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5400 or 7200 rpm 320 or 500Gb Internal HD for MB 13.3'..which is better?
- Thread starter sunnymac
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The 7200rpm drive has a modest speed advantage (boot faster, read/copy/write large files faster, start apps slightly faster) at the expense of slightly more power use (shorter battery life).
The 5400 rpm drive is about as fast as the stock drive and uses about the same amount of power but offers capacity in excess of the 320gb limit for 7200rpm drives (this will change later this year with 7200rpm 500gb drives becoming available).
So is speed or capacity more important to you?
The 5400 rpm drive is about as fast as the stock drive and uses about the same amount of power but offers capacity in excess of the 320gb limit for 7200rpm drives (this will change later this year with 7200rpm 500gb drives becoming available).
So is speed or capacity more important to you?
500gb 7200rpm already exist
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148374&Tpk=500gb 7200
is say go with a 7200rpm
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148374&Tpk=500gb 7200
is say go with a 7200rpm
it depends on your needs
320GB @ 7200 is very fast, but less storage and slightly shorter battery life.
500GB @ 5400 is moderate speed (still fast) and more battery and has a lot more space.
I'd go with the 500GB myself but it's up to you
320GB @ 7200 is very fast, but less storage and slightly shorter battery life.
500GB @ 5400 is moderate speed (still fast) and more battery and has a lot more space.
I'd go with the 500GB myself but it's up to you
the new 7200 rpm drives from seagate are very power efficient. the 500GB 7200.4 Seagate Momentus is an excellent drive, and comes in 500GB configuration. I'm waiting until the 250GB model comes in stock before I buy, because I don't need 500GB of storage.
The 7200rpm = less power is a myth. The power difference is negligible. Sometimes it actually gives you more power.
The basic reasoning is that yes, they have to use more power to spin faster, but they also don't have to spin for as long as 5400rpm HDs.
The basic reasoning is that yes, they have to use more power to spin faster, but they also don't have to spin for as long as 5400rpm HDs.
I recently upgraded my UniMB with a 320 Scorpio Black from WD. So far I like the speed bump and I haven't noticed any great decrease in heat or battery life. Someone on another forum was in your conundrum and the advice given was: "speed is always better" so, I personally took that advice.
+1 to both of these. When I upgraded from my WD 250GB 5400 to my 320GB 7200 Momentus, my power usage went down (slightly).
i upgraded to a 320GB hard drive a while back and I didn't notice a great change either...
If you care about performance at all, get the 7200rpm. It's much faster (noticeably so), copying songs into iTunes folder, loading apps, copying files, etc etc. One of my best upgrades in terms of "seeing" the improvement. The only con is battery though I use AC more often then I should, it's not been an issue. There was a chart somewhere of the power consumption of both the Western Digital and Seagates consumed very close to a 5400 when idling. Outside those brands then there is a noticeable jump in power. I don't notice vibrations, heat, or noise at all. Actually my previous Western Dig. blue 250gb 5400rpm kept making an annoying clicking sound so to me, this is even quieter =D