Hard disk selection

[NIM]

Hey hardware gurus,

 

I plan to replace my 320GB SATA I disk for something newer. Since I moved to SSD this old HDD is far the loudest thing in my machine.

 

Which drive would you suggest. Since I don't plan to spend too much, I planned to replace it with new 500GB 3.5" 7200 drive. Most important thing is that the new disk is as quiet as possible.

 

I have found couple of disks in similar price range and I need help to choose the right one, so here they are:

 

Have in mind that I am buying this disk in the local store, but I have converted prices in US dollars.

 

1. HDD SATA II 500 GB HITACHI GST Deskstar, 3,5", 7200rpm, 16MB (Warranty: 24 months) - Cheapest price $70

2. HDD SATA III 500 GB SEAGATE Barracuda, 3.5", 7200 rpm, 16MB, ST500DM002  (Warranty: 12 months) $75

3. Disk WD Caviar Blue, 1000 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3,5", 7.200 rpm, 10EZEX (Warranty: 24 months) $89

4. TOSHIBA DT01ACA100 (3.5", 1TB, 32MB, SATA III-600) (Warranty: 24 months) $91

5 .HDD SATA II 1000 GB HITACHI GST Deskstar 7K1000.C, 3,5", 7200rpm, 32MB, HDS721010CLA332 (Warranty: 36 months) $94

 

and something to consider although a bit pricey...

 

6. Caviar Black , 500 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3,5", 7.200 rpm, WD5003AZEX $93 (Warranty: 60 months)

 

In my opinion ghe best buy is the first one although it has a small cache and is SATA 2, not sure how quiet it is.

Now, if I decide to go give around $20 more I am in doubt between HDD 3 and 4 although judging by reviews on the net WD should be a better choice.

 

HDD 6 is a bit pricey for 500GB of storage but warranty of 60 months is very attractive..

 

Space is not an issue here, I can go with the 500GB or 1TB. This drive will be used as a secondary storage so maybe I really don't need WD black edition.

 

Can I hear your suggestions/experiences?

 

Thanks!

[Kelsenellenelvian]

I like #3

[crashfly]

How about a "Seagate Barracuda ST31000524AS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive" from newegg.com (here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148697) for only $79.  A terabyte for cheaper.  I would go for more space.  One "always" needs more space.

 

Seriously though, looking at your selections, I would also agree that option #3 would be very benefital compared to the others.  SATA3 and the cache size are definitely "forward" looking.

Edited January 26, 2013 by crashfly

[bphlpt]

Like crashfly, lately I have been choosing Seagate drives.  I had a bad run of WD drives failing after choosing them for years.

 

Cheers and Regards

[NIM]

@Kels

Yes, that seems like the best choice to me too..especially that this is a special discounted price.

 

@crashfly

As I said, I am going to buy this from our local reseller. NewEgg is not available for me

As for the Seagates, for some reason, each Seagate in this price range has only 12 months warranty and that's a huge minus for me.

 

@bphlpt

I can safely say that for the Seagate drives.

For instance, the drive that I'm selling is Seagate SATA I, 320GB that came with 5 year warranty! It's been working for 6+ years now without issues, although it is very loud and slow especially after power spindown. It takes time for it to spinup.

 

My PC is very quiet and that drive is the loudest thing in it. Once it spins down after it's been idle for a while, PC is so quiet that I sometimes think that it's OFF.

 

BUT, that 5 year warranty ment something, probably more quality parts or something else, I can't tell. Because of that I am always going with the longer warranty period.

 

I also have 2 Seagate drives. One is OK, but the other was changed twice. One 2.5" Seagate is also connected to my PCH and I had to replace it after a short while. With that said, I can't tell that I had good experience with Seagate drives.

 

So basically, it looks like a lottery for me. Looks like the quality of Hard Drives changes on a daily basis

 

What about that WD with 60 months warranty?

[Legolash2o]

I also recommend #3. It's hard to answer without having the HDD itself.

[NIM]

I'll probably go with #3. Will let you know my experience with it