run 24/7 operation while the non "e" version is designed for standard laptop use.

    K-TRON
     
  16. Andy

    Andy Notebook Prophet

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    And there is already an E5K500. :)
     
  17. Jahar

    Jahar Notebook Consultant

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    I'm trying to pick what hard-drive to throw into my new Sager M860TU when it arrives next week. But basically I want to get a 320gig hard-drive, I read through various benchmarks about speed but while speed is important I care noise, vibration and heat equally. So in saying that I'm trying to decide firstly if there's a severe increase in the latter 3 and decrease in speed if I got a 5400rpm or if not which 7200rpm drive gives best speed for given heat, noise, vibration:

    7K320 320GB 7200RPM
    Seagate 7200.3 320GB
    Scorpio Black WD3200BEKT 320GB 7200 RPM

    5K320 320GB 5400 RPM
    Scorpio WD3200BEVT 320GB 5400 RPM
    ST9320320AS 320GB 5400 RPM

    Thanks in advance all :)
     
  18. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Tough one to answer Jahar because no one knows just how quiet and how fast you want it.

    If silence is your priority: WD3200BEVT or Hitachi 5K320.
    If speed is your priority: Seagate 7200.3
    If cool is your priority: Hitachi 5K320

    But I think you will be ok with Seagate 7200.3. Although we've seen some people hitting 60 C, it's not really a problem.

    The new WD5000BEVT may also be a good choice. It's a bit slower than the Seagate 7200.3, but probably also cooler and more quiet.
     
  19. Jahar

    Jahar Notebook Consultant

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    Not a fan of the Scorpio Black?
     
  20. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    Go for the Hitachi 7K320 or the seagate 7200rpm drive than.
    I personally have two 7K320s and they do loose in synthetic benchmarks to the seagate and wd drives, but in real life tests like pc mark, the 160gb drive I have compares very well to the seagate on pcmark 05 scores.

    K-TRON
     
  21. Jahar

    Jahar Notebook Consultant

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    Okay I spoke to a buddy and I'm tossing up now between the Scorpio Black and the seagate 7200...
     
  22. nomoredell

    nomoredell Notebook Deity

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    this info isnt correct at all, 7200 rpm has been out for 5+ years in laptops.
    7200 rpm is only 10% faster than 5400 rpm when hard drive is only loaded with os. but as users begin to pack more files and install more programs into hard drives, 7200rpm can be 10 times as fast as a 5400 rpm .
    for example, a 320gb 7200 rpm with 300gb used will be 10-15% slower than
    a 320gb 7200rpm with 15gb used factory default; but a 320gb 5400rpm with
    300gb used will only has 10% speed of a 320gb 5400rpm with 15gb used only os installed.
    5400 rpm hard drive will bottleneck under heavy load, no matter how often u do pc tuneup or deframentation.
     
  23. Sadie48

    Sadie48 Notebook Guru

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    I agree, no to sticky
     
  24. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    It's a very good drive too. I would only buy it if it was cheaper than Seagate 7200.3 but it isn't. Seagate 7200.3 is cheaper, has 5 year warranty and is a bit more power efficient.

    In my opinion every letter of what you quoted is correct. As an example, see here how the 5400rpm WD outperforms the 7200rpm Seagate:
    http://www.storagereview.com/Hitachi250WD320.sr?page=0,2
     
  25. Jahar

    Jahar Notebook Consultant

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    Scorpio Black has a 5 year warranty as well and as for cost because of the discount I get I can get the following:

    Scorpio Black: $130.24
    Seagate 7200.3: $125.01
     
  26. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Based on several PC Mark and Vantage results some members have posted here the Seagate is a bit faster. So if it's also cheaper it's a no brainer imo.
     
  27. Jahar

    Jahar Notebook Consultant

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    Yep I think you're right Phil, time to see if I can scrounge up a cheaper price on the Seagate. Thanks for all the help Phil +1 :)
     
  28. Broadus

    Broadus Notebook Evangelist

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    I have an HP dv6275us notebook with a running-out-of-space 160GB hard drive. The product specifications on the HP site says that it is a "160GB 5400RPM (SATA)." My device manager specifies my HDD is a "Hitachi HTS541616J9SA00 ATS Device." Evidently, it is this one.

    With that in mind, is there a maximum size I can replace the OEM Hitachi with? I was thinking about a 320GB 5400 rpm, in particular, this Seagate ST9320320AS.

    I plan to use my present HDD as a backup.

    Any input is appreciated.

    Thanks,
    Bill
     
  29. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    You can upgrade to that harddrive if you like. their are no limitations on upgrading a SATA disc except for height.
    Your laptop uses the standard 9.5mm thick drives, so you can use any 2.5" sata drive except for the hitachi 5k500 series and the fujitsu 500gb drive. All other drives will fit.
    That seagate drive will work, but you may want to consider the 5k320 since it is a quieter and faster drive than the seagate 320gb 5400rpm drive.

    Plus the hitachi is cheaper:
    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145227

    K-TRON
     
  30. Broadus

    Broadus Notebook Evangelist

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    Thanks, K-TRON, for the answer and the link. I'll probably go with the 5k320.

    bill
     
  31. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    Broadus, you may want to check these three drives out too:

    250gb 7200rpm seagate:
    http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10008857

    250gb 7200rpm Hitachi:
    http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10009010

    320gb 7200rpm seagate:
    http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10008671


    The deal on the seagate 320gb 7200rpm drive is almost hard to pass up. The drive will be substantially faster than the 5400rpm 320gb drives.
    The battery life should not be affected much, since these new 7200rpm drives use lower resistance PWM motors, meaning they draw less power through their stepper circuitry. They have near identical power consumption as the 5400rpm drives, which means you dont have to sacrifice battery life with a higher speed drive.

    K-TRON
     
  32. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    I agree with K-Tron. The Hitachi is faster and cheaper.
     
  33. Broadus

    Broadus Notebook Evangelist

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    The Seagate 320GB 7200rpm does look like a good deal, but what about heat? Will it produce more heat than the Hitachi 320GB 5400rpm?

    Also, is the speed difference noticeable to the user? In doing searches, I though I read that there was some concern with running a 7200rpm in an HP dv6000t series notebook.

    Thanks,
    Bill
     
  34. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Yes.
    Check this review to get an impression of real life differences between 5400rpm vs. 7200rpm:
    http://www.laptopmag.com/review/storage/intel-x25-m.aspx?page=4
     
  35. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    The speed difference is basically 53mb/sec versus 65mb/sec.
    Both drives are still very fast, so if this is a concern, go for the 5400rpm drive.
    The 5400rpm drive will run cooler than a 7200rpm drive, but not by a very large margin. Maybe 3-4C max as the difference.

    I was just throwing out some other drives so if you wanted to jump to the 7200rpm drives, you had some options.

    K-TRON
     
  36. Broadus

    Broadus Notebook Evangelist

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    Thanks, PhilFlow and K-TRON. You've been a lot of help.

    Being in South Carolina, I take advantage of every opportunity to watch out for heat. ;) I think I'll order the Hitachi 5k320 and this Vantec enclosure from Newegg.

    I had been looking into buying perhaps a 120GB external hard drive for backup purposes, but this will be much better, getting twice the disk space for my computer (320GB instead of 160GB) plus a 160GB backup hard drive. :)

    Bill
     
  37. Broadus

    Broadus Notebook Evangelist

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    Oh well, now I'm coming back to the Seagate Momentus 7200.3. Several have maintained that it's no hotter than a 5400 rpm.

    Right now, my Hitachi Travelstar 5K160 is at 51C (123F).

    Bill
     
  38. Broadus

    Broadus Notebook Evangelist

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    Just ordered the Seagate Momentus 7200.3 ST9320421ASG from buy.com for $96.99 with free shipping. Within an hour and a half after ordering, buy.com increased the price to $109.47 shipped.

    Thanks for your help.

    Bill
     
  39. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Let us know how cool and quiet it is for you. I'm considering getting one myself.
     
  40. rezed

    rezed Notebook Enthusiast

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    Since 2.5” hard disk drives become more affordable, I plan to swap my old Hitachi 5K100 60GB 5400rpm with a bigger, power efficient one.

    I’m thinking of getting one of these:
    Hitachi 5K320 320GB 5400rpm
    Seagate 5400.5 320GB 5400rpm
    Seagate 7200.3 250GB 7200rpm
    Fujitsu MHZ2320BH 320GB 5400rpm

    Could you please help me decide which one I should get? Power consumption and heat are very important to me.


    Thanks
     
  41. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    is your harddrive ata/ide or sata?
    If your drive is ATA/IDE than the best drive you can upgrade to is the Samsung HM160HC.
    If you have a SATA drive than out of the 4 listed I would go with the hitachi 5K320 or the seagate 250gb 7200.3 drive.

    K-TRON
     
  42. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    I second what K-Tron said. Hitachi 5K320 if you want to play it safe, Seagate 7200.3 is a bit hotter, but it may not be problem.
     
  43. rezed

    rezed Notebook Enthusiast

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    It's SATA. The model number is HTS541060G9SA00. I have already checked it on the hitachi website (Serial ATA 1.5Gb/s)

    Thanks for answering.

    Btw is fujitsu drives not as power efficient as hitachi?
     
  44. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    they have similar power efficiencies, except the Hitachi 5k320 is the quietest 5400rpm 320gb drive and it is one of the fastest 320gb 5400rpm models. Usually hitachi is also the best on reliability, which is why they are recommended so much

    K-TRON
     
  45. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    The hitachi 5K320 performs better in real life than the Fujitsu 320GB/5400rpm.

    I'd probably go for the Seagate 7200.3 at the moment.
     
  46. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    Wait, I thought the Fujitsu is the fastest 320gb 5400rpm drive. John Ratsey posted a benchmark of his, and his took the lead by a few mb/sec. But to get that extra speed it consumes more energy. I think the problem with Fujitsu is that they are a smaller company, and their older products were not so up to par, so people associate bad things with their harddrives.

    Their enterprise drives are amazing. I have a few old Fujitsu drives and they are still going strong. Good ole 9.1 gb 10K SCSI drives.

    K-TRON
     
  47. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    In John's benchmark it gets 50,8 MB/sec, while I've seen higher scores for WD3200BEVT.

    But HDTune does not show the whole picture. It does not measure I/O. And this is where Hitachi usually shines.

    I'd still like to see a real life benchmark between 7K320 and Seagate 7200.3 for this reason. Unfortunately, it hasn't happened sofar.
     
  48. K-TRON

    K-TRON Hi, I'm Jimmy Diesel ^_^

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    what measures i/o's?

    I will run benchies on my 7K320 if the software is free

    K-TRON
     
  49. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    You can do it with I/O meter, but it's a synthetic way of measuring I/O, so it has some limitations.

    Newkleer describes it here:
    PC Mark and Vantage measure a mix of transfer rate, acces time and I/O. That's why I tend to focus on those results instead of HDTune.
     
  50. SpeedracerII

    SpeedracerII Newbie

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    Nice thread.. but one question I haven't seen addressed is the different SATA speeds. I just bought a Dell 1420 and got the cheapest HD they offered which turns out to be a Samsung HM121H1 which is a 5400rpm SATA with 1.5Gb/s transfer rate. Most of the 7200 rpm drives seem to be 3Gb/s. So my question is will my laptop accept the higher transfer rate drive and just move the data at whatever speed it can, or do I need to get a 1.5Gb/s drive to replace it?

    Thanks
     
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