Help in choosing hard disk

Hey guys,

I am selling off my 160GB Hitachi hard disk that came with my aluminium macbook and i am intending on upgrading to a 320GB hard drive. I am thinking of either:

1. Hitachi 5K500.b hard drive
2. Hitachi 7K320 hard drive
3. WD Scorpio

I am leaning towards the Hitachi as I have had no problems with mine, and I love the fact that it is very quiet and does not produce too much heat.

Between the 5400rpm and 7200rpm, which should i choose, price diff is negligible? My concern is additional heat, noise and vibration. I was told that battery life sacrifice would at most be 10 minutes? Is this true?

If we are looking at 7200rpm, between the Hitachi and WD, which would you choose? I need to decide quick as someone has expressed interest in buying my current hard disk.

Cheers.

 

I'd recommend Hitachi 5K500.b if you are concerned about battery life, noise and vibration.

If you're after pure speed, WD3200BEKT is probably still the best choice.

 

Thanks Phil, because this is something that I will probably not upgrade for sometime, I am looking to get some performance boost, yet at the same time do not want it to run louder and hotter. Minimal battery life reduction is negligible.

 

Hitachi 5K500.b will offer a performance boost without sacrifising battery life.

It's 500GB by the way.

 

no its the 320gb model i am after. 5k500.b is the model no...the model no is kinda misleading...

 

Better take the 250GB model then. Only one platter. Should be a bit more quiet and less power consumption.

 

well a bit hard for me to understand on the platter thingy...haha but you're saying i go for 250gb 7200rpm?

 

If you get a 500GB Hitachi 5K500B it has two 250GB platters. The 250GB version only has one platter.

I say go for the 250GB Hitachi 5K500B if you are concerned about battery life, noise and vibration.

If you're after pure speed go for WD3200BEKT.

 

i would go with the Hitachi 5K500.b hard drive

 

well i read some reviews on the 5k500.b drive and i gather that it is faster if i get the 500gb version, but the 500gb version is beyond my budget. whats the next best option? still go with the 320gb 5k500.b? the difference between the 320gb 7k320 and 5k500.b drive is 10 bucks...i want to improve my performance as much as i can, but i have my concerns as listed above. problem is its hard to find someone who has used both the drives.

 

It will be impossible to notice any speed difference in real life between the 250GB version, 320GB or 500GB.

 

Hi If Ican recommend try this one? : http://www.lambda-tek.com/componentshop/index.pl?prodID=B121089
I think am gonna buy it
Because I had 400GB Fujitsu 4200 rpm and I even couldn't hear it ...
probably will be same quiet

 

I just swapped the original 7k320 drive in my Sony FW laptop with the 5k500.b for additional storage. The 500GB drive runs quieter, with less battery drain and seems noticeably cooler than the 7.2k rpm 320GB drive (photo below) it replaces. I don't notice any difference in speed between the 2 drives.

 

Thanks everyone for your replies. I have been sending PMs to K-Tron, as I gather that he is knowledgeable when it comes to Hitachi drives - indeed he is. He has recommended that I go with the 5k500.b drive and has given lots to substantiate it. FW3's post above that the 5k500.b drive is quieter and cooler is reassuring, I am buying the 5k500.b as we speak now

 

Have you checked out Newegg? They have the 5k500.B for $90, $80 with a rebate. I think that's a pretty good deal.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822145257

 

He is located in Australia, which is half the battle.
The 320gb drive 5k500.b is like $115
and the 500gb version is around $160 at the Australian e-tailer

Bang for the buck, the 5K500.B should outpace the 7K320 because the 320gb model has limited head movement, meaning that only the fastest part of the drive is used

K-TRON