I don't think spindle speed makes that much of a difference. There's more to the drive then just how fast the spindle is turning, sure the platter is spinning faster under the heads but data has to be put on and taken off those platters. This is where drive circuitry comes into play.
I too wanted to get a 7200 drive thinking, wow it *must be* a heck of a lot faster than a 5400 drive. Then I began to do some research, listening to what users said and reading reviews.
Noise? Vibration? Noticeable? Barely noticeable? One thing I know about reported increase in noise and vibration is both are subjective. Regardless of wether you tell me " it's barely noticeable " or " it's unbearable ", the fact remains it is there and more than in a 5400.
It came down to, do I want to experiment and find out if the added noise/vibration is a problem? For me the answer was no. I did however play with a Windows Laptop that had a 7200 drive in it, and yeah to me it was noticeable in THAT laptop. Maybe not so much in mine, but alas I opted for the 500 GB WD Scorpion Blue. It chugs right along, seems faster than the OEM drive that was in there 250 GB, and dang I never hear it or feel it.
When they get the 512 Gig SSD to below .50 cents per gigabyte, I'll switch to one of those. For now the good ole WD Scorpion Blue will have to do!
