Quite often, novice computer users ask what size to buy a hard drive? Therefore, today I will try to answer this question and give a few tips on choosing the size of the hard disk, i.e. we will define with you optimal hard drive size.

Why do I need a hard drive?

HDD - it is a drive that serves as a data storage, including system data, in other words, you don’t need to think that only what you copied is stored on the hard disk, absolutely all data on the computer is stored on it. For home use of the computer without a hard disk is not enough. If you are interested in other computer components, then you can familiarize yourself with the material. What is a computer? and what is a computer? . If we draw an analogy, then the hard disk is the same flash drive (I hope that everyone knows the flash drive :)) only of a larger volume. And if we talk about the performance of the whole computer as a whole, then the hard disk plays the smallest role in this, since we already know that it serves only to store data. The only thing that can affect it is the speed of access to files, the speed of copying, and other file operations.

Now we know what a hard disk is and let's find out why do we need to think about its size. But this is necessary only because all data, whether it be photos, videos, documents, games, etc., has a certain size, and if we want to store them on a computer, then the hard disk must be of the appropriate size. And if you have a small hard disk size, you probably have seen the following system notifications, for example

In Windows 7, when trying to copy a file

Or notification in the system tray (Windows 7)

In Windows XP

Therefore, already at the stage of choosing and buying a computer, you need to think about the size of the hard disk so that later there are no situations when you urgently need to clean the hard disk from garbage in order to copy the information you need and not watch the above presented messages.

What is the size of the hard disk optimal?

This is influenced, in my opinion, by one, but very important factor, namely how are you going to use the computer? If you, for example, are only going to work in office applications and that's all, then of course the size doesn't matter much for you, for example, a computer with a hard disk size of only 160 gigabytes (for example, in the modern world!) Is almost empty But if you keep movies on your computer, and they, if you know recently, have become just very large, since high resolution, or photos, or even the same games, then the hard disk size should not be small. Especially if more than one person works at a computer, for example, a large family.

So what is the optimal size of a hard drive for a home computer? I divided all this into three groups, but taking into account the fact that I am always reinsured, therefore the volume is indicated with a margin:

To work with office applications and surfing the Internet, in my opinion, is enough 250 gigabytes;
If you are a fan of playing computer games, then you will need a larger hard drive, for example, 750-1000 gigabytesThis is taking into account the fact that you are not particularly fond of watching movies;
And if you are a movie fan and are going to make your movie collection, then take care of the size of the hard drive, in my opinion, it should be at least 1 terabyte ideally 2-3 terabytes.

But you should also not forget that you can install more than one hard disk into your computer, so if you made a little mistake with the choice of hard disk size, then do not despair, you can always buy an additional one, given that you have free connectors on the motherboard motherboard, a powerful power supply, and there is simply free space in the system unit, and then, of course, this can be fixed by buying an external hard drive, but here you also need to pay attention to connectors and other parameters.

For example, personally, when I acquired a computer, I bought a 750 GB hard disk, but after a year, a year and a half, I bought myself another hard disk of 640 GB. Now I don’t have any space in the system unit at all, and if I’m going to expand my disk space, it will only be an external drive, i.e. external hard drive.

And finally, let's tell you what parameters to pay attention to when buying a hard disk, I will not explain what they are for, as this, as they say, is another story, but you should know about these parameters when purchasing.

Interface (Sata, IDE, USB). Taking into account the motherboard (so that it has an appropriate connector), the Sata interface is popular for home computers;
The amount of buffer memory (16, 32, 64, etc. megabytes). The bigger, the better;
Spindle speed (5400rpm, 7200rpm). Here it is also better to choose with a speed of more;
Of course, the size itself. The remaining parameters are not important for ordinary users, and in principle, these parameters are not important except for the volume of the hard disk, but if you make sure that these parameters are optimal and modern, of course, you will get more comfort from work or from games on the computer.

Now you know what affects hard disk capacity, and what size is most optimal in certain cases, so I advise everyone to familiarize themselves with the hard disk installed in it at the initial stage of choosing a computer, and if that volume does not suit you, then it is better to choose another one. But it will be even better if you buy a computer not as an assembly, but for components, but here you need the help of a specialist, since all the components must also be assembled. But this is up to you! Good luck!

What does a hard disk HDD look like, what are its functions, features of work? You will get an answer to this and many other questions by reading this article.

Sometime in the distant years of 1998–1999, hard drives were the same size as modern HDDs, and they had a capacity like modern USB flash drives 4 GB, 6 GB, 8 GB. Moreover, if you were the happy owner of a 8 GB hard disk, you were considered an Oligarch.

On the hard disk device itself, I will not stop, because This is an introductory article, and tell you about the types of HDD and their main characteristics. Let's start with the definition. Hard Disk HDD - used for long-term storage of information after turning off the PC. The principle of its operation is based on the magnetization of sectors on a disk by a certain charge, and when a certain file is requested, the information is read from the magnetized sector.

The figures show hard drives of two generations with loops connecting to the motherboard Sata (upper) and IDE (lower figure). The number 1 is the power supply connector, and the number 2 is the Sata, IDE loopback connections.

Hard disks can be divided into such types according to the type of connection:

Sata-2
Sata-3

IDE - is the very first and slowest among HDD drives

SATA, SATA2, SATA3 - are interchangeable and differ from each other only in data transfer speeds. SATA2 - 3GB / s, SATA3 - 6GB / s.

What should I look for when choosing a HDD?

If we are talking about the speed of the system, then of course the number of spindle revolutions. The most common today are models with the following indicators:

5400 rpm
5900 rpm
7200 rpm

As you probably already guessed, the greater the number of revolutions, the greater the speed of reading, writing, data hard drive. But this is not the only parameter affecting the speed of the hard disk. Cluster size - the larger the cluster, the faster the hard disk.

Cluster sizes are as follows:

16 MB
32 MB
64 MB
128 MB

From all the above, we can conclude the following: What is the fastest hard drive with a spindle speed of 7200 rpm and a cluster size of 128 MB.

And one more important factor, all hard drives released since 2011 do not support such an operating system as Windows XP. So be careful.

How much hard disk is considered normal?

With the rapidly growing technologies, the size of games, movies, applications, normal, if you do not have the Internet, you can consider a hard disk with a capacity of 500 GB, the optimal 1000 GB = 1 TB.

Hard disk size: why is it so important?

A hard disk (hard drive) is the main storage device on a computer. This is a non-replaceable device on which all information is stored, even when the computer is turned off. Fast hard disk allows you to access data as quickly as necessary. The size of the hard disk is measured in gigabytes (GB), and, the greater the number of gigabytes, the more information can be stored on the computer. When buying a new home computer or laptop, it is important to understand how the hard drive works and what size you need.

When you save information on your computer, the application is recorded on a magnetic disk inside the hard drive. Most hard drives consist of several hard drives, which allows them to pick up speed up to 15,000 revolutions per minute. The amount of hard disk space on a computer directly affects the amount of data that can be stored on it. Data can be deleted from the hard disk at any time, and storage of information does not require a permanent power source.

Previously, hard disks contained no more than 5 megabytes of information, while now most new computers and laptops have a hard disk of at least 40 GB. The size of some hard drives can exceed 120 GB. Today, computers with such characteristics can store a large amount of information, video and photos without having to write to third-party media.

Choosing a hard disk can be quite difficult if you don’t know what to look for. Hard drives can be very large and can be very small. When choosing a hard drive for a computer or laptop, it is important to know what you need. Hard disk performance may vary widely. There is nothing worse than trying to save the necessary information to discover that your hard disk is full. If you are going to store a minimum of information on your hard drive, you may not have to pay extra money for a larger hard drive.

To save large files, video, music and images, you will need a larger hard disk. In this case, you can purchase a hard disk of 160 GB or more. The basic rule that should be followed when buying a hard drive is to choose the largest hard drive that you will need; however, do not forget about the price.

Price is another factor influencing the choice of hard disk. The most common are hard drives ranging in size from 60 to 80 gigabytes. It is of this size that hard drives are sold with most computers. They are the most economical choice for users who use the computer in everyday order.

In addition to the size of the hard disk, its price is also influenced by such factors as access time and data transfer speed. Data transfer rate is a measure explaining how much information can be transmitted per second. Although this figure, in turn, depends on the state of the computer. A computer whose hard drive is almost full may have a much lower transfer rate.

There are 2 data transfer rates:
- external;
- internal.

The internal transfer rate shows how fast the hard disk can read data. External data transfer rate shows how fast a hard disk can transfer data to the device to which it is connected. In most cases, the data transfer rate will be much lower than indicated in the product specifications, so it is best to choose a hard disk with a higher data transfer rate. The external data transfer rate depends on the type of hard disk used.

In addition, it should be remembered that the speed of the hard disk depends on the characteristics of the computer. If you have a slow computer, a large and fast hard disk is unlikely to make a big difference. Moreover, with a slower computer, the hard disk is at risk of losing information. If your computer is slow, you need to delete unnecessary files from your hard drive. Another way to optimize the performance of slow systems is to defragment the hard disk.

Hard disk fragmentation occurs when the system splits the saved files into separate parts and saves them in different places. This is usually the case when there is not enough space on the hard disk to save all the data. During defragmentation, fragments of these files are collected together and saved as one file. This process can take a lot of time, but it will help to optimize the use of hard disk space and increase the speed of your computer.

Hard drives are among the key components of a PC or laptop. depends largely on the characteristics of these devices. What kinds of hard drives are on the market today? How to choose the best device in terms of solving typical user tasks?

What is a hard disk?

A hard disk is the primary storage device for files on a PC or laptop. Structurally, it is a rotating magnetic plate with a reading and writing element - a head. In slang, computer hardware lovers are called “winchester”, “screw”, “hard”. The specifics of the operation of hard drives is that the read and write head is not in contact with the magnetic plate at the same time. Due to this, as well as a number of other structural features, the device functions for a long time and can be considered as one of the most reliable means for

A hard disk is a resource on which, as a rule, system files are located, that is, those that are present in the structure of the OS, various applications, games. Software installation almost always involves the use of resources "Winchester".

Most modern computer models support connecting multiple hard drives. Laptops often only have one hard disk - due to the small size of the respective devices. Moreover, if we are talking about external-type drives (we will discuss their specifics a bit later), then their maximum number is most often limited by the availability of the corresponding slots on the PC, as well as the performance characteristics of the computer.

Thus, the hard disk - the most important hardware component of the computer. Our task is to determine the criteria for the optimal choice of the appropriate device for the PC. To solve it, it will be useful to investigate for the beginning the classification of "winchesters".

Hard Drive Classification

Let us consider, in this way, in which varieties modern hard drives are represented on the computer hardware market.

Among the most popular types of devices - a computer hard drive, which corresponds to a 3.5-inch form factor. Such disks have a rotation speed of 5400 or 7200 revolutions per minute. Communication "winchesters" with a PC through various interfaces. The most common are IDE and SATA.

There are hard drives adapted for servers. Their size, as a rule, is the same as in a PC, but the speed of rotation of such devices is much higher - about 15,000 rotations per minute. "Winchesters" for servers are connected to the main hardware components, most often through the SCSI interface, but support for serial SATA or SAS standards is possible. A server hard drive is an exceptionally reliable device, which is not surprising: the computers on which such drives are installed are designed to serve key areas of the digital infrastructure of companies, government organizations, and Internet service providers.

These types of "hard drives" to be installed inside the system unit of a PC or server. But there are external hard drives. They connect to one of the computer's external ports — most often USB or FireWire. Their functionality is generally similar to the one that characterizes the devices of the internal type. belonging to the category of external, as a rule, quite large - about 500-1000 GB. The fact is that this type of device is often used to move large amounts of data from one computer to another.

There are hard drives adapted for laptops. Their size is smaller than that of "hard drives", designed for installation in "desktop" computers - 2.5 inches. The speed of a hard drive for a laptop is usually 4,200 or 5,400 revolutions per minute. Such hard drives usually operate when activated. They are characterized by high resistance to position changes, which is quite logical considering the specifics of using laptops.

Among the most technologically advanced types of hard drives - solid-state drives. They, in principle, can be considered a separate class of devices, since there are no moving plates in their structure. Data in this type of hard disk is written to flash memory. Devices of this type have both advantages and disadvantages.

Many of the world's leading PC makers are adapting their factory lines to the release of devices equipped with solid-state drives. This type of hard drives are more expensive than those in the structure of which there are rotating elements. However, in comparison with them, they are characterized by low power consumption, almost complete absence of noise during operation, in many cases - lower weight. Regarding the speed, it can be noted that a typical figure for solid-state hard drives is 300-400 MB / s, which is very decent compared to the leading communication standards supported by modern computers.

Interfaces

Successful installation of a hard disk in a PC largely depends on the presence of the necessary interfaces in it. Consider the specifics of the most common standards of communication in the modern computer market. This will be useful for correlating user tasks and the type of "hard drive", which is best suited to solve them.

Among the most common interfaces for connecting external hard drives - USB. At the same time, this communication standard can be presented in different versions - 1, 2 and 3. The speed of a hard disk drive directly depends on its compatibility with the corresponding technology. Regarding the 1st version of the interface, we can say that when using it, data transfer at 12 Mbps is possible, the 2nd one guarantees file exchange with speeds up to 480 Mbps, the 3rd generation of USB interfaces provides a figure of 5 Gbps. If you intend to use the device not only for storing files, but also, for example, for installing games or programs, then it is best if it supports the most modern USB interfaces - in version 2, and even better in version 3.

An external computer hard drive can also be connected using the FireWire interface. It is characterized by a high data transfer rate of about 400 Mbps. Extremely effective when working with video files.

Consider the standards used when installing in the PC drive internal type. Considered relatively obsolete, but still a popular interface - IDE.

It can transfer data at a speed of about 133 MB / s. It is common in desktop PCs - largely due to the relatively large size of the connector, which is not optimal for the structural structure of the laptop.

The SATA interface is the result of an improvement in the IDE standard. Allows you to transfer data at speeds up to 300 MB / s. It is characterized by increased immunity to interference. It is actively used in laptops - due to the relatively small size of the connector, as well as a good data transfer rate.

The SCSI interface, as we noted above, is installed mainly on servers. Also characterized by a high data transfer rate - about 320 MB / sec. There is a modernized modification of the interface in question - SAS. Hard drives that operate when it is enabled can communicate at a speed of about 12 Gbit / s.

Hard Drive Selection Criteria

The characteristics of the interfaces we examined above can be considered significant criteria when choosing a hard disk. We also voiced a number of other important parameters - such as the speed of rotation of the device elements, the form factor. But the most probably significant in the aspect of choosing the optimal model of the device characteristic is the hard disk memory. In many ways, this parameter is subjective - many users will prefer a faster “hard drive” than the one in which it will be possible to place a large number of files. However, the hard disk capacity is still the first thing that many users pay attention to.

The most important aspect of choosing a “hard drive” - some of its nominal characteristics (for example, compatibility with one or another interface) must be compatible with the communication capabilities of a PC. It so happens that the hard disk of a computer is incredibly technological, but the support of the corresponding standards on the PC motherboard is insufficient. Consider the key nuances of compatibility of "hard drives" and some of the hardware components of modern computers.

Size compatibility is important.

Above, we noted that hard drives vary in size. It may seem that this parameter is secondary. But often it turns out to be almost decisive. The fact is that installing a hard disk in a PC or in a corresponding area of a laptop will be extremely difficult if the size of the drive is too small and therefore not optimal in terms of the use of space available in the device structure. It will be almost impossible if the dimensions are too large - the "hard drive" simply does not fit into the computer.

Of course, this pattern is typical mainly for laptops, since problems with placing a hard disk in desktop PCs usually do not arise (largely due to the availability of various additional devices). Therefore, planning to acquire new hard drives for a laptop, you need to know what the exact size of the current. Above, we noted that “hard drives” with a 2.5-inch form factor are common in the respective types of computers. But you need to keep in mind that some laptop models install hard drives in the size of 1.8 inches.

Compatibility of communication standards

Communication interfaces of the “hard drive” and the PC motherboard should also be compatible. The main point here is the differences in the versions of the data exchange standards. So, there are three types of SATA interfaces. It is important that the appropriate communications standard supported by the drive is also compatible with the motherboard. It may happen that the user buys an expensive, providing data exchange according to the modern SATA 3 standard, hard disk (the price of such models may be about 10 thousand rubles), but the computer will not be able to fully support it. The owner of the PC, therefore, can significantly overpay.

The same applies to the correlation of USB standards supported by the “hard drive” and PC. If the hard disk is designed to connect via USB 3.0 interface, and the motherboard does not support it, then the technological capabilities of the corresponding standard will also not be fully realized. Regarding the FireWire interface, you can say that by buying a hard disk that supports it (the price of the device can also be decent - about 8-10 thousand rubles), you need to make sure that the PC is in principle compatible with it. This communication standard is typical for laptops, but is missing on many desktop PCs. Of course, hard drives that support FireWire are usually simultaneously compatible with USB interfaces, and it is extremely unlikely that the device will be non-functional due to the lack of a FireWire port on the PC. But if the user, for example, expected to use the most obvious FireWire - effective work with video data, then he may not get the desired results from the hard drive.

Optimal volume

As we noted above, volume as the main characteristic of such a device as a hard disk is a very subjective parameter. Many users quite enough, relatively speaking, a few gigabytes of disk space - for example, if they work mainly with documents. Someone and a hard disk on a terabyte will not seem capacious due to the frequent placement on it of large amounts of multimedia content - video, photos, music.

It is rather difficult to recommend the optimal storage volume. But the concept of “the more the better” is not always the best option, again from an economic point of view. You can spend money on an expensive, roomy hard drive - 1TB. A whole terabyte will thus be available - but in practice it can be used hardly by half. In this case, when buying a less roomy, but cheaper drive, the released funds can be spent on improving the performance of a PC or laptop (for example, buy an additional RAM module or a more powerful cooler for the processor).

According to a number of IT specialists, a 500 GB hard disk is the optimal solution for most user tasks. So, on the "hard drive" of the corresponding volume you can place about 100-150 thousand photos in good quality, install about 100-150 modern games. If the owner of the PC is not a photo collector collector or a gamer, then it is unlikely that he will use at least half of the corresponding resource. But if he, in turn, is keen on photography and games, then the opportunities that a 500 GB hard drive will give him may not be enough. At the same time, this volume of the “hard drive” is considered as one of the best from the point of view of typical tasks that are solved by modern users.

Rotational speed

Another important parameter that characterizes a hard disk is the speed of rotation of the plates. Regarding it, we can say that it is important from the point of view of the actual data transfer speed, as well as the dynamics of processing various files by the operating system. If the “hard drive” is used as the main one, that is, the OS is on it, programs and games are installed on it, then it is better if the characteristic in question will be expressed in as large quantities as possible. If a user buys a second hard drive, designed primarily for storing files, then in this sense the rotation speed of the plates is not the most important indicator.

The higher the value of the indicator under consideration, the more expensive the drive. In this sense, an overpayment for higher turnover, despite the fact that their presence is not required, may, again, be undesirable. "Winchester" with a high speed of rotation of the discs produces significantly more noise than the one, which is more modest, and is also characterized by high power consumption. The optimal figure for modern hard drives, which can effectively solve most user tasks, is 7200 revolutions per minute.

Cache memory

Among the significant indicators of drive performance is cache memory. Using this resource, the hard disk can significantly speed up the procedures for performing many file operations. In the cache memory, the most frequent query algorithms are fixed to one or another computer resources. If some data is present in the cache, then the “hard drive” does not need to search for them in the RAM or among the files. The larger the cache, the better. But the optimum value recommended by many experts is 64 MB.

Does brand matter?

Does it make sense to choose a hard disk, other things being equal, focusing on the brand? Opinions of IT experts and users on this subject are very different. This applies to both recommendations to focus on the brand, and points of view on the quality of drives manufactured by a specific manufacturer. Some users will be extremely positive about their own, released by Samsung, hard drive, reviews of other owners of the device from the Korean brand may be less enthusiastic. Some IT experts praise brands Hitachi, Toshiba, others do not consider them something better than competitors. However, these companies are market leaders. This fact in any case should be considered as significant. The status of the leader of the highly competitive market of computer components does not come easily. This is probably due to the high quality of the goods produced.

So, if we need a hard drive for a PC or laptop, then we can be guided by the following set of criteria:

Size (mainly for laptops - it is undesirable that the corresponding figure be smaller than the slots provided for the placement of hard drives is unacceptable - so that it is larger);

Supported standards (it is important that the tech interfaces on the “hard drive” are fully compatible with PC resources);

Volume (subjective, but 500 GB is the optimal figure for most user tasks);

Plate rotation speed (optimally - 7200 revolutions per minute);

Cache memory (optimally - 64 MB).

It is also desirable that the "hard drive" was released by the manufacturer, which is a leader in the global market in the corresponding segment of devices.

The range of hard drives is so huge that it can be very difficult to figure out which hard drive to choose for a particular task. Therefore, I tried to write a kind of brief guide to the world of hard drives, in which I will talk about the development directions of the “screws” industry and give examples of the use of certain models.

I will not go deep into the history and narrate about everything that was invented and implemented for more than half a century, and I’ll tell you mainly about what a modern user may encounter when he comes to the store or looking at the system unit.

Since the creation of the first HDD (Hard Disk Drive), much has changed. Let me remind you that for such a long time only the principle of operation has remained unchanged - rotating magnetized plates and heads that read information from them - this is what unites all models.

The number of manufacturers of hard drives is constantly decreasing - constant acquisitions and mergers have led to the fact that there are only three manufacturers left - Western Digital, Seagate and Toshiba, and the first two account for more than 90% of the market share. On the other hand, the number of models differing in size and technical characteristics is constantly growing.

Seagate, Western Digital, Toshiba - all who managed to survive in a tough competition

And all because the scope is becoming wider, and the requirements are becoming tougher. There are special purpose modifications for operation in different devices besides the computer.

Form factor 3.5 and 2.5 inches.

All the variety of hard drives can be divided into two large categories, defined by the size (width) of the device in inches. In other words, there are so-called “big” hard drives - 3.5 inches, and small ones - 2.5 inches. The larger the drive, the larger the size of each plate in it, and the more information is placed on the device.

The maximum amount of “big” hard drives reached 10 TB, while for most of the “smaller ones” the capacity was limited to one terabyte (models can also be found for 2 TB — they are too expensive).

Comparison of two-and three-inch HDD.
The difference in size and weight is visible to the naked eye.
Heat dissipation, noise and power consumption are also different.

The first group (3.5 inches) is used in ordinary stationary computers. In any desktop there is exactly such a device, on which both the operating system and user files are stored - images, videos, music and documents.

"Kids" is installed mainly in laptops. Due to their size, they do not take up much space, do not heavily weight a portable PC, and, in addition, consume little energy, extending battery life.

However, the “small hard drive” is also an additional application - they are often used in home media players, allowing you to record a huge amount of video and audio materials in external hard drives connected directly to a computer (DAS), as well as in network file storages (NAS).

NAS is a typical example of using a hard drive.
This file storage connects over the network and carries 4 hard drives.

Here we come to the second important difference between these groups - energy efficiency. If tiny two-inch devices under load consume within 2-2.5 watts (and at idle is generally less than watts), then the older ones get more voracious and can eat about 7-10 watts.

This quality allows small fellows to do without an external power source, they are powered directly from the USB port of the computer or even the smartphone (as well as the tablet). Let me remind you that the USB 2.0 port at a voltage of 5 volts produces a current of 0.5 Amperes, that is, the power delivered by the port is 2.5 watts (or 4.5 watts for USB 3.0).

An example of an external hard drive.
To connect using the USB port.
Inside is a 2.5-inch hard drive.

It is for this reason that "kids" are very often used in external hard drives - the USB port power is enough to feed the device. That is, such a drive is a self-contained device - it only needs a short cord for communication in the computer.

But when using three-inch drives external power required. Therefore, they are not very suitable for convenient transportation - not only can you not put them in your pocket, you also need to carry an external power supply unit with you, and sometimes it takes up more space than the device itself. This explains the popularity of the use of notebook hard drives as portable drives.

External HDD 3.5 inches.
The power supply is comparable in size to the device itself.
About any compactness and speech can not be

Multimedia players use both classes. But at the same time compact models contain 2.5-inch hard drives - this not only significantly reduces the size, but also reduces power consumption, noise and vibration, which is important when watching a movie or listening to music. If you need a silent media player or storage - then such hard drives are the most suitable choice.

Mediaaler - allows you to watch videos and listen to music.
Connects to a TV and has a remote.
But inside the same 3.5-inch hard drive

The third important quality is weight. "Adult" models weigh quite a lot, so their use is excluded in portable devices, hard drives, cameras, laptops, etc., while "kids" do not pull the pocket and do not make too much equipment.

Liliput 1.8 inches.

There are also tiny models of 1.8 inch form factor. Their capacity is even smaller, but the price is quite high. Therefore, they were used only where exceptional compactness is required. For example, in portable mp4 players. True, due to the rapid development of flash-memory, they are less and less in demand. And at the moment almost flushed out.

The tiny hard drive is 1.8 inches (second from the top).
He could not stand the competition and was promoted by flash.
Bottom HDD 3.5 inches, on it - HDD 2.5 inches

SATA and IDE Interfaces

In a simple language, the interface is the connectors that connect to the computer’s motherboard or another device.

IDE interface

Quite an ancient means of connecting hard drives. There is no way to find such HDDs on sale - they have long been discontinued, but on some not very new models of computers you can still find such hard drives.

They differ in that through one cable (cable) two devices are connected. And on the HDD themselves jumpers (jumpers) needed to expose which device will be primary, and which auxiliary. Old-timers remember very well how many nerves are spent on the correct installation of jumpers.

Cable for connecting two IDE hard drives to the motherboard

The maximum bandwidth - 133 MB / s - modern models have long exceeded this mark. How to connect such a device to modern boards that do not have the appropriate connector can be found in the article How to connect an old IDE hard drive to a new computer

SATA interface

Modern connectivity interface. Each hard drive is connected to a separate cable, which eliminates the trouble with the setting (as in the IDE). In addition, the bandwidth of the interface is much higher. There are several versions of SATA, differing only in speed.

Detailed information on how the connectors look is in the article “How to connect a hard disk to a computer”.

Moreover, if IDE hard drives of 2 and 3-inch copies had different connectors that are not compatible with each other, then with SATA both classes of devices use identical plugs.

Hard drive thickness

While for 3.5-inch hard drives, thickness does not play an important role, for younger brethren it is important. Nominally, its value in notebook hard drives is 9.5 mm.

HDD thickness is determined by the number of magnetic plates. The more plates, the greater the capacity of the hard drive, but the thicker the final device will be.

Portable disks usually carry from one to three plates (“Large disks” - three to five plates). Therefore, their thickness can vary from 7 mm (with one plate) to 12.5 mm (with three plates).

The standard and most common option - 9.5 mm with two plates. They are used in most laptops. When buying a thicker (and more capacious) model, you may be faced with the impossibility of installing it in a laptop - the hard drive simply does not fit in the corresponding compartment.

Comparison of models with a thickness of 12.5 and 9.5 mm.
The first one has one more plate.
The rest of the models are no different.

Therefore, when buying a replacement device in a laptop, be sure to look at the thickness. Moreover, in ultrabooks that are compact, drives are set to a thickness of only 7 mm.

But the industry does not stand still, and manufacturers have already presented hard drives with a thickness of only 5 mm (with one plate). But they only appear on the market and are quite expensive.

On the other hand, in portable external hard drives, there is no point in chasing thick, so they are sometimes put on hard drives of 12.5 mm. In this case, the capacity can reach up to one and a half or even two terabytes.

Winchester rotation speed.

Another important point that you need to pay attention to when buying a hard drive is the speed of rotation of the spindle (and plates). For "slow" models, it is in the range of 5200-5900 rpm (standard is 5400 rpm).

Such models do not heat up much, do not make noise, almost do not have vibration, however, their performance is also relatively low. The main purpose is computers and devices with weak or absent cooling, as well as systems whose main requirement is silence - for example, media centers and players.

The more high-speed group with a frequency of 7200 rpm has a higher productivity, however, it heats up and makes much more noise. But the main problem with home use of such models is vibration, which is slightly lower. Previously, an operating system was installed on such hard drives — a high speed of rotation provided a low access time to information, which had a positive effect on the responsiveness of the system.

The next group of hard drives - 10,000 rpm or more - an extreme line of hard drives with extremely high performance. Heat dissipation is so high that such disks require a separate radiator.

But with the advent of SSD, the need for high-speed hard drives in the home sector has practically disappeared. The system is placed on the hard disk, and the data is stored on a traditional disk. The use of fast drives is justified only in the corporate segment, where the requirements for noise and vibration are low, there is still a great demand for them.

It should be noted that the models of the latter group are especially quickly replaced by SSDs. The speed of the watchdogs is incomparably higher, even compared to the fastest samples of hard drives - you can read about this in the article Comparison of speeds of SSD and HDD. At the same time, they are completely silent, consume less electricity and almost do not heat up, and their price is often even lower than “fast HDDs”.

Test results for SSD Vertex 3 and HDD Seagate 3 TB.
SSD performance is much higher

Thanks to the development of technology and the increase in recording density on the plates, the reading speed of the “low-speed models” exceeded 150–160 MB / s, which is higher than that of the frisky copies 1 or 2 years old. So slow they can only be called conditionally.

HDD Capacity

The peculiarity of the current situation on the market is that, due to technological difficulties, the growth rate of storage capacity is constantly slowing down, so you shouldn’t wait for a huge increase in the near future.

At the moment, a maximum of 3.5-inch hard drives - 10 TB, but the most optimal for the price per gigabyte are five-byte models.

At notebook hard drives everything is much easier. If we reject the exotic models, then the optimal volume is 1 TB, and it is also the maximum in a standard package of 9.5 mm. For most purposes - such a disk is more than enough.

Noise level and vibration

Often one of the main requirements for operating a home is comfort. Strange as it may sound, the low level of noise emitted by the drives comes first in importance.

Models with a low spindle speed usually work much quieter than their fast counterparts, which emit a constant low-frequency whistle. In addition, the vibration is transmitted to the computer case (or other device), therefore, when two or more devices work with high frequency in one case, the vibration is multiplied.

You probably had to hear the annoying low-frequency rumble issued by the body. The culprit are precisely the fast HDD, working in a pair (and more). The best solution is to use economical low-speed models.

Temperature and stable nutrition

Modern drives are very sophisticated electronic devices, their durability is highly dependent on operating conditions. First, the discs (primarily 3.5-inch) must be properly cooled. A radiator clogged with dust in a laptop or improperly organized movement of air flow in the desktop can lead to operation at elevated temperatures, which significantly reduces the HDD's lifespan.

Additional cooling from Zalman.
Allows you to reduce the temperature by 5-7 degrees.
Very effective in poorly ventilated enclosures

Comfortable temperature for the drive - below 40 degrees. The range of 40-45 is still tolerable, although undesirable. It is not recommended to use the disc at higher temperatures.

You can see the temperature using standard utilities or third-party programs, for example, HD Tune or CrystalDiskInfo (both are free).

The second important point - a stable power supply - is more relevant for stationary computers. An old power supply with dried-up elements that does not smooth out voltage surges may cause a failure of the hard drive.

I have often heard from buyers a lot of unflattering reviews about HDD manufacturers, for example, when two purchased disks are “dying”, but the reason ended up in a poor-quality or old power supply, after which everything returned to normal.

Hybrids

The story would be incomplete without mentioning hybrids. This is the type of HDD in which the traditional disk is supplemented with a drive on flash-memory of small capacity (due to which the price, although higher, but not much). A flash disk contains the most frequently used files (or blocks) of a hard disk, improving performance. The capacity of the hybrid is the same as that of conventional HDD, and much more than the amount of SSD.

But, in my opinion, hybrids are not particularly accustomed. If you need to save money, it is better to do without SSD, and if you need performance, it is better to buy a full-fledged hard core player.

The only place where the use of hybrids is justified is in laptops, they have only one compartment for the drive and install two devices will not work right away.

When using 3.5-inch hard drives, I recommend using Western Digital drives from the Green series, which work almost silently, and for NAS (and media trackers), as well as when using two or more drives together, I recommend focusing on the Red series from the same manufacturer.

Western Digital Red Series.
Wonderful representative of silent hard drives.

Vibration in the Red line is minimized, so that even with the simultaneous operation of four copies, vibration and an annoying low-frequency rumble will be invisible.

Among the notebook hard drives, Hitachi Travelstar series and WD Scorpio Blue series are quite good. It is only important not to forget about the thickness of the devices in the case of replacing the HDD with a similar higher capacity.

Seagate devices are also good, but usually they are a bit more expensive (for 3.5 inch models), and the noise level is a bit higher.

And do not forget about the proper operation of any HDD, do not let the hard drive overheat, otherwise its life will be too fleeting.