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    Why can't I.....

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by NissanSupraGTR, Aug 21, 2006.

  1. NissanSupraGTR

    NissanSupraGTR Notebook Evangelist

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    run my laptop hd at a lower speed? I currently have a 7200 rpm hd and was wondering if it was possible to reduce the speed to improve battery life. Would it not make a difference?
     
    NissanSupraGTR, Aug 21, 2006
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  2. ZaZ

    ZaZ Super Model Super Moderator

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    Not much to be gained there.
     
    ZaZ, Aug 21, 2006
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  3. vassil_98

    vassil_98 Notebook Deity

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    vassil_98, Aug 21, 2006
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  4. qwester

    qwester Notebook Virtuoso

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    FTools (only works for Hitachi HDDs) doesn't alter the spin speed. HDDs are not designed to do that, their motors spin up on power up from 0RPM to the set speed (4200/5400/7200RPM)

    What FTools does is alter how agressive seeking is done and how often the head is set to the park position. The FTools settings that reduce power consumption and noise also have a negative effect on performance.
     
    qwester, Aug 21, 2006
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  5. Pitabred

    Pitabred Linux geek con rat flail!

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    What qwester said. The drives run at a specific voltage to reach their RPM, and you can't change that. It's all internal to the drive. Lots of nasty physics-y things that drives depend a lot on, that you can't really just alter. Mechanical devices at low tolerances aren't quite as forgiving with tweaking as solid-state electronics. So in short, no, you can't do that, and it won't give you significant power or heat reduction, either.
     
    Pitabred, Aug 21, 2006
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