The quietest hard drives. Linear recording speed

Choosing an SSD is an exciting experience, given the comparative novelty of this type of drive, the variety of characteristics and performance test results, etc. With all its undoubted merits solid state drives have (hopefully so far) one significant disadvantage- they are not cheap, especially the models large capacity... If you need to store the accumulated collections of music, films, photographs and other information that requires space somewhere, then you cannot do without a regular hard disk.

Hard disk requirements

Now the internet is full of comparative tests SSD drives. 5-10-15 years ago, a similar situation was with traditional hard drives When the results of different models were compared, a rating was compiled, which drives are the fastest, which are the coldest, and which are the quietest.

Currently, the performance of "hard drives" has somehow faded into the background. The effect is that it is already difficult to squeeze out more of this technology, but it will still not be possible to compete with solid-state drives. This means that you have to "take" with other qualities. Which ones? The capacity, and most importantly, the cost of that capacity. There is such a concept - the price per gigabyte, that is, how much one gigabyte of capacity of this or that disk costs.

For example, the cheapest 4 TB 3.5-inch HDD will cost about 7,500 rubles, i.e. 1 GB costs 1.88 rubles. SSD drives of this capacity are still only in the plans, and from what we have, the most capacious models are 2 TB. Moreover, their cost is (the cheapest) about 50,000 rubles. How much is 1 GB in in this case- count yourself.

Hence the conclusion - if you need to store a large amount of data, and do it for reasonable money, then the choice is unambiguous for the HDD. That's just how to choose a hard disk, how much to prefer, with what rotation speed?

HDD parameters

Still, one cannot ignore the basic parameters of hard drives. This:

• Form Factor There are 3.5 and 2.5 inches. The first - for stationary PCs, the second - for laptops, monoblocks, etc. In this case, a larger physical size drives can provide more storage capacity. Among the 2.5-inch models, there are models for both 4 and 5 TB, but their thickness does not allow them to be installed in laptops, but they are suitable for stationary PCs, network storages, etc. At the same time, their cost is higher than that of larger 3.5-inch fellows. There are also 1.8-inch models, but their prevalence tends to zero.
• Capacity. Actually, it shows how much of everything necessary and important can be stored on disk.
• Interface. Everything is simple here. SATA-3, with little or no options. SAS server drives are not commonly used at home.
• Rotational speed. There are two main options - 5400 and 7200 rpm. There are also options with 5900 rpm or, as is the case with some models of disks, for example, Western digital, the speed is not indicated at all, but the specifications contain the word "IntelliPower", that is, the drive somehow controls the speed itself. Well, God bless him, let him rule. Naturally, the higher the rotation speed, the faster the drive should be.
• The size of the buffer memory. Here, similarly, the more, the faster (in theory) the disk should work. In my opinion, this parameter can be looked at last. At home, it does not have a significant effect on the "rate of fire" of the drive.

What else?

Agree, it's unpleasant when some component in your computer suddenly fails. Just now (yesterday, an hour ago, etc.) everything worked, but now it doesn't. The soul, if it could be in the motherboard, memory module, power supply, etc., can fly to its computer paradise quietly, or with special effects such as sparks, smoke, burning smell.

The trouble? No, it's upsetting. The motherboard, memory module, power supply, video card can be repaired, in the end, replaced with a new one, even better than it was, and after a little manipulation continue to work.

And if the hard drive is out of order, is it a grief? But in some situations, this can already "pull" into trouble. Especially if this drive contains home archive photo, the results of many days of work, an almost written diploma and something else important that existed in a single copy.

Now I do not mean options with a faulty interface wire, malfunctions in the power supply, "loss" of the disk by the operating system, etc. We are talking about the failure of the disk itself, be it mechanical failure or electronics failure. Recovering information from such a disk can be expensive, or it may not be possible to recover the data.

Hence, another requirement for a disk arises - reliability. Such a parameter as "MTBF", which each drive has, is not empirical, but based on some kind of calculations. I would not recommend looking at it. It is better to pay attention to the warranty period for a specific model of "hard drive" and the possibility of exchange if a breakdown occurs during this period.

Reliability

How to determine which disk is more reliable and which is not? To be honest, almost nothing. Word battles on forums and in comments like "Seagate sucks, WD rules" only confuse, without giving any useful information. For some, one thing works, and the other breaks down, while for someone it is exactly the opposite.

Personally, I have my own preferences, and for many years have already been using Hitachi drives (now it’s more correct to call it HGST), which have never let me down, but this is purely Subjective opinion... Although I also have several WD Green drives (one of which is already dying), and an 8-terabyte Seagate.

More or less adequate statistics of disk reliability can only be shown comparative testing, which requires the n-th number of disks of each model and a lot of time. Who is doing this? Almost no one, unfortunately. Although some information can still be found.

So, interesting reports on the number of used hard drives and detailed statistics denials are published by Backblaze, a cloud storage company. Reports are regularly issued on the number of drives used, models, and the number of failures.

They have been keeping their statistics since the beginning of 2015. I will not give graphs and calculations here, they can be easily found on the net. According to the information they publish, HGST disks have the least number of failures. Seagate is doing worse, but there is a trend towards fewer failures and longer drive lifespan.

How should we treat this information? How to "food for thought". In this case, the question is not when the drive will fail (sooner or later "all dogs hard drives go to heaven"), but what is the likelihood of this sad event occurring. Any manufacturer has successful and not very good models, some serve for a long time, others have a lot of complaints.

Nobody can guarantee 100% reliability. Therefore, you need to take care of the safety of information yourself. Really important files should be stored on several different physical media, or backed up to cloud storage... In the end, collect a RAID array from several disks.

Hard drive series

For each manufacturer, all manufactured models are somehow divided into several series, each of which is positioned for a specific application. So, Hitachi ... sorry, HGST, divides its drives into the Deskstar and Ultrastar series. The first ones are focused on use in home / office computers, the second ones - on use with more serious loads and are designed for round-the-clock work.

Other brands do much the same. Seagate has several series:

• Barracuda and Barracuda Pro for everyday use. Capacities range from 1TB to 10TB. In general, let the fans of the brand forgive me, a kind of consumer goods for all occasions. This is also evidenced by the following interesting parameter specified in the specifications as "Workload Limit, TB / Year." For all modifications of the Barracuda series it is 55 TB, and for the Barracuda Pro it is 300 TB. For heavier workloads, we recommend choosing enterprise-class drives. The warranty is 2 years and 5 years, respectively.
• FireCuda is a hybrid model (with a small 8 GB cache on an MLC type NAND memory chip). Focused on productive computers, work or play stations. Only 2 capacities are offered - 1 TB and 2 TB. There are no workload restrictions.
• IronWolf and IronWolf Pro are a special series for working in network attached storage (NAS). Available capacities range from 1 TB to 10 TB. The annual load is capped at 180 TB for IronWolf, and 300 TB for the IronWolf Pro version. The number of head parking operations is 600,000 times. The warranty is 3 years and 5 years, respectively.
• SkyHawk - focused for use in video surveillance systems and can receive streaming data from a large number camcorders at once. Capacities range from 1TB to 10TB. The load limit is the same 300 TB / year.

It is customary at WD to classify discs into the following series:

• Blue - disks for office or home computers that are not critical to the speed of the disk subsystem. Capacities up to 6 TB are available. The rotation speed of almost all models is 5400 rpm. The warranty is 2 years. Roughly the same as Seagate's Barracuda series.
• Black - more efficient drives for demanding users. Capacities - up to 6 TB, rotation speed - 7200 rpm. The warranty is 5 years.
• Purple - CCTV models. Available in capacities up to 10 TB, rotation speed - 5400 rpm. Workload limits - 180 TB / year. Warranty -3 years.
• Red - for network attached storage (NAS). Capacities - up to 10 TB, rotation speed - 5400 rpm. The warranty is 3 years. The declared number of head parking operations is 600,000 times.
• Gold is a corporate series of drives for servers, data centers. Capacities - up to 10 TB, rotation speed - 7200 rpm. Performance models with a 5-year warranty.

NAS and server models typically include systems that are not used in conventional devices. This includes, for example, rotational vibration sensors, optimization for use in RAID arrays, etc.

At the same time, it often happens that such drives can work louder, and the heating can be higher, so cooling for them will definitely not be superfluous. At the same time, custom-class drives (such as Seagate Barracuda or WD Blue) are less "nimble", but work quieter, heat up less, although they are not equipped with any additional sensors or optimizations. But they are cheaper.

Which hard drive to choose.

I will express my thoughts, which do not necessarily have to coincide with yours. As for laptops, the optimal solution is a 1 TB hard drive, preferably with a rotation speed of 7200 rpm. Manufacturer? Choose which one you like. I personally prefer HGST. Now my laptop has a 1 TB HGST HTE721010A9E630 purchased a few months ago.

For stationary PCs, that is, when choosing a 3.5-inch hard drive, there are much more opportunities to smash your head. Anyway, I would not consider hard drives with less than 1 TB. Judge for yourself, the cheapest 500 GB disk (Toshiba DT01ACA050) costs about 2,500 rubles. The cheapest terabyte Seagate Barracuda (ST1000DM010) is only 300-400 rubles more expensive. Does it make sense to save?

It makes sense to take a terabytnik if it is the only drive on which the system will be installed, and a lot of space is not required, since all that is needed is office work, surfing the Internet, etc. 7200 rpm model (any HGST, WD Black, Seagate Barracuda or, if you don't mind the money, Seagate FireCuda will do).

If the drive is necessary for "to be", if it serves as an appendage to the system SSD-drive, then you can save a little and stay on the Seagate Barracuda or WD Blue. Moreover, pay attention to the capacity of the order of 4 TB. Let me explain why.

Let's take the Seagate Barracuda series as an example. To calculate the optimal cost per unit of disk capacity, let's recall the already mentioned "price per gigabyte". Let's refer to the price list:

• 1TB, model ST1000DM010 - the price is about 2800 rubles, each 1 GB "costs" 2.80 rubles.
• 2 TB, model ST2000DM006 - the price is about 4200 rubles, 1 GB "costs" 2.10 rubles.
• 3 TB, model ST3000DM008 - the price is about 5700 rubles, 1 GB "costs" 1.90 rubles.
• 4 TB, model ST4000DM004 - the price is about 7,500 rubles, 1 GB "costs" 1.88 rubles.
• 6 TB, model ST6000DM004 - the price is about 14,500 rubles, 1 GB "costs" 2.42 rubles.
• 8 TB, model ST8000DM005 - the price is about 18,500 rubles, 1 GB "costs" 2.31 rubles.

As you can see, according to this parameter, the optimal solution is a 4 TB disk, and the most disadvantageous, if you do not take into account the model with the already "ridiculous" 1 TB capacity, is the ST6000DM004 model. True, these are all calculations from the standpoint of the cost of a data unit. If you just need a capacious disk to have 6-8, or even more, TB, then it makes no difference how much 1 GB is there now. Although 2 ST4000DM004 disks will come out cheaper than one ST8000DM005. What is not a reason to think?

Several stand alone HGST discs... The company does not produce 3.5-inch models with speeds less than 7200 rpm at all. True, their cost is higher. 1 TB Ultrastar 7K2 drive has a price of more than 5000 rubles. However, as the name implies, this is not a "desktop" series, but the Ultrastar series positioned above.

But models with larger capacities have a more adequate price tag. So, the 6 TB Ultrastar 7K6000 model costs about 13,000 rubles, which is quite consistent with the cost of competitors. And let's not forget about 7200 rpm and the Ultrastar series.

Naturally, the choice should be based on how much capacity is needed and how much you are willing to spend on disk.

If we are talking about the need to store large amounts of data (a collection of films, music, photos, etc.), then I would not consider the cheapest options. Ideally, these should be NAS-oriented series, Seagate IronWolf (Pro) or WD Red. Even if you do not have a NAS and you do not plan to build a RAID, these disks are still the best choice. Moreover, where is the guarantee that you will not decide to buy the storage anyway in the foreseeable future? Among HGST discs, it is better to give preference to the Ultrastar series.

Let's take a look at a few specific models for specific use cases.

System disk

Let's assume it is a terabyte disk. I would highlight such models:

• Seagate Barracuda (ST1000DM010) - the cheapest, about 2800 rubles. Only the warranty should be considered - only 2 years. Typical budget option.
• Western Digital Caviar Blue (WD10EZEX) is one of the few models in the blue series with rpms of 7200. Direct competitor for Barracuda. Same 2 years warranty. Of these two drives, I would pick WD.
• Seagate FireCuda SSHD (ST1000DX002) - hybrid, the cost is already 5100 rubles. The warranty is the same - 2 years. Belonging to the FireCuda family offers better performance than the Barracuda.
• Western Digital Black (WD1003FZEX) - about the same price as FireCuda. They are generally direct competitors.
• HGST Ultrastar 7K2 (1W10001) - the cost is about 5200. There is 7200 rpm, Ultrastar series, 128 MB of cache (the others have 64 MB).

If I overpay, then I would take the Ultrastar 7K2 model (as an alternative - WD Black), if not, then WD Blue.

Storage disk

If with system disk everything has already been decided, and you need a drive, or maybe several, to store everything you need and important, then I would prefer to consider models starting with a capacity of 4 TB. If no serious requirements are imposed on the speed of the disks, then it is quite possible to restrict ourselves to models with a rotation speed of 5400-5900 rpm.

I will highlight the following:

• Seagate Barracuda (ST4000DM004) - The cheapest of the 4TB drives. The cost is about 7700 rubles.
• Western Digital Blue (WD40EZRZ) - slightly more expensive than the previous one, by about 400-500 rubles. As for me, this model is preferable.
• HGST Deskstar NAS (0S04005) - costs about 8500 rubles. Unlike the previous ones, it has a speed of 7200 rpm. A desktop series focused on the use of NAS as well.
• Seagate IronWolf (ST4000VN008) - cost about 8900 rubles. The speed of revolutions - 7200. Belonging to a series capable of working in disk storages, it implies the presence of vibration protection systems, has additional balancing and other "enhancers".
• Western Digital red(WD40EFRX) - the cost is approximately 9700 rubles. The exact number of revolutions is not indicated, it is managed by the IntelliPower system. A specialized series for storages, which does not negate the possibility of using them as a single disk. If not for the price, it would be a great option.
• HGST Ultrastar 7K6000 (0F23025) - the cost is about 10,500 rubles. Ultrastar series, large buffer, 7200 rpm, good performance, 5-year warranty. But the price is rather big. Perhaps too good for a home "file-loader".

If the main purpose is data storage with a low load, mainly for reading, then why not opt ​​for models for video surveillance systems as well. Provided, of course, that no RAID will be built on them.

Of the listed the best choice seem to be WD Blue, HGST Deskstar NAS and Seagate IronWolf. The difference in price between them is no more than 800 rubles, and the last 2 are also ready to work in disk storages and in RAID. If you increase the amount a little, then a good solution is WD Red.

If you need a larger capacity, then here is option 2 - either take the corresponding volume of the drive, or take 2 (3, 4 ...) with a smaller volume, but in total you will get what you need. And it will even turn out to save money. Above, there was already a comparison of the cost of an 8 TB disk with the cost of 2 4 TB disks. The question is how much space do you have in the case for drives and what are the prospects for further increase in disk volume.

Conclusion. How to choose a hard drive

So how can you summarize all of the above? To begin with, there is no fundamental difference between manufacturers. Yes, some statistics show that HGST is somewhat more reliable and durable than Seagate, while WD is somewhere in between. However, this does not mean that Seagate should definitely be removed from the list of candidates for purchase. Let's not forget the number of drives this manufacturer sells, and if things were that bad, who would buy them?

The choice can be influenced by personal preferences (like mine, for example), as well as some other, at first glance, insignificant characteristics. So, HGST hard drives are traditionally considered more noisy, which does not prevent them from being considered more reliable.

You should also pay attention to the warranty period for the hard drive. Moreover, it is important to know where to go in case of problems. The ideal option is the ability to exchange a failed drive under the RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) program with the manufacturer itself. Unfortunately, in Russia this program is only available from Western Digital. Discs from other manufacturers will have to be exchanged through the store that sold the product to you.

And the warranty period itself is indirect, but it speaks of the "survivability" of the disk. It is probably clear that a 5 year warranty is better than a 2 year warranty. In the first case, it is assumed that the disk will not die in the next couple of years. But in the second case, anything can already be, he can die a week after the end of the warranty, or he can serve for many years.

It would be nice to be able to rent or exchange a purchased hard drive if, when you first turned it on, you did not like something about its work. It can be a noticeable vibration, or too loud a knock. It is also useful to check the disk, for example, with the HDTune program, including checking the surface of the disks for bad blocks.

Most importantly, do not forget to guarantee the safety important information can only be timely and correct backup i.e. backup copying. Storing the necessary data on different physical (namely, different physical, and not on different partitions of the same disk) media is a guarantee that no problems with disks will lead to big expenses, loss of important files, time and nerves.

Have a nice shopping and safe storage!

The best SSD drives for a desktop

To begin with, consider the best, according to our experts, solid-state SSD-drives, which every year more and more confidently squeeze their predecessors - mechanical HDD... Expertology specialists have identified four notable models from different manufacturers. All devices presented support the extended format, in which sector sizes are 4 KB.

The first number in the review is a very good drive from the prominent Plextor trademark (Taiwan). Its capacity is 512 GB, it is applied TLC memory(three bits per cell). Writing data at 1K, reading at 2.45K MB per second, random writing at 175,000 IOPS. 1024 MB is allocated for the buffer. The data streams are controlled by the Marvell 88SS1083 controller, and this is a distinct advantage of the model due to its power and efficiency.

The high speed is partly provided by the high-speed PCI-E 3.0 x4 connection type. There is compatibility with the NVMe standard, the TRIM command is supported. The total recording resource is 320 TB.

The "physics" of the drive is as follows: dimensions - 22.39 × 121.04 × 176.33mm, the device weighs 200 g. In operation and during storage, its shock resistance is 1500 G - a very high indicator. The operating temperature limit is 70 ° C.

Although the drive is intended for installation in a desktop computer case, it is not devoid of aesthetic qualities. An impressive heatsink with bends of fins smoothly wraps around the blue insert with the logo, and on the upper edge there is another glowing Plextor logo and an LED strip. All this gives the device an expressive, even "gamer" look and in the open or transparent case the drive looks very impressive.

Dignity

powerful, highly efficient controller;

spectacular design;

high-quality cooling;

easy setup, management and updating;

enough high speed writing / reading.

Flaws

• no pronounced disadvantages were noticed.

Further in the rating, Expertology experts suggest for consideration the Corsair drive, which the manufacturer itself positions as a gaming one. Indeed, its technical characteristics speak for its high suitability for modern video games, as well as for working with heavy, resource-intensive graphics. The 2.5 "form factor allows you to install the hard drive not only in desktop PCs, but also in many laptops.

Most notable distinctive feature hard drive is its volume, which is 1920 GB. In many ways, it was this circumstance that influenced its more than tangible cost. Uses MLC memory (two bits per cell), which has a number of important advantages over TLC, like the previous model, and a minimum of disadvantages.

The nominal read speed is 550 MB / s and the same indicator for the write. This is noticeably less than that of the model discussed above, but this indicator is more realistic and better correlates with the bandwidth capabilities of the interface. The device is connected via SATA 6Gbit / s. Random write - 85K IOPS.

The physical characteristics of the drive are as follows. Dimensions - 70x7x100 mm, weight - 55 g. Shock resistance in static and operating mode is 500 G. Limitation on operating temperature - 70 ° C.

The manufacturer provides a full five years warranty for this model. The delivery set includes a 9.5 mm adapter.

Dignity

5 years warranty;

high-quality protection against power surges;

increased reliability;

• improved error correction methods.

Flaws

• not marked.

Now, within the framework of the rating prepared by our specialists, we will consider a high-performance SSD from the "avant-garde" of the microelectronics market - Intel. At half the size of the previous model (960 GB), the device is twice as expensive. This is a significant disadvantage from the point of view of the average buyer, but there are very good reasons for this.

This model uses high-performance and fast 3D XPoint memory, which was presented by Intel and Micron just "yesterday" - in the middle of 2015. Operating speed: writing - 2.2 thousand MB / s, reading - 2.6 thousand MB / s. Random write - as much as 550K IOPS. The connection is via PCI-E 3.0 x4. Compliant with NVMe standard. There is a built-in data encryption function.

The physical data of the drive is as follows. Dimensions - 17.2x68.9x168mm, weight - 230 g. On average, during operation, it consumes about 16.40 W of electricity. The safe operating temperature limit is 85 ° C. The shock resistance of the device is the lowest in this group - 50 G in statics and in operation, but this indicator is still incomparably better than that of any mechanical disc.

Intel engineers even paid serious attention to the drive's appearance. It has a striking and slightly predatory design with LED backlighting. Therefore, the model is perfect for gamers, although it is not directly positioned by the manufacturer as a game one.

Dignity

the highest speed and performance;

spectacular design;

exceptional durability;

innovative type of memory;

the fastest read / write speed in the group.

Flaws

• high price.

The final item in the first group of the rating is an inexpensive, and at the same time definitely worthy of attention, a drive from Western Digital. Despite the very "budget" cost, the hard drive is positioned by the manufacturer as a gaming one, and quite objectively.

The drive is made in a 2.5 "form factor, which allows it to be installed both in desktop PCs (possibly through an adapter) and in laptops. Its capacity is 500 GB, TLC 3D NAND memory is used. It is controlled by a high-performance Marvell 88SS1074 controller. with a speed of 560 MB / s, write - 530 MB / s, random write - 84 thousand IOPS.Connects via SATA 6Gbit / s interface.NCQ and TRIM command are supported. Shared resource recorded information - 200 TB.

The linear dimensions of the device are 69.85x7x100.2 mm, the minimum weight is only 37 g. The safe operating temperature is limited to 70 ° C. The hard disk has a high shock resistance in static and operation - 1500 G. In operation, it consumes about 3.35 watts.

The manufacturer's warranty period is 36 months.

Dignity

• minimum power consumption;

  powerful controller;

  affordable price.

Flaws

• not marked.

Best HDD hard drives for a desktop computer

Now let's look at drives traditional type- mechanical HDD with reversible magnetic platters. Expertology analysts ranked three notable models from the world's most famous companies - Seagate, Western Digital and Toshiba.

All three hard drives have a number of common characteristics: support for extended format (4 KB sectors), 3.5 "form factor, connection via SATA 6Gbit / s interface, 600 MB per second - external data rate.

It opens the top three HDDs for PCs "Winchester" produced by the famous American company, which has been associated exclusively with this class of components for decades.

This is the largest drive in this group - 4 thousand GB. In addition, it is also distinguished by an impressive space allocated for the buffer memory - 256 MB, which has the most positive effect on the speed of working with data.

The hard drive is designed and manufactured in a 3.5 "form factor, contains two magnetic plates and four heads. The spindle rotation is 5400 rpm. The nominal data transfer rate is 190 MB / s. It is connected via the popular SATAIII interface (6 Gb / s). Hardware command sequence (NCQ) is supported. real speed reading of large sectors is fully consistent with the declared one.

The physical parameters of the device are as follows. Dimensions - 101.6x20.17x146.99 mm, weight - 490 g. In operation, it consumes about 5 watts. Operating temperature limitation - 60 ° C. The maximum declared noise level is 27 dB, and according to numerous reviews of real users, this figure is fully consistent with reality.

The manufacturer provides a 24-month warranty for this model.

Dignity

favorable combination of cost and volume;

• minimum heating;

  large amount of cache memory.

Flaws

• low revs (partly offset by a large cache).

Further in the ranking, we present another worthy model from an equally worthy manufacturer. This hard drive is half as large as the previous one - 2 thousand GB, but it is also much cheaper. In addition, it has some important benefits.

The hard disk is made in the 3.5 "form factor with dimensions of 101.6x26.1x147mm and weighing 600 g. SATA III ports (6.0 Gb / s)

The physical characteristics of the device are noteworthy. If Seagate tries not to advertise its shock resistance particularly with regard to the above model, then this parameter is even emphasized here - 30 G during operation and 250 G in static storage. The nominal noise does not exceed 27 dB at full load and 23 dB at idle. The safe operating temperature limit is 60 ° C. Average power consumption - 4.10 W.

With all the visible advantages, this model is not without a drawback, since it is easily curable. By default, a hard drive is too zealous with head parking - the bill can go to thousands of parking lots per day, and this is a direct path to a quick failure. Therefore, it is recommended to correct this setting through a special utility.

Dignity

• does not overheat;

  shockproof;

  affordable price.

Flaws

• head parking frequency.

And the rating of the best HDDs for PCs according to Expertology is completed by a hard drive produced by the super-authoritative Japanese old-timer of the Toshiba electronics market. Here it is necessary to clarify that the presented model was developed within the walls of Hitachi and produced on their own equipment, which after the sale of Western Digital's business went to Toshiba. In this particular case, the product only benefited from such a “multi-way”.

The hard disk capacity is 3 thousand GB. The buffer is allocated 54 MB of disk space. The average speed of reading and writing is quite high due to the accelerated rotation of the spindle - 7200 rpm. A very good indicator of track to track access speed is 0.5 ms.

The dimensions of the drive are 101.6x26.1x147mm, weight. Like the previous model described, this hard drive is characterized by increased mechanical resistance - 70 G in operation and 300 G in static storage. The nominal noise in operating mode should not exceed 28 dB. Some users note a noticeable "crunch" when working, but there are no obvious complaints at this point. The nominal idle noise is almost the same at 27 dB.

A suspiciously noticeable percentage of reports of rapid outages can be found on the network, but with in-depth analysis it turns out that these cases are mostly related to misuse devices. Therefore, our experts did not consider this circumstance to be obvious shortcomings.

Dignity

favorable "price of a megabyte";

quiet enough;

high speed;

does not overheat without external airflow (if there are no overloads).

Flaws

• hypersensitivity to power outages.

Best SSD hard drives for laptop

Now, as part of our rating, we will consider a group of solid-state drives suitable for installation in laptops and all-in-ones. The main requirement for such devices is compactness. That is why our experts have chosen best SSD exclusively from the minimum 2280 form factor.

We will look at three models from different brands - Samsung, ADATA and Plextor. All of them support extended format (4 KB sectors) and are connected via an M.2 connector.

Let's start with a solid state drive made by South Korean tech giant Samsung. This is the most expensive model in this group, but in terms of a number of characteristics it can be used to solve specific tasks its acquisition is quite expedient.

The storage capacity is 500GB on TLC 3D NAND flash memory. The device has a remarkably high write speed - 1800 MB / s. The read speed is almost twice as high - 3200 MB / s. Random write - 330k IOPS. Connection interface - high speed PCI-E 3.0 x4. NVMe and TRIM command are supported. Built-in data encryption function.

The physical characteristics of the device are as follows. Dimensions - 22x2.3x80 mm, weight - 8 g. High impact resistance - 1500 G in static and operating conditions. The maximum safe operating temperature is limited to 70 ° C. On average, the drive consumes up to 5.4 watts of electricity.

In order for the drive to demonstrate maximum performance, on some laptop models it is necessary to make changes to the BIOS settings. This moment often becomes a factor in false and unfounded claims to the speed of the hard drive.

This model is covered by a 36 month manufacturer's warranty.

Dignity

high speed of reading and writing;

one of better ratios price-quality-performance;

high resistance to mechanical stress;

TRIM command.

Flaws

there may be problems with the operation of RAPID Mode with AMD processors;

high price.

Now let's take a look at the second position of this rating group - an SSD-drive manufactured by ADATA (Taiwan). The model is notable for the ratio of miniature size, almost zero power consumption and more than decent performance.

The storage capacity is 480 GB. High speed of work (1.7 thousand MB / s - writing, 3.05 thousand MB / s - reading) is provided by the innovative TLC 3D NAND memory and the Silicon Motion controller. Random write - 280K IOPS. The device is connected via the PCI-E 3.0 x4 interface, there is support for NVMe. The total recording resource is 320 TB.

Now a few words about the physical parameters of the drive. Its dimensions are 22x3.5x80 mm, weight is only 8 g. In operation, on average, it consumes very little electricity - 0.33 watts. The maximum safe operating temperature is limited to 70 ° C. Impact resistance in static and in operation - 1500 G.

The tiny dimensions of the drive did not prevent the developers from creating an attractive "gaming" appearance for it, and the manufacturer itself positions it as a gaming one.

ADATA provides a record 60 months warranty for this model.

Dignity

"Gaming" performance;

durability;

slight heating;

microscopic power consumption;

five-year warranty.

Flaws

• not marked.

The storage capacity is 256 GB. Used memory type TLC (three bits per cell). The data streams are controlled by the Silicon Motion controller. This combination provides 510/550 MB / s (sequential write / read) speeds. Random write - 71K IOPS.

The model is notable for more than impressive space allocated for buffer memory - as much as 512 MB, due to which the overall performance is significantly increased. TRIM command and NCQ technology are supported. The drive is connected via the SATA 6Gbit / s interface. The total resource of the recorded information is 70 TB.

This model is even more miniature than the previous one - 22x2.3x80 mm, weighs 10 g. The limitation on the maximum safe temperature is the same - 70 ° C.

Plextor provides this model with a 3-year warranty.

Dignity

reliability and durability;

slight heating;

high speed;

minimum dimensions;

affordable price.

Flaws

• no distinct deficiencies have been identified.

Best HDD hard drives for laptop

Now, in the rating from Expertology, we will pay attention to one more three hard drives for laptops, only these will be classic HDDs with mechanics and magnetic platters inside. All proposed models support the extended format (4 kilobyte sectors), are made in a compact 2.5 "form factor, are connected via a high-speed SATA 6Gbit / s interface, and have extremely high shock resistance - 400 G in operation and 1000 G in static storage.

Let's start with a high-performance hard drive from Seagate. In addition to its excellent key features, this model is also the most affordable in comparison with the neighboring solutions in the group. The device is part of the Laptop Thin HHD series, and the nomenclature itself hints at its compact size.

The total hard disk capacity is 500 GB, with 32 MB of memory allocated for the buffer. The main working component is one magnetic disk and two heads. The spindle operates at a speed of 7200 rpm, which ensures a high average data exchange rate - about 135 MB / s (independent tests show that this parameter is fully consistent with reality). Average latency is about 11ms.

Physical data hard disk are as follows. Dimensions - 70.1x7x100.55 mm, weight - 95 g. Nominal noise in operation - 24 dB, in idle a little less - 23 dB. In operation, it consumes about 1.8 W of electricity.

Seagate provides a 24 month warranty on this model.

Dignity

high speed;

• quiet work;

  affordable price.

Flaws

• there is reason to doubt the declared shock resistance.

Next in our ranking is the compact "notebook" hard drive from Western Digital. In terms of form-factor, the device coincides with the previous disk, but its thickness is noticeably larger, which imposes some restrictions on the possibility of installing it in one or another laptop model.

The hard disk capacity is twice that of the first model in the group - 1,000 GB. A similar amount of memory is allocated for the buffer - 32 MB. The spindle runs at 7200 rpm. Independent testing shows data transfer speeds of 127 MB / s (write) and 123.5 MB / s (read).

This model uses a proprietary dynamic caching algorithm developed by Western Digital, which minimizes latency and optimally allocates buffer memory between write and read operations.

The physical characteristics of the device are as follows. Dimensions - 69.85x9.5x100.2 mm, weight - 115 g. In operating mode, it consumes about 1.8 W of electricity. The nominal noise level in operation is 27 dB, in idle time - 25 dB.

Due to the fact that the hard drive case is noticeably thicker than that of the first model in the group, it will not fit into every laptop and will not be suitable for ultrabooks.

The manufacturing company provides this model with a serious warranty period of 60 months.

Dignity

high speed;

reliability;

five-year warranty.

Flaws

• noticeable heating and noise.

AND latest model in this rating group - a compact mechanical hard drive manufactured by Toshiba. This is the most voluminous model in the group and, as expected, the most expensive. The device is part of the L200 series, which Toshiba has developed specifically for laptop computers, game consoles and various kinds of periphery.

The capacity of the device is 2 thousand GB. The buffer is defined as 128 MB of memory. The spindle runs at 5400 rpm. Supports NCQ technology. The average latency is about 5.56ms. The manufacturer managed to qualitatively optimize all processes, due to which it was possible to achieve high rates of data exchange even at reduced spindle speeds. At the same time, heating and noise are minimal.

This model has the following physical parameters. Dimensions - 69.85x9.5x100 mm, weight - 117 g. Power consumption in operating mode - about 1.65 W. In operation, the nominal noise should not exceed 24 dB, in idle - 23 dB. The maximum safe operating temperature is limited to 65 ° C.

The shock resistance of the device during operation is nominally 400 G, in static storage - 1000 G.

Dignity

spaciousness;

sufficiently high speed of data exchange due to optimization of all processes;

safety of data safety during transportation (ramp loading technology).

Flaws

• not found.

Best server hard drives

Now let's move on to the rating of hard drives, the technical characteristics of which allow them to be used as part of servers. Our experts included five models in the review, including three mechanical manufacturers from HGST, Seagate and Intel; and two solid state manufactures Western Digital and HGST.

Since server stations can use a whole arrays hard disks, such a parameter as mean time between failures begins to gain weight, therefore experts added this characteristic to the descriptions of devices. All of the samples listed support the extended format (4 KB sectors).

Let's start this part of the review with a solid-state SSD manufactured by the American company HGST (owned by Western Digital). The direct assembly of finished products is carried out in Malaysia.

The disk capacity is 400 GB, it uses the innovative MLC 3D NAND memory. The write speed is 2050 MB / s, the read speed is 2100 MB / s. Random write 200K IOPS, random read 400K IOPS. Connected via SAS interface. The estimated MTBF is 2.5 million hours. Built in Secure function Erase. External data transfer - 1200 MB / s. There is no built-in data encryption.

The hard drive is made in a compact 2.5 "form factor. Its dimensions are 70.1x15x100.6 mm, weight - 140 g. Shock resistance in operation - 500 G, in static storage - 1000 G. Restriction on safe operating temperature - 60 ° C ...

The manufacturer provides a warranty for this model for a period of 60 months.

Dignity

reliability;

high speed of writing and reading;

durability;

five-year warranty.

Flaws

• overpriced.

This model is significantly more spacious than the previous one - 960 GB. Memory type eMLC is used. Sequential write speed - 490 MB / s write and 560 MB / s read; random write - 16800 IOPS. The device is connected via a high-speed SATA 6Gbit / s interface. TRIM command and NCQ technology are supported. External data exchange speed - 600 MB / s. The estimated MTBF is 2 million hours.

The hard drive is made in a 2.5 "form factor with a linear dimensions of 70.1x7x100.25 mm. The device weighs 85 g. Average power consumption is 4.20 W. The limit for safe operating temperature is 70 ° C. Shock resistance in operation and static is 1500 G.

An important advantage of this model is the optimal combination of reliability and performance, while maintaining full ability not to disrupt legacy storage infrastructure. This allows the enterprise to save maximum Money when upgrading server systems.

Dignity

Easy to deploy with legacy storage infrastructure

Optimal IOPS performance matching to maximize random access speed

favorable "price of a megabyte";

increased reliability and protection of the safety of enterprise data.

Flaws

• no pronounced shortcomings were found.

The disk capacity is 1024 GB. High-performance innovative TLC 3D NAND memory is used. The sequential write speed is 450 MB / s, the read speed is 550 MB / s. The device is connected via the SATA 6Gbit / s port. The estimated MTBF is 1.6 million hours. There is a built-in data encryption function.

The drive is manufactured in a compact 2.5 "form factor with linear dimensions of 100x70x7 mm. The device weighs 82 g. Rated power consumption - 2.3 W. Shock resistance in operation and in static conditions is 1500 G. Maximum operating temperature is limited to 70 ° C.

Intel backs this model with a 3-year warranty.

Dignity

increased reliability;

favorable "price of a megabyte";

illustrious brand;

durability;

built-in data encryption.

Flaws

• not found.

The penultimate model in this group of ratings from Expertology is a mechanical HDD from Western Digital. The model is clearly positioned by the manufacturer as a server model, and this is directly indicated by its characteristics. With all this, this model is the most affordable in this review group.

The storage capacity is 1000 GB. The buffer is allocated 128 MB. The read and write speeds are identical - 184 MB / s. The spindle runs at 7200 rpm. The device is connected via the SATA 6Gbit / s port. Supports NCQ technology. The estimated MTBF is about 2 million hours.

The hard drive is made in a 3.5 "form factor with a linear dimensions of 101.6x26.1x147 mm. The device weighs 641 g. During operation it consumes an average of 8.10 W. It contains one magnetic plate and two heads. Shock resistance in operation is 65 G, during storage in static - up to 300 G. Nominal declared noise during operation - up to 28 dB, during idle time - no more than 25 dB.

Dignity

increased reliability and durability;

HelioSeal technology;

the most affordable price in the group.

Flaws

• not found.

And another drive from the HGST company closes the five best server hard drives in the rating from Expertology, this time a mechanical one. This is the most capacious disk in this group with the most favorable "price per megabyte".

The hard disk capacity is 4 thousand GB. The buffer is allocated 128 MB of memory. The average access time for reading is 7.6 ms, for writing - 8 ms. The average latency is 4.16 ms. The spindle runs at 7200 rpm. The device is connected via the SATA 6Gbit / s port. The estimated MTBF is about 2 million hours. Secure Erase and NCQ technology are supported.

The drive is manufactured in the 3.5 "form factor with dimensions of 101.6x26.1x147 mm and weighing 715 g. In operating mode it consumes about 9.10 W. Shock resistance in operation is 70 G, in static - up to 300 G. The declared operating noise level should not exceed 36 dB, idle - 29 dB The working space of the device consists of as many as five plates and ten heads.

This model comes with a 60 month warranty.

Dignity

Dignity

durability;

five-year warranty;

reliability;

large volume;

favorable price for such a volume.

Flaws

• noisy.

Best external hard drives

Now let's move on to another important category in our ranking - portable hard drives. Here, our experts have identified as the best as many as six models, which can vary significantly in parameters, but each of them has certain key advantages. All models shown support the extended format with 4K sectors.

Let's start with a simple and laconic solution from Samsung, which, due to its remarkable qualities, has won the most serious market demand. It is a solid state drive manufactured in a 1.8 "form factor with dimensions of 57.3x10.5x74 mm and a weight of 51 g. The design of the device is as minimalistic as its dimensions.

The storage capacity of the media is 500 GB. Uses high-performance TLC 3D NAND memory, TRIM command is supported. There are integrated data encryption tools - this function is not convenient for every user, and if desired, you can easily disable it. The carrier is characterized by high shock resistance - 1500 G, which is important for a portable device.

The data exchange speed (both writing and reading), declared by the manufacturer, reaches 540 MB / s. Feedback from real users speaks of the full compliance of the nominal indicator with the actual capabilities of the device.

This hard disk is notable for its extended configuration. So, the package includes two additional cables for connecting to the USB Type C port and an adapter from Type C to Type A. The hard drive itself is optimized for connecting to a PC via a new generation USB - 3.1 Gen 2 Type-C.

The South Korean company provides a three-year warranty for this model.

Dignity

minimum dimensions and weight;

integrated data encryption;

equipment;

data exchange rate.

Flaws

• very limited connection cable length.

Further, within the framework of our rating, we will consider another solid-state external drive of the well-known Transcend trademark (Taiwan). This is an extremely interesting commodity item, since in fact it is not even just an external hard drive, but a whole functional set for upgrading Apple computers. Thus, the disk can be used as an external one, or it can be installed permanently as an internal one.

The storage capacity is 240 GB, the reliable MLC memory is used. Reading speed reaches 570 MB / s, writing - 460 MB / s. Supported by TRIM team, NCQ and ECC technologies. The device is connected via USB 3.0.

The device is extremely compact - 37.2x10.8x110.9 mm, weighs only 65 g (the whole set weighs 250 g). The appearance of the drive fully corresponds to its "specialization" - an elegant elongated case of snow-white color.

Now a few words about the configuration. The delivery set includes the drive itself, external aluminium case, installation tools (T5 and P5 screwdrivers), USB cable, housing screws, rubber pad, carrying case, USB cable, installation instructions, device documentation.

The developers have made an emphasis on one hundred percent compatibility of the disc with MacBook Pro(Retina) 15 ". Supplied with a 24 month manufacturer's warranty.

Dignity

exceptional reliability and performance;

full compatibility with MacBook Pro (Retina) 15 ";

the ability to use as a stationary system disk;

extremely rich equipment.

Flaws

• not found.

The third position of this group in the rating of the best external drives from Expertology is extremely interesting solution from ADATA. This is a solid state SSD drive, and it is notable for its design and shape. It is made in a non-standard form factor with a bright "game" appearance.

The storage capacity is 256 GB, high-performance innovative TLC 3D NAND memory is used. The sequential write speed is 430 MB / s, the read speed is MB / s. ECC technology is supported, NCQ and TRIM commands are not supported.

The dimensions of the device are 80x15.2x80 mm, weight - 90 g. The device has the same high shock resistance as the previous models - permissible load up to 1500 G in operation and in static conditions. The permissible operating temperature range is 5 to 50 ° C. Connects to USB 3.1 Gen 1 interface.

Manufacturer's warranty for given tough the disc is 36 months old.

Dignity

shock resistance;

high performance memory;

spectacular design.

Flaws

• no TRIM command support.

The group of rating the best external media continues with a mechanical hard disk manufactured by the famous company Western Digital. Along with the model from ADATA, which we will look at later, this is the largest external drive in this group.

The device is designed for 2 TB of information, 32 MB of memory is defined for the buffer. The spindle runs at 5400 rpm. Average latency is 5.6ms. There is an integrated means of 256-bit AES-data encryption.

The hard drive is made in a 2.5 "form factor with dimensions of 81.5x21.5x110 mm and a weight of 250 g. Working parts - one magnetic plate and two heads. The appearance of the device deserves special praise - a spectacular case, visually consisting of two halves with different texture, high-quality plastic , deep anthracite shade (also available in other bright colors.) Delivery includes a long rigid 35 cm cord.

The disk is connected and powered via USB port 3.0. External bandwidth for data exchange is 500 Mb / s. The safe operating temperature is between 5 and 35 degrees.

In addition to the basic configuration, there is a set of convenient proprietary "software" for backup, security, data safety, maintenance and other tasks.

Dignity

bright, effective and at the same time practical design;

slight heating;

increased reliability;

a set of convenient working utilities.

Flaws

• there are cases of imbalance causing increased vibration.

The penultimate position in the group of external storage ratings is a mechanical hard drive manufactured by Toshiba. In some respects, this solution loses to other models in the group, but has an important advantage - the extremely affordable cost.

The storage capacity of the media is 500 GB. 8 MB are allocated for the buffer. Spindle rotation - 5400 rpm. Working parts - one magnetic disk and two heads. NCQ support is not implemented. The external data transfer speed reaches 500 MB / s, the nominal latency is up to 12 ms. The declared direct data exchange rate is up to 112 Mb / s. Independent tests have shown that the real indicator is only slightly lower than the nominal, practically within the statistical error.

The drive is made in a 2.5 "form factor with a linear dimensions of 79x15x119 mm and a weight of 230 g. The case is made of aluminum with a black coating. The design is minimalistic, but elegant and attractive.

The package includes a useful utility for backing up NTI Backup Now EZ.

Dignity

• high build quality;
• low noise level;

the most affordable price in the group;

reliability.

Flaws

• there may be problems setting the disk as bootable.

The disk capacity is 2 TB. The buffer memory is small and similar to the previous model - 8 MB. The working area consists of three magnetic plates and six heads. The spindle runs at 5400 rpm. Port data exchange speed - up to 500 MB / sec. NCQ compatibility is not provided.

A hard drive is made in the 2.5 "form factor with dimensions of 78x21x115 mm and weighing 230 g. It is connected via a USB 3.0 port. The case is made of high-quality black plastic. The mirror surface adds advantages to the attractiveness appearance devices, but automatically implies increased soiling. Supplied with auxiliary software - Quick Start Guide utility.

Dignity

high-quality assembly;

attractive design;

large volume.

Flaws

• very easily soiled case.

Best hard drives - HDD + SSD hybrids

Finally, the last group of devices in the rating-review from Expertology. These are hybrid media that combine both types of drives - mechanical HDDs and solid-state SSDs - in one device. Many analysts agree that the near future of hard drives lies precisely with such technological solutions. Our experts have identified two models from the current market offer - manufactured by Seagate and LENOVO. Both solutions support the extended format.

Seagate marketers position this hybrid carrier as a gaming one. Actually, the very idea of ​​creating such hybrids was largely caused precisely by the desire to maximize the satisfaction of the requirements of "professional" gamers.

The device is made in a 2.5 "form factor, which makes it possible to use it to equip not only desktop PCs, but also portable ones. Its dimensions are 69.85x7x100.35 mm, weight - 96 g.

The mechanical part consists of two magnetic plates and four heads. Mechanical capacity is 2 TB. As much as 128 MB are allocated for the buffer. Spindle speed - 5400 rpm. The track to track access parameter is 1.5 ms. The average delay time is 5.6 ms.

The solid-state part of the device has a volume of 8 GB and is formed from reliable MLC type memory (two bits per cell). Compatible with NCQ.

The device is connected via a high-speed SATA 6Gbit / s port. The rate of data exchange on the port is up to 600 MB / s. The disc is characterized by a very good "physics" - high shock resistance at the level of 400 G in operating mode and 1000 G in static storage. The nominal noise in operation does not exceed 24 dB, while waiting - 22 dB. The safe operating temperature limit is 60 ° C.

The parameters of the amount of memory in this case are completely similar to the previous model - 2 GB mechanical disk and 8 GB solid-state part. There is a significant difference in the spindle speed - here it is significantly higher and amounts to 7200 rpm. The device is connected via a SATA 6Gbit / s port with a bandwidth of 600 MB / s.

The form factor, in which the device is made - 3.5 ", hints at the possibility of its use only in desktop PCs. Dimensions of the model - 101.6x26.1x146.99 mm.

Dignity

reliability;

quality service (warranty service);

increased productivity.

Flaws

• no pronounced shortcomings were noted.

Attention! This rating is subjective and does not constitute an advertisement and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.

Right? Which manufacturer should you prefer? How big should the hard disk be and why can't I see everything on my system? disk space? Do you know such important characteristics of a hard disk as: form factor, cache, spindle speed, linear read speed, hard disk access time? How to check the hard drive and? What is an SSD and why is it faster than a simple hard drive HDD, but there is also? ? Why is it better to buy two disks: HDD and SSD for good performance of a new computer? We will answer all these questions in our article.

Hello friends, choosing a hard drive is not difficult at all, and optical drive even easier, but we will touch on this issue at the end of the article.

Disc types

Stationary personal computers (PCs) and laptops use hard disk drives (HDDs) and modern solid-state drives (SSDs) based on memory chips.

HDD(English HDD - Hard Disk Drive) - an electronic-mechanical device designed to store information on it. Has a large volume, but low speed and are used both to install the operating system and store user files.

The hard disk is made of ferromagnetic coated aluminum or glass plates and is a magnetic recording device. When working inside a hard drive, everything is in motion. Magnetic heads, writing, reading, erasing information hover above the surface of the magnetic plates of the hard disk at a height of 10-12 nm and never touch their surface, as they are easily damaged. HDD has long been obsolete and in the near future will be completely replaced by SSD.

SSD - Solid State Drive(SSD, solid-state drive) - a non-mechanical storage device created on the basis of memory chips similar random access memory or flash memory. SSDs are much more expensive than HDDs and have several times smaller volume, but high speed and are used to install the operating system and some programs to increase the speed of the PC. As you already understood, there are practically no mechanics inside the SSD. SSD is almost 5 times faster than HDD.

SSHD. There are also SSHD hybrid drives that have both magnetic platters for storing data and a small amount of solid-state memory for faster performance. But they have not yet taken root, since they are quite expensive and at the same time have little fast memory. The best option is to install separate HDD and SSD drives.

Form factor

Form factor refers to the size of a hard drive in inches. Main dimensions of hard drives:

2.5 "" - HDD drives for laptop and SSD.

3.5 "" - HDD and hybrid drives for desktop PCs.

For laptops, only 2.5 "" HDD and SSD are used.

For stationary PCs, 3.5 "" HDDs are used, and 2.5 "" SSDs are installed in the case using a special mount that sometimes comes with it, but more often you have to purchase it additionally. Read our article on solid state SSD drives, all the details are there.

Please note that screws for attaching a drive in a PC case are rare, and if you do not have them and the case does not have screwless fasteners, then ask the seller for 4 things, usually they have a lot of them.

Interface

An interface is a combination of a data exchange technology (standard) and a corresponding connector for connection.

IDE – outdated interface parallel data transmission, used a wide 40 or 80 pin connector and a corresponding ribbon cable for connection. Data transfer rates up to 133 Mb / s. Disks with IDE interface are practically not produced anymore and are much more expensive.

A disk with an IDE interface can only be considered for connecting to a motherboard that does not have a newer type of connectors (SATA), but in most cases it is more advisable to purchase a more modern hard disk (SATA) and to connect it to old board, will come out cheaper and can later be rearranged to a new computer.

The only drawback is that it is not always possible to install an operating system (OS) on a disk connected through such a controller, since the drivers are installed on the controller after the system is installed. But such a disk can be used as a file storage.

SATA- the first version of the high-speed serial interface, uses a thin pin connector and a corresponding ribbon cable for connection. Data transfer rates up to 1.5Gb / s. This version of the interface was used on the first 2.5 and 3.5 "" HDDs and such drives are no longer produced, but they are compatible with newer versions (SATA 2 and SATA 3) and can be connected to a motherboard with a connector of any of these versions.

SATA 2- the second version of the high-speed serial interface, uses the same connector and ribbon cable as the SATA of the first version. Data transfer rates up to 3 Gb / s. This version of the interface is still used on 2.5 "and 3.5" "HDDs and older 2.5" "SSD models. It is compatible with both the older (SATA) and newer (SATA 3) interface versions and can be connected to a motherboard with a connector of either version.

SATA 3- the third version of the high-speed serial interface. Data transfer rates up to 6 Gb / s. This version of the interface is used on modern HDD 2.5 and 3.5 "" and SSD 2.5 "". It is compatible with older (SATA and SATA2) interface versions and can be connected to a motherboard with a connector of either version.

Please note that cables from older interface versions (SATA and SATA 2) are not suitable for SATA 3, since they have insufficiently high frequency characteristics. SATA 3 cables are thicker and usually black in color. They come with motherboards with SATA 3 connectors, but they can be purchased separately.

It should be noted that the speed of the interface in any case significantly exceeds the capabilities of any modern hard disk, and for a disk with a SATA 3 interface, the SATA connector of the first version on the motherboard may be quite enough. However, in practice it happens differently, therefore it is still recommended that the version of the SATA interface motherboard was at least SATA version interface hard disk. This is especially true for fast SSD drives that have a SATA 3 interface, which should preferably be connected to the same SATA 3 connectors on the motherboard, otherwise the drive may not work at full speed (up to 30% slower).

The first SSD drives had a SATA2 interface and can still be found on the market, but they usually do not differ in high speed.

Power connectors

In addition to differences in interface types (IDE and SATA), old and new disks also differ in power connectors.

The drives with IDE interface had a 4-pin Molex power connector.

Transitional models of drives with SATA interface, for the purpose of compatibility with old power supplies, had two power connectors: the old 4-pin Molex and the new 15-pin SATA power connector.

At the same time, they usually had a warning note that it was impossible to connect power to both connectors at the same time, but some users managed to do this.

All modern drives with a SATA interface have a 15-pin SATA power connector, but if there is no such connector on the old PC's power supply, they can be connected through a special adapter from a 4-pin Molex connector.

By the way, it is customary to call a wire for data transmission - an interface loop, and for connecting a power supply - a power cable.

Capacity

Modern HDDs for PCs (3.5 "") have a capacity (volume) from 500 to 3000 Gigabytes (3 Terabytes).

HDD drives for notebooks (2.5 "") have capacities from 320 to 1000 GB (1 TB).

Fast solid state drives (2.5 "") have a capacity of 60-240 GB.

For a modern home PC, the standard today is a 1 TB HDD, which will allow you to place about 700 films or 5,000 songs in normal quality, or 290,000 photos in high quality, or 100 modern games (usually in various combinations).

For a simple office PC, a minimum size of 320 GB will suffice.

For a laptop, if it is not used for storing multimedia or archival data, the optimal disk size is 500 GB, but 320 GB is possible. If it is used as the main home PC, then it is better to take a closer look at the 750-1000 GB disk.

For professional use or a serious hobby, you may need a 2-3 TB hard drive, or maybe several such drives. Note only that if your motherboard's BIOS does not support UEFI, then when you install the OS on a 3 GB disk, the system will not see its entire volume, about 700 GB will remain unused.

SSD drives are not used for storing information, as they have small volumes and high costs. They are used only to install the system and some programs to improve the performance of the PC. A 60GB SSD drive is enough to Windows installations 7 or 8, but it is still advisable to purchase an SSD with a volume of about 120 GB, since firstly Windows is inherent to "grow", secondly, you may want to install some powerful program or toy on this disk, and thirdly - such a volume not promising. A 240GB SSD is cool, but still expensive and basically unnecessary.

When choosing a disk, keep in mind that it is not a reliable data storage and it is recommended to duplicate them on an external disk, otherwise you risk losing everything. If you plan to follow this advice, then keep in mind that you will need to purchase an external drive that is similar in size. For example, to create copies of files from 2 home PCs (or PC and laptop) with 500 and 1000 GB drives, you will need an external drive with a capacity of 1500 GB. If you buy a 3 TB drive for your PC, how much more will you need to spend on a similar external drive ?! Better buy 2 disks of 1 TB.

Spindle speed

The bulk of modern HDDs 2.5 and 3.5 "" have a spindle rotation speed of 5400 or 7200 rpm. In general, the higher the spindle speed, the higher the drive speed.

Most of the 2.5 "" HDDs have a spindle speed of 5400 RPM, in principle this is normal, since the noise and heating and consumption of such a disk in a laptop will be less.

Most 3.5 "" HDDs have a spindle speed of 7200 RPM, but there are models with a speed of 5400 RPM. I would not recommend taking the latter, since such a solution seems questionable for a normal high-quality PC disk and they work a little slower.

There are also fast HDD 3.5 "" with a spindle speed of 10,000-15,000 RPM (for example, the WD Raptor series), but they are quite expensive (from $ 200 for 1 TB), and only 30% faster. In addition, they are also quite noisy. Better for this money to buy a 128 GB SSD and 1 TB HDD.

An SSD does not have any spindle, since it consists of memory microcircuits, so there can be no question of its rotation speed.

Buffer size

Buffer size is the size of the cache, made in the form of a memory chip on the electronic board of the hard disk controller and designed to speed up its operation. The larger the cache memory, the higher the speed of the disk.

Older hard drives had a buffer size of 8-16 MB.

Modern HDDs have 32-64 MB of cache memory.

In principle, the difference in the operating speed of identical hard drives with 32 and 64 MB of cache memory is insignificant (less than 5%). But it makes no sense to buy a hard drive with a buffer size of less than 32 MB.

Most modern and expensive hard drives have 128 MB of cache, but they are not yet very common.

Linear reading speed

Linear read speed means the speed of continuous reading of data from the surface of platters (HDD) or memory chips (SSD) and is main characteristic, which reflects the real speed of the disk. It is measured in megabytes per second (Mbps).

Older IDE HDDs had an average linear read speed of 40 to 70 MB / s.

Modern SATA HDDs have an average linear read speed of 100 to 140 Mb / s.

SSD drives have an average linear read speed of 160 to 560 MB / s.

Linear read speed HDD disks depends on the density of data recording on the magnetic surface of the platters and the quality of the disc mechanics. Basically, all HDD disks of the same generation have a similar recording density, so a higher speed speaks primarily of the quality of the mechanics. At the same time, an HDD with better mechanics does not cost much more. The main thing here is to be able to choose the right disk model, which is complicated by the fact that sellers rarely indicate their speed parameters. You have to look for this information yourself.

The linear read speed of SSD drives depends on the speed of the memory chips. But, unlike HDD, SSD drives with more fast memory are much more expensive. It is much easier to choose an SSD disk model, since sellers always indicate their speed characteristics.

For modern HDDs, a good indicator is an average linear read speed of 120 MB / s, for SSD drives - 450 MB / s.

There is also such a parameter as the linear write speed, which accordingly reflects the write speed to the disk and is also measured in MB / s. For HDD disks, the write speed is usually less than the read speed and is not taken into account when choosing a disk. But for SSD disks, the write speed can be the same as the read speed or less, and you need to pay attention to this. It is desirable that the SSD drive has the same write and read speed, for example 450/450 MB / s.

Access time

Access time refers to the speed at which the disk finds the required file after the operating system or a program has accessed it. This time is measured in milliseconds (ms). This parameter renders big influence on disk performance when working with small files and not great when working with large files.

HDD disks have access time from 12 to 18 ms. A good indicator is the access time of 13-14 ms, which indirectly indicates the quality (accuracy) of the disc mechanics.

SSD drives have an access time of the order of 0.1-0.2 ms, which is 100 times faster than HDD drives! Therefore, you can ignore this parameter when choosing an SSD drive, and it is usually not indicated by sellers in the price lists.

Manufacturers

The main manufacturers of HDD drives are:

Fujitsu- the Japanese company, previously famous for the high quality of its products, is currently represented by a small number of models and is not very popular, but has a very democratic pricing policy.

Hitachi- the Japanese company, both earlier and now, is distinguished by the stable quality of hard drives, since it implements only proven reliable technologies, therefore the model range of this company is updated somewhat slower than that of its competitors. Buying a Hitachi hard drive you won't go wrong by getting good quality for a reasonable price.

Samsung- this Korean company entered the hard drive market later than the others, and their quality at that time left much to be desired. Samsung drives were made in cheap cases, warmed up and quickly went out of order. To date, Samsung, in my opinion, has overtaken all its competitors and produces the fastest and highest quality HDD disks. They may be priced slightly higher than the competition, but worth it.

Seagate Is an American company, a pioneer in the field of technologies used in hard drives... It was once famous for its advanced solutions and the quality of its discs. Unfortunately, the quality of hard drives from this company leaves much to be desired. I do not recommend purchasing them.

Toshiba Is a Japanese company, about which you can say everything the same as about Fujitsu - it was also famous for its high quality, and now it is represented by a small number of models on our market. In this regard, there may be problems in service such manufacturers.

Western Digital (WD) Is an American company specializing in the production of hard drives. Its discs have always been considered more reliable. For example, they used higher quality bearings than the competition, but because of this they were always noisier. Like Hitachi, WD drives have always had a more or less stable workmanship. But, lately, the disks of this company do not stand out with outstanding characteristics, as for example Samsung. I would position them between Hitachi, stable in quality, and Seagate, which has rolled into consumer goods.

In general, I would advise you to choose between Samsung and Hitachi as the highest quality, fastest and most stable.

SSD manufacturers

With the choice of the manufacturer of SSD drives, the situation is somewhat different. Since they are made up of memory chips, they are produced by the RAM companies.

As established manufacturers, I would recommend the following: Corsair, Crucial, Intel, Kingston, OCZ, Samsung, Sandisk, Toshiba, Transcend.

Better not to buy SSDs from well-known Chinese brands such as: A-Data, Apacer, Silicon Power.

Price

As for HDD disks, their price depends more on their volume. The dependence on the brand, model and even quality is not so significant (5-10%), since buyers rarely pay attention to such moments. Accordingly, it is not particularly advisable to save on hard disk space. Just pick the size you want, a good manufacturer, and compare specifications such as linear read speed and access time. I will not quote prices for HDD drives, as the pricing in this segment is not adequate and depends more on marketing gimmicks. Their prices can fluctuate 2-3 times from year to year, both in the direction of reduction in price and in the direction of rise in price. A similar situation I described in an article about RAM. For example, after the flood in Taiwan in 2011, prices for hard drives soared by an average of 2.5 times, and there is another wave of the financial crisis, etc., due to which prices for them have not yet returned to adequate technical progress. level.

Theoretically, the parameters of an HDD disk can be found out by the model number on the manufacturer's website, but in practice I rarely succeeded, since it is rather difficult to find and understand these parameters on the manufacturer's website. But there is a much easier way.

There is a fairly popular program for testing the speed (and some other parameters) of the hard disk - HDTune. The manufacturer's website has a paid (with limited trial period) and the free version of this program.

http://www.hdtune.com/

But we do not need it to select a disk. We are only interested in the results of tests in this program, made by other users.

HDTune allows you to define two main parameters - linear read speed and random access time.

In addition, by the very nature of the graph, you can determine the quality of the disc mechanics.

Here is an example of a disc with conventional mechanics

But with a very high quality and accurate

Did you notice the difference? If the disk has good mechanics, then in addition to its speed parameters, such as the linear read speed and access time, the linear speed graph will have a nice, cyclically repeating shape, and the random access time measurement points will be quite obese.

In order to find the test results of the disc you are interested in, enter its model number in the image search in Google. Now almost all sellers indicate the model number in the price list, before there were problems with this and you had to go to a store or warehouse to look at the disc live, or get the sellers by phone, which for some reason they really didn’t like)

Find at least 2-3 similar pictures to make sure that the tests performed are objective. Pay attention to the fact that the required model would be indicated in the picture.

Optical drive

We define the interface: IDE - for old PCs without SATA connectors or SATA - for all new PCs. If you cannot find an IDE drive for your old PC, then you will need to purchase a SATA drive and a PCI-SATA controller.

Determine which drive you need: DVD-RW (also called DVD Super Multi) or Blu-Ray (more expensive drive for discs of the same name). If you do not have Blu-Ray discs and do not know why you need it, then you do not need such a drive).

We choose popular manufacturers: ASUS, LG, Samsung and choose the cheapest available model, they will hardly differ in anything. If you like to be reinsured, you can choose the most expensive model, the difference in price will be negligible (no more than $ 5).

You can also purchase a drive from such manufacturers as: BENQ, HP, Lite-On, Pioneer, which may have special recording modes and proprietary software, if you know why you need it. For regular users this is not needed, but problems with warranty service may add.

What you should pay attention to is the color. It happens: black, silver and white (already rare). This is important if you want the drive to blend in harmoniously with your PC case design. If your PC case is black or silver, then black is more suitable. In addition, the black drive panel is made of black plastic, while the silver one is always painted and may wear off during use.

A DVD drive costs $ 20-30. The optimal price is $ 25.

The cheapest Blu-ray drive costs $ 65. The optimal price is $ 75-85.

That's all friends. We really hope that we helped you choose a hard drive for your computer!

There is a rule - the higher the skill of using a PC, the more volume it needs a hard disk. Various collections of movies, games, pictures and home videos take up a lot of PC memory, so users try to increase its size as much as possible. However, many people do not know what an ideal hard drive should be that would have a lot of space, fit in configuration, and work quickly. That is why further data will be given on what parameters it is worth choosing a drive, which one is more reliable and how to choose a device "for yourself".

Hard drive selection rules

It is worth warning right away that "hard drives" (as hard drives are sometimes called) are different, and their choice is fraught with some difficulties. First of all, you need to rely on the following basic parameters of the hard disk drive (hard disk):

1. Volume. Figuratively speaking, the volume depends on how much data the hard disk drive can contain before the warning "hard drive is full" flashes in front of you. Currently, you can buy 1TB hard drives, which is enough for any collection (within reasonable limits) of the most "heavy" games or films.
2. Company manufacturer. Currently, several large firms share the title of "best railroad manufacturer", but there is still no clear leader. From what firms create a hard drive, its reliability, performance and a dozen more parameters directly depend.
3. Cache sizes. The cache memory sets the speed of data processing by the device, in other words, the better this indicator, the faster the computer will boot, the faster the data will load, and some requests will be executed.
4. Connector type. The connector determines whether the "hard" one will fit your computer or laptop. Also, this parameter affects the quality of the device's bandwidth.
5. Spindle speed. This indicator also affects the speed of data processing, and, accordingly, a faster railway will record information faster.

Needless to say that the most best hard drives will have all the maximum characteristics, and accordingly their purchase will cost a pretty penny. However, combining the performance of the device with your real needs will allow you to buy a good and inexpensive (comparatively) option that will ideally cover the user's needs. QwertyShop experts described the information on selecting a hard disk http://qwertyshop.com.ua/zhestkie-diski as clearly and useful as possible, so that everyone chooses the option correctly and to their liking.

With the development of computer technology, all devices from this category began to rapidly decrease in size, gradually "growing" to pocket versions. The same situation happened with hard drives, as a result, external drives appeared, which are distinguished by ease of use and miniature size. The price, of course, also increased. However, buying such device options is not at all necessary, it all depends on the ultimate goal of the "upgrade":

1. Increase the amount of memory. If the user's goal is to simply increase available memory, then there is no need to spend money on external options for the device. All you have to do is select the appropriate hard disk format for your computer configuration, and then simply connect it as a secondary storage platform.
2. The main "hard drive" for the computer. In this option, you also do not need to spend money on mobile types of hard drives, but purchase an internal hard disk with good write speed and capacity.
3. Mobile storage location. If the user needs a voluminous drive that is easy to carry and use, then you should pay attention to an external hard drive. As a rule, such devices have a USB connector, which allows them to be connected to any PC without opening the system unit and digging through the wires. In addition, external hard drives can be connected to other equipment - video players, laptops, TVs, and then read data from them.

As for the internal devices, they should be chosen according to the following parameters.

Hard disk space

If desired, you can purchase devices with different sizes, ranging from 250 GB to "terabytes", but practice shows that too large amounts of memory are unnecessary for most users. With the spread of the Internet, all data is not stored on the hard drive, but on the Internet, with the exception of games and programs. If the user considers himself to be among the "average", then he needs a 500 GB HDD. Larger devices require more resources for manufacturers, therefore they are much more expensive. 1TB should be bought only for those people who like to collect collections of films, pictures and other data, and such hard drives are also needed for games.

Cache memory

In fact, the disk cache serves as an operating space where data of primary importance is loaded. The higher the parameter, the faster the tasks will be performed on the computer. Standard hard the disk has clipboard sizes (another name of this section memory) from 8 to 32 MB. This is quite enough for the average user who is not involved in programming, does not like powerful and productive games, but simply surfs the Internet and watches videos. The most productive HDD will be a device with an indicator of 64 MB.

Spindle speed

The hard drive itself looks like big disk rotating during operation. It is driven by the spindle, and the head, which has direct contact with the disk, is responsible for reading and writing data. The faster the spindle rotates, the sooner the railway fulfills its task - information processing. The average hard drive has a rotation speed of 5400 rpm, more expensive and productive models have a frequency of 5900 or 7200 units. Again, if the user wants a "faster" disk, then it is worth looking at an HDD with a speed of 10,000 units - one of the most functional options today.

Important information: do not forget about new types of devices that are gradually taking over the market - drives SSD systems... This option differs from the standard by the type of device - SSD drives operate on solid media. No disks, no spindles, just data storage chips. Such hard drives have much faster operating speed, they do not make noise (more on that later), but the cost and reliability of these HDDs are much lower. The cost is clear, but the reliability needs to be dealt with. The point is that it is impossible to recover data from an SSD - if the voltage has jumped to the upper bar, then such a variant of the technique burns out.

Interface

With the development of computer technology, hard drives have changed the connector through which it connects to a PC several times. The modern version has a SATA connector (for external - USB), it is used in almost all models of computers and disks. However, another interface, the IDE, has not yet completely gone out of use. The SATA version has much more throughput, so such a hard drive will process data faster, but if the user has an old PC, he should be careful - these two interfaces are incompatible.

Manufacturer

As for the manufacturer of this technology, then the opinions of experts differ greatly. Most of them consider Western Digital and Hitachi to be the leading rail development firms. It is these companies that create the most reliable devices - their temperature is always at the same level, breakdowns are infrequent, and functionality is at its best. Some analysts put Seagate in opposition to WD (Western Digital). The most unreliable, but popular HDDs are Samsung drives (editorial opinion).

The claims that Samsung drives are unreliable are based on:
1. the number of warranty returns in the retail network QwertyShop;
2. analysis of reviews in the Yandex.Market service;
3. personal experience editions with a short lifespan of this manufacturer's discs.

The industry leaders, Western Digital, have special color coding for the reliability and quality of devices.

Noise level

Some users are annoyed by the noise that the hard drive makes during operation. It can crackle, hum, rattle, and all this cacophony begins when the computer is powered up and ends when it is turned off. It is believed that Western Digital devices make the least noise during operation, but this is a subjective opinion of the company's fans, so it should be taken into account with a big stretch. There are no other parameters for choosing a disk in terms of the level of noise it makes, so you have to hope for luck.

If the hard drive works in "difficult" conditions for it, then it will quickly fail. To delay this moment as far as possible, consider the following expert advice.

1. Use a UPS. A high-quality "uninterruptible power supply" will protect the HDD from power surges - the main killer of technical equipment.
2. Apply control programs. There are a number of programs that regularly scan the state of the hard drive - temperature, spindle speed. If you look at them from time to time, you can catch the moment when the disc began to "tinker" and return it for repair in time.
3. Provide cooling. HDD generates a lot of heat during operation, sometimes so much that standard system cooling of the PC does not cope with the load. If this situation is observed by the user, it is worth adding a couple of fans to the system unit.
4. Choose the correct power supply. If the user has an unevenly operating power supply installed, it can supply high voltage to the hard drive, which is guaranteed to "kill" the device.

Backblaze is quite well known among the Internet community, but not by its main profile of activity, but by its reports, which always cause a surge of emotions among ordinary users. And this is only because this company, specializing in the provision of cloud storage services, does not use industrial HDDs as equipment, but ordinary, consumer ones, and talks about which models have worked in good faith over the past year, and which ones have failed.

• November 13, 2013: About 50% of hard drives last at least six years;
• December 6, 2013: Enterprise hard drives demonstrate comparable reliability to consumer;
• January 22, 2014: Hard disk reliability statistics using the example of a data center;
• May 13, 2014: Temperature conditions do not significantly affect the lifespan of hard drives;
• September 26, 2014: Backblaze has updated statistics on HDD reliability.
• January 23, 2015: In search of the most reliable HDD of 2014. Backblaze Statistics.
• February 25, 2016: A private look at "good and bad" hard drives.

And now it's time to analyze the next report, since it was published on the company's website.

At the moment, Backblaze uses 61590 HDD in its data center. That's 9.5% more tough disks than at the time of last year's report, when 56,224 drives were in operation. The total operating time in the 1st quarter of 2016 amounted to more than a billion hours, or 42 million days, or 114,155 years of operation of one drive.

HDD reliability in Q1 2016.

(Source: Backblaze)

• The list contains 61,523 hard drives, not 61,590 as noted above. The reason for this is that it does not include models with fewer than 45 examples;
• Some models have zero percent. This means that during the 1st quarter of 2016 there were no failures for these models;
• When analyzing the failure rate, the number of samples must be taken into account. For example, a Toshiba 3TB HDD 8.65% failure rate is based on just one failed instance;
• The overall bounce rate was 1.84%, the lowest quarterly rate in company history.

Aggregate Hard Drive Reliability

Backblaze employees began collecting statistical data for the publication of reports about three years ago. The table below is cumulative as of March 31, 2016 for each year starting April 10, 2013.

(Source: Backblaze)

One billion operating hours

One billion hours is the sum of the run times of all drives. For example, it includes 1TB WDC drives that have been completely retired after an average of 6 years in service. Below is a graph of the hours in service to date:

(Source: Backblaze)

The line "Others" takes into account the operating time of those models that are not listed separately, because they were in operation less than 45 copies.

In the table above, the Seagate 4TB HDD leads in terms of hours in use, but which manufacturer has the most hours in service? The diagram below sheds some light on this topic:

(Source: Backblaze)

Early HGST drives, especially 2TB and 3TB, worked long time and have provided excellent service over the past few years. That "time-in-work" currently outweighs the 4TB Seagate HDDs shipped last year.

The relationship between HDD models by the number of hours worked in a different graphical representation- now in terms of volume:

(Source: Backblaze)

Models with a volume of 4 TB have a total of more than 580 million hours of operation. We are talking about 48,041 copies, which means an average of 503 days (1.38 years) of operation. The failure rate of 4TB models is 2.12%.

HDD. Reliability by manufacturer

Backblaze uses HDDs from four manufacturers, with HGST and Seagate dominating. The following chart provides breakdown data by year and manufacturer.