How to choose a hard drive: advice from professionals. External hard drive: reliability rating, models, manufacturers, capacity The quietest hard drives 3.5 1 gig

Choosing when buying a computer HDD, people most often do not think about its reliability. Capacity, price and recording speeds - these characteristics are given importance, and the service life of the device is measured only by the duration of the warranty. As it turned out, in vain. Fault tolerance hard drives varies greatly depending on the manufacturer. At similar prices and capacities, drives from one company can serve well for more than 3.5 years, while another company is highly likely to fail in the first 1.5 years. And if this is not so painful for a home computer - at most the archive of photos from last year’s tour will “burn out”, then a dead hard drive on a corporate server will paralyze the work of the entire company and “give” problems for several months to come. Even if the company defends itself backup data, then it’s all the same, buying short-lived hard disks, it will incur losses associated with their frequent replacement and downtime for repairs. The information recovery laboratory Storelab.ru decided to determine whose hard drives usually last the longest.

Measure of durability

Most hard drives are produced by 6 suppliers: Fujitsu/Toshiba, Hitachi, Samsung, Seagate and Western Digital. To determine who produces the most reliable devices, we analyzed the statistics on the receipt of failed hard drives. More than 4,000 devices were reviewed: from personal computers (3.5" format to laptops (2.5").

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It turned out that the two groups of data correlated only partially. The main difference is that the percentage of failed devices at market leader Seagate is almost 2 times higher than its share: 56.1% versus 31%. You can make an allowance for Russian specifics: according to Seagate’s own data, its share in the domestic market is more than 40%. But this fact does not fundamentally change the situation: the percentage of receipts of “dead” disks is significantly higher than the market share. This indicates the lower reliability of Seagate hard drives compared to other manufacturers. All other vendors have revenue share below market share, with Western Digital and Hitachi having a difference of nearly 11%. Thus, the devices of these companies are characterized by higher fault tolerance.

The second important indicator is the average age of hard drives at the time of failure. It, again, differs depending on the disc manufacturer and often depends on the “success” of the model. At the development stage, it is difficult to determine the durability of a hard drive. Having developed a device, the company can only conduct laboratory tests: temperature, pressure, vibration, etc. But this study, as a rule, does not show all design defects. The real test of durability is time. Shortcomings become obvious within a year and a half. If the majority of a manufacturer's hard drives survive this milestone, the product can be considered reliable.

The thing is just right. The rating will help you choose the appropriate option. The top five included the most best HDD from advanced companies.

Each model holds a thousand gigabytes of information, so it is perfect for both installing operating systems and storing multimedia. The article describes key features and the advantages of the best hard drives to help you choose the most suitable option. There are server and universal models that provide information security, and there are also mega-speed devices.

WD 3.5 SATA 3.0 1TB 7200RPM 64MB CACHE CAVIAR BLUE (WD10EZEX)

This hard drive was included in the rating for a reason. The internal model is productive and durable - this is why it has gained popularity. A 3.5-inch HDD, which holds 1000 GB of data, is ideal for both a regular office PC and gaming builds.

Note: accessory connection type classic -

Attractive Features hard drive:

Productive - the spindle rotates at 7.2 thousand rpm. Coupled with a 64-MB cache, this allows the hard drive to quickly read and write information.

Reliable - the device can last for a very long time: it will last 7.5 years if it works around the clock.

Silence is another advantage of the drive. It does not buzz at all: when the HDD reads data, it makes a noise of only 30 decibels.

SEAGATE SATA 1TB 7200RPM 6GB/S 64MB (310506)

The Barracuda series gave the manufacturer fame. These HDDs make it possible to use the capacity to the maximum and cope 100% with any task, be it storing documents, media files or installing games.

TOSHIBA SATA 1TB 7200RPM 6GB/S/64MB HDWD110UZSVA

Model - best option for office and “home” assemblies. The HDD capacity (1000 GB) allows you to store decent multimedia collections. The capacity of the hard drive makes it possible to collect not only a good collection of films and music, but also various games.

Advice: created for desktop computers, but if you need to add memory to a laptop, you will need

The four best features of a hard drive:

WD 3.5 SATA 3.0 1TB 7200RPM 64MB CACHE BLACK (WD1003FZEX)

The variant belongs to the “Black” line. HDDs of this series belong to the category of top options for desktop PCs. This hard drive is on the list best models per 1 terabyte thanks to reliability and fast work. The Black line hard drive is ideal for working with resource-intensive applications and games, as it is designed for increased loads.

Note: The manufacturer is so confident that its discs are good that they are not afraid to put a five-year warranty on them.

Four main features of HDD:

1. Transfers data very quickly: in a second it is capable of transmitting 6 Gigabits of information.

2. Performance - what you need: two processors, an advanced SATA 3.5 interface, a high speed at which the spindle rotates (it makes 7.2 thousand revolutions per minute) provide excellent performance.

3. Wear-resistant: the device is protected using NoTouch technology, which aims to ensure that heads and discs wear out less. It prevents the head from touching the surface of the plate, which protects the model from shaking during operation and transportation.

4. The hard drive will last a long, long time: its motor’s time between failures is as much as three hundred thousand hours. The computer is more likely to fail than this hard drive.

Do you want your laptop to remember more, or do you need to expand the storage of your desktop PC? Then it would be good to buy more. This review presents five manufacturers of internal drives that have achieved popularity due to the reliability and variety of HDDs they produce. Features and examples of models from each company will help you make your choice.

SEAGATE

The company, which has existed since 1979, makes Barracuda hard drives (one of the most popular lines). These models were the first HDDs whose spindle rotated at 7200 rpm. However, this is not the only reason why the company was included in the rating. the best manufacturers Winchesters.

What's good about the models:

One of the main advantages of HDDs of this brand is that all models use caching technology, which includes several levels. Due to this, files and programs load faster. In addition to loading faster, BarraCuda hard drives also read information faster. For this we should thank the optimization of data flow, which consists of combining caching, as well as two types of memory - DRAM and NAND.

Each option can become best choice, if you need a fast hard drive. For example, it is an excellent option not only for storing files, but also for installing games or other heavy programs. This model has a classic 3.5” form factor and excellent speed indicators: external - 600 Mb/sec, internal - 1680 Mb/sec. In addition, with it the computer will not buzz: the volume in standby mode does not exceed 22 decibels.

Of course, the company produces not only terabyte hard drives. For those who need more storage capacity, there are options for and even

WESTERN DIGITAL (WD)

The now world-famous corporation was founded in the USA back in 1970. The company was included in the review of the best manufacturers not only because High Quality, but also thanks to the widest range of products. Each line of internal hard drives has its own purpose.

Interesting: HDDs have become so good that in 2010 they took first place in the industry, ahead of even such production monsters as Seagate.

6 lines of hard drives and their purpose:

1. Blue. According to the creators, this budget models for the office. However, they can safely be classified as universal. So, which belongs to this series, is often used in game builds PC.
2. Black- HDDs designed for heavy loads. They are used to install operating systems, resource-intensive games and programs. For example, he is able to cope with tasks of almost any complexity.
3. Red- focused on a 24 hour work schedule. They are not afraid of damage, do not heat up, and are famous for their reduced energy consumption. A four-terabyte one is just like that.
4. Purple- created for video surveillance systems. The models will not allow you to lose video stream data; they have built-in software for processing video files. One of the best options for these purposes is
5. Gold- designed for super-high load, which is 10 times higher than the classic performance of models for desktop PCs. They are completed in 2.5 million hours. Bright representative rulers - .
6. Green- an environmentally friendly line, which is famous for its low energy consumption, making it great for laptops. Also, their creation does not use lead, which is harmful to the environment.

TOSHIBA

The large company has been operating since 1938. Hard drives of this brand are famous for their reliability, reasonable price and optimal for home use. technical characteristics. It is thanks to these qualities that the company has taken a place in the ranking of popular manufacturers of internal hard drives.

HITACHI

The brand is an old-timer on the market. It was created in 1910. Since then, it has been one of the best manufacturers of PC hardware. The company's engineers create hard drives that are popular: a variety of models of varying capacities and form factors allow you to assemble as good desktop computer, and add memory to the laptop.

What you will like about hard drives:

• The manufacturer creates models designed for servers. Among these HDDs there are inexpensive options, for example, a four-terabyte one is an excellent choice if too much storage is not needed.
• The company can also please laptop owners. For this purpose, 2.5-inch hard drives are available. So, if the laptop has room for another HDD or the old hard drive is broken, a half-terabyte model for storage may be a good option text files, music and photos are enough for her. - just like that.
• The company also makes higher-capacity hard drives. They will be useful for those who work with heavy programs, for example, 3D modeling; gamers will also need a spacious option, and simply those who do not like to delete files. For such tasks, an eight-terabyte HDD, for example, is sufficient.

SAMSUNG

The company has been operating since 1938, but began producing components for computers and laptops only in 1983. Despite the fact that the bulk of drives of this brand are solid-state, hard drives produced by SAMSUNG are also very good.

Review of the main features of Samsung HDD

The company creates - 3.5 inches in size, and the latter are more popular due to the reduced rotation speed. Yes, this slightly slows down performance, but with such an HDD the laptop will be quieter. And in such cases, low noise levels are much more important than in the case of system units, because many people work while holding them on their knees.

• 1. Hard drive capacity
• 2. Connection interface
• 3. Rotation speed
• 4. Buffer memory
• 5. Dimensions
• 6. Manufacturer company
• 7. External screw selection
• 8. That's all well and good, but what about SSDs?

Sooner or later, each of us is faced with a situation when the internal memory of a personal computer is running out, and we don’t want to delete the existing information. In this case, there is only one thing left - to purchase a new, more capacious hard drive, but you want to do this in such a way that a similar problem does not loom on the horizon for the next five years. To help our readers complete best buy, today we will talk about which hard drive to choose for your computer in 2019. First, let's discuss its most important parameters.

Hard drive capacity

Of course, the first thing any buyer thinks about is the capacity of the hard drive. By the standards of history, just recently 20 gigabytes of space internal memory seemed like luxury and excess, and today not every game can fit on such a modest hard drive. When discussing what size hard drive you should buy to make the purchase profitable and effective, you should first look at the current state of affairs on the market.
In the segment of hard drives, as with other computer components, you can notice a trend - top options are much more expensive than competitors that are not so much inferior to them. So as not to overpay for the fleeting right to feel like the owner best toy, it is worth looking towards the middle price range, and there, in turn, you will notice that a 500 GB screw is not much different in price from its 2 terabyte counterpart - then why save a few percent of the cost while getting four times less free space?

Connection interface

The hard drive is connected to motherboard, and therefore all other components system unit via cable. This cable can have one of two types of interface - current SATA and outdated IDE. If your current home computer was purchased not 15-20 years ago, but much later, then you don’t have to look at IDE, and SATA is divided into three types - SATA 1, SATA 2 and SATA 3, respectively.
The first of them, like the IDE, cannot be found during the day, and the second and third generations differ in data transfer speed - 3 Gb/s and 6 Gb/s, respectively. By the way, these two types of interfaces are interchangeable, but if you want to insert a SATA 3 hard drive into the connector for the second one, then it will work at SATA 2 speed. If you decide to purchase external hard drive, then preference should be given to the USB 3.0 connector.

Rotational speed

The faster the spindle rotates, the higher the read/write speed of the hard drive will be, and therefore this aspect is also one of the main ones when choosing suitable hardware. In fact, this parameter has long reached its reasonable limit, which is at around 7200 rpm, and therefore choosing almost any screw regarding this characteristic will not be a mistake.
However, if you buy the filling for gaming computer, then we recommend choosing hard drives with a speed above 10,000 rpm, and the most preferable purchase would be a hard drive made using SSD technology, but such copies will be discussed later. By the way, the vast majority external hard The disks operate at a speed of 5400 rpm and this fact does not cause any special problems.

Buffer memory

Buffer memory, also known as cache memory, is a place in which data is localized that has already been read from the disk, but has not yet been transmitted through the interface, which means that the larger it is, the higher the overall performance of the system. External drives are content with 8 MB, but for an internal drive you should choose 32 MB or higher - 64 will be ideal.

Dimensions

Hard drives, despite identical functions, can have very different sizes; the main ones are Small Form Factor of 2.5 inches and Large Form Factor of 3.5. The former, as a rule, have lower basic indicators, for example, the spindle rotates at a speed of 5400 rpm, but they are used in laptops due to their compactness. Large ones are suitable for familiar personal computers, but in recent years there has been a noticeable tendency to transfer even more powerful hard drives to a smaller format.

Manufacturing company

Despite the fact that in the price lists of stores computer equipment There are dozens of brand names, produced by only two giants - Seagate and Western Digital. It is difficult to say anything unambiguously regarding the advantages of a particular manufacturer, but after sifting through hundreds of reviews on the Internet, we came to disappointing conclusions for Seagate - their screws are much less reliable. Yes, many of those reading these lines may well do this thanks to the use of a screw from this company that has been faithfully and faithfully for five years, but why hope that you will be lucky if you can choose a more stable option?
By the way, we recommend that after purchasing a new disk, you immediately give it an increased load, this way you will test it under stressful conditions and if it was defective, then you will have time to use warranty service or replace a low-quality product, and if it survives this stress test without incident, you can be almost 100% sure that it will last a long time. We must understand that Russia is far from the main market for computer equipment manufacturers, and then the task is to find service center often looks almost insurmountable; those who have experienced sending their components abroad for repairs know very well how long and expensive it is. In general, in 2019 I personally would give my preference to WD, but this is not an advertisement and the choice is up to you.

External screw selection

In this case, a third is added to the two giant manufacturers - Transcend. The advantages of such gadgets are obvious - no fuss with mounting into a laptop case or system unit, you just need to connect it using one of the current connectors; we remind you that preference should be given to USB 3.0 - it is compatible with USB 2.0 and can be connected to absolutely any system.
The form factors of portable hard drives are the same as those of their older brothers, but in this case the dimensions are even more important - a compact device is much more convenient to carry, so if you plan to use it often outside the home, take a closer look at the 2.5 inches. The speed, of course, will most likely be lower, but the ability to tuck a screw into a jacket pocket is priceless. By the way, since you are going to carry it with you, it would be nice to think about its durability - anything can happen. Such equipment often fails when dropped from a height of only 10-15 centimeters, and therefore a rubberized case or case is almost a must-have.
In recent years, connecting conventional hard drives as external ones through special boxes that have a USB connection to a computer has become widely popular, and modern system units often already have such a compartment - very convenient.

This is all well and good, but what about SSDs?

In recent years, SSDs, also known as solid-state drives, which are sometimes mistakenly called hard drives, have become increasingly widespread when storing information. They are more like a large flash drive with microcircuits, because they do not have mechanical parts like the usual HDDs. All data here is transmitted electronically, and to connect such a device, SATA 2 or SATA 3 interfaces are used, but when buying such a powerful tool, you should get the most out of it, and therefore we recommend using a much faster PCI connection Express.

Such drives are much more compact than their predecessors, and therefore they almost always go on sale together with an adapter that will help insert the device into the HDD slot. Despite the fact that SSDs are much more problematic to damage, they, unfortunately, still break, and therefore reliability can hardly be considered one of the undeniable advantages of these devices today. Another drawback is the significantly higher price, and therefore not everyone who is faced with an urgent need to purchase new hard the disk will be able to afford this option.

If only a very wealthy user can purchase an SSD drive with a capacity of several terabytes, then small solid state drives are available to almost everyone and this opportunity must be used. The point is that speed operating system depends very much on the physical object on which it is located, and therefore with the help of a small SSD, for example, 128 gigabytes, you can make incredible progress in the speed of the OS.

Just place Windows or another operating system on an expensive medium, as well as a number of the programs you most need, and store the rest of the information on the HDD and you will be happy at an affordable price. By the way, owners of older systems should remember that this media is supported by Windows seven and higher, so you won’t be able to overclock your XP with it.

We hope that this material was useful to you and now you can imagine the sequence of actions if you decide to update the hard drive in your personal computer. You shouldn’t trust sales assistants in an electronics store too much - they have their own goals and motives, which may be far from the desire to pick you up best option, and then keep your finger on the pulse and constantly update your knowledge about the most important components of the system unit, good luck!

Information security, quick access and processing are the main tasks of any modern hard drive. Regardless of the purpose, these indicators are fundamental in user choice. Servers need HDDs with maximum fault tolerance and large physical capacity. Office computers are aimed at the budget segment with an optimal speed/volume ratio. Gamers prefer high-speed hard drives with large built-in cache. Among the large range of products, it is not easy to make a choice.

We have compiled a list best hard disks, based on expert assessments of specialists and reviews of real customers. Our recommendations will help you make a choice that suits your needs and desires. There are many competitors in the global technology market, but we have selected the best manufacturers and recommend paying special attention to them:

1. Western Digital
2. Hitachi
3. Seagate
4. Toshiba

*Prices are correct at the time of publication and are subject to change without notice.

Hard drives: For computer

Minimum price:

Main advantages

• High spindle speed provides quick access to the necessary clusters and reading information, which allows you to use the disk when assembling a gaming computer
• Implemented a modern third generation connection interface
• Has a record low power consumption, which allows you to slightly reduce energy costs
• A system of automatic control over the activity of work and access to the memory of the hard drive significantly extends its lifespan
• The small volume and budget price make the HDD suitable for everyday home use, where there is no need to store a large amount of archival data

For computer / Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s/ Volume: up to 2 TB / Rotation speed: 7200 rpm

Main advantages

• Support for hardware command queuing ensures fast processing of a number of requests at a low level, resulting in increased performance of the device as a whole.
• Multi-Tier caching technology optimizes parallel reading and writing of data
• Single-plate implementation of the device guarantees its high reliability during active use
• Dual read head ensures perfect file reading and writing accuracy
• The buffer operation is ensured by non-volatile Intel memory Optane
• Despite high speed spindle rotation of the hard drive, the device has a low noise level and good protection from overheating

Show all products in the category "Volume: up to 2 TB"

Hard drives: Volume: from 2 TB

Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s/ Volume: from 2 TB / Rotation speed: 7200 rpm/ Server / For computer

Main advantages

• Can be used to organize processes public access to databases on servers
• Copes with large volumes of data. The processing speed is quite high, thanks to the increased speed of 7200 RPM and a system of 10 heads
• Supports the latest generation connection interface - SATA lll 6 Gb/s
• The record value of the buffer memory eliminates delays in the processes of reading/writing information of any size
• Provides protection against rotational vibration
• It is possible to reflash to increase reliability and reduce noise levels
• Capable of working 24/7

For computer / Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s Rotation speed: 7200 rpm

Main advantages

• 256 MB buffer memory provides high speed access to a significant amount of the most frequently used data
• 7200 rpm spindle speed increases access speed to files recorded on disk platters
• The device's fault tolerance reaches two million hours of continuous active operation.
• Support for the industry standard Secure Erase allows, if necessary, guaranteed and even remote destruction of all data on the disk using a low-level software method without the possibility of restoring it using any method existing today
• 512e sector format emulation mode solves potential problems of incompatibility of hard drive capabilities with outdated ones server systems

For computer / Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s/ Volume: from 2 TB / Server / Rotation speed: 7200 rpm

Main advantages

• The drive is designed and optimized specifically for use in large and mid-sized enterprise storage systems
• Support for NASware 3 technology ensures increased reliability, performance and full compatibility with modern systems NAS
• A special sensor detects the slightest vibrations that may occur in the system, and the dynamic head control mechanism successfully compensates for this shaking, stabilizing the process
• The TLER error recovery feature prevents the drive from suspending operation in a RAID array, even for a short time
• The use of RAFF and StableTrac technologies reduces the impact of vibrations and stabilizes the rotation of the disc plates

For computer / Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s/ Volume: from 2 TB / Rotation speed: 7200 rpm

Main advantages

• Dynamic caching technology optimizes the performance of the 256 MB buffer memory block and allows you to get almost instant access to the data you use most often
• The spindle rotation rate of 7200 rpm determines the high speed of writing/reading from the plate - 227 MB/s
• IntelliSeek technology reduces the negative impact of external vibrations on the hard drive
• A five-year limited manufacturer's warranty ensures exceptional overall product reliability.
• Proprietary free software within the Acronis True Image WD Edition package allows you to perform any software manipulations on the hard drive

Show all products in the category "Volume: from 2 TB"

Hard drives: Rotation speed: 7200 rpm

For computer / Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s/ Volume: up to 2 TB / Rotation speed: 7200 rpm

Main advantages

• The drive produced using hybrid technology combines the performance solid state drives and low cost per unit of information storage, typical for conventional hard drives
• The drive has high flash memory reliability thanks to the use of Toshiba chips, which are manufactured using a modern 24-nanometer process technology
• Thanks to support for the SATA3 interface, the drive is capable of using a high data bus throughput 600 MB/s
• Developed intelligent caching algorithms allow you to leave fast memory most commonly used data
• Thanks to the technologies used, the speed of the drive is five times higher than that of conventional hard drives, which makes it suitable for use in gaming PCs

Show all products in the category "Rotation speed: 7200 rpm"

Hard drives: Rotation speed: 5400 rpm

For computer / Interface: SATA 6 Gb/s/ Volume: from 2 TB / Server / Rotation speed: 5400 rpm

Main advantages

• Support for NASware 3.0 technology guarantees correct operation devices with NAS server systems based on RAID arrays of any level of complexity
• Reliable system passive cooling predetermines stable operation of the drive in 24/7 mode and normal operation up to a temperature of 65 degrees Celsius
• 3D Active Balance Plus technology protects data plates from vibration and noise
• The design of the housing and spindle reduces the noise level of the device to 28 dB during active operation
• Power consumption of 4.5 W reduces the overall power load on server clusters and allows for significant savings when using large non-linear RAID arrays