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    hard drive speed question

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by afhstingray, Oct 22, 2009.

  1. afhstingray

    afhstingray Notebook Prophet

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    Hi,

    Just a quick one, was wondering if a 500GB 5400RPM drive would be faster than a 250GB 7200RPM drive?

    trying to decide which to use as my external drive.

    cheers
     
    afhstingray, Oct 22, 2009
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  2. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    It depends on the company and model (which determines what generation, how many platters, etc). But for an external drive, if you use USB or FW, it makes no difference since the connection is limiting transfer rates, on eSATA, it's a different story though.
     
    sgogeta4, Oct 22, 2009
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  3. narsnail

    narsnail Notebook Prophet

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    If they are both 2 platter they will be similar. The data density is higher on the 500gb drive, but the speed is lower. I would see them being roughly the same.

    This is as long as they are both 2 platter. Find out how many platters they are.
     
    narsnail, Oct 22, 2009
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  4. afhstingray

    afhstingray Notebook Prophet

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    ok. no i meant i wanted the faster one as an internal. guess i'll have to check the model numbers and find out if they're two platter.


    im assuming the 250gb one should be a single platter?
     
    afhstingray, Oct 23, 2009
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  5. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    I believe only Seagate 7200.4 and Hitachi 7K500, have single platter 250GB 7200RPM drives. The Hitachi would be the fastest drive. Which 500GB 5400RPM drive are you looking at?
     
    sgogeta4, Oct 23, 2009
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  6. Krane

    Krane Notebook Prophet

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    Forget about 5400 anything (unless it's a ridiculous price and speed is not an issue), they're obsolete. In virtually any case 7200s are way faster, AND more efficient.
     
    Krane, Oct 23, 2009
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  7. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    It really depends on price and capacity (ie. does the 250GB 7200RPM drive cost the same as the 500GB 5400RPM drive?). I wouldn't call 7200RPM drives way faster though, especially since not all hard drives are created equal (there are variations even from individual models from the same company, at least in benchmarks). However, in most real life situations, most people would be hard pressed to determine what speed their drive was, if they didn't check it since the difference in speed is only noticeable under certain stressed conditions.
     
    sgogeta4, Oct 23, 2009
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  8. Krane

    Krane Notebook Prophet

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    An excellent observation. Keeping that in mind, it would be up to the user, to select a unit that matches his application and gives him the most efficient output when needed. If your drive can't keep up, it doesn't matter how cheap it is.
     
    Krane, Oct 23, 2009
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  9. afhstingray

    afhstingray Notebook Prophet

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    this isnt always true, it depends on the data density, number of platters, etc. and im not shopping for a drive.

    my girlfriend's acer came with a 500gb drive, but she never uses anything more than 20gbs lol.

    so i figured since i have a spare 250GB 7200rpm drive, i'd give it to her, and use the 500gb as an external drive for my movies etc.

    i already have a 250gb 7200rpm samsung spinpoint in my precision.

    the other 250gb 7200rpm drive i have is a seagate that dell uses for their precisions as well. device manager lists it as ST925042 momentus 7200.3

    im not sure which 500gb drive is in the acer, i'll have to check when she comes over later today.

    point is, i dont want to give her the 250gb drive if its gonna be slower than her current drive.
     
    afhstingray, Oct 23, 2009
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  10. afhstingray

    afhstingray Notebook Prophet

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    afhstingray, Oct 23, 2009
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  11. chunlianghere

    chunlianghere Notebook Consultant

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    chunlianghere, Oct 23, 2009
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