I want to get an external drive to do backups and store media. do i really need the 7200 or would the 5400 be fine?
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5400 vs 7200 rpm for backup and storage?
- Thread starter xi mezmerize ix
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5400 RPM is ok. The speed differences are marginal, plus copying data is something that happens in the background so it doesn't matter how long it takes, compared to something like the speed it takes to open an app
Myself, I have dumped 5400RPM in favour of 7200RPM as they are quicker and usually have more cache. My personal favourite is the WD Scorpio Black Series 7200RPM - and they have a 5 year warranty. 7200RPM's do get a bit warmer, but are designed for laptops so no issues. Trick is most external drives only have 5200RPM, so I would be more inclined to get a 7200RPM drive and caddy.
If you want the ultimate in HDD, SSD is the way to go, I have a Corsair X-128 in my Windows 7 x64 laptop and it literally screams along. Note the 128GB drive cost me AU$540.
Hello
5400rpm drives are generally better suited to external enclosures, especially the "Low power" or "Green" drives.
Usually an external enclosure has relatively poor cooling and uses a relatively slow interface like USB2, so a cooler running drive is essential while a faster drive is pointless due to the interface.
2¢ Keri
5400rpm drives are generally better suited to external enclosures, especially the "Low power" or "Green" drives.
Usually an external enclosure has relatively poor cooling and uses a relatively slow interface like USB2, so a cooler running drive is essential while a faster drive is pointless due to the interface.
2¢ Keri
I wouldn't touch any green drive personally as the price difference is minimal and you are sacrificing performance for nothing more than environmental reasons. I personally get the 7200rpm drives only and no slower.
It will depend on exactly what you're buying/comparing.
For example, I use hardware RAID, which necessitates the need for enterprise drives for the primary array/s, and green's for backup (cheaper, and the performance hit isn't an issue for this usage). The price difference is not negligable BTW (i.e. 2TB Green is more than $100USD cheaper last I checked, than the 2TB enterprise model).
Thanks guys. I ended up getting one of these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136592
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136592