Which brand of hard drive do you prefer?

In summary, Phil recommends that people buy two smaller hard drives instead of one super large one in order to minimize the chances of losing data in the event of a hard drive failure.
  • #1
Maxwell
513
0
Does anyone have a strong hard drive preference? I used to buy only Seagate drives, but I recently had a Seagate drive die and I'm thinking about going with another company this time.

What do you guys think about Western Digital or Maxtor?
 
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  • #2
I've always preferred Seagate Cheetahs (FC and SCSI variants) and the Hitachi SCSI disks. I've had zero problems out of them. I would stay away from the IBM Deskstars.
 
  • #3
The new kid on the block is Samsung, the 500GB version is very good performance and soundwise and is very well priced.

For a fast boot disk I recommend the 150GB WD Raptor.
 
  • #4
My company and I at home use WD HDs, which seem do well, although I have one primary drive fail recently. I also have Maxtor at home and it seems fine.

Our policy is to have one main (primary) HD (40-80 GB) with OS/Apps and at least one other for data storage (at least 120 GB, but usually 200+ GB) so that the main drive is not constantly reading and writing. We also clone the main HD, so if it fails, we have a workable backup.

The datafiles are backed up to another HD (external or otherwise), and we do redundant backup.
 
  • #5
I have both Western Digital (100gig) and Seagate (120gig) and they've been running fine for over several years or so.

However, I still suggest backing up everything.
 
  • #6
The Short Version: I've been building my own computers now for about 10 years and I've always stuck with Western Digital. They've always been reliable for me, but Seagate looks promising too.

The Long Version: I have a 20.5GB WD that's about 8 years old and still chugging, but I worry about it. Every now and then there is a mysterious click. I also have a 40GB WD, a 100GB WD, a 160 GB WD, and then I got a 200GB Seagate. Most of the computer builders I've known through the years strongly recommend WD. Some say Seagate is crap, others love seagate. I've had no problems whatsoever with my seagate and it's a lot more quiet than my WD drives, so I love it. I was having some problems with my 100gb WD drive, so I replaced it with a 160gb drive, but then it turned out that it was my motherboard going bad causing the errors. After replacing the motherboard and a format, the drive was fine. Oh, the 200gb Seagate is about 4 years old.

I've known a few people who bought cheaper IBM drives and they had problems. Samsung seems like a new contender, but from the reviews that I've seen, I'd stay far away. They seem to have a lot of problems. I'm sure you might find a diamond in the rough with certain models, so I suggest you go by reviews when buying a hard drive and only use brand name as a general indicator of quality. A certain model of a WD drive might have a lot of problems too, you know.

Well, good luck. :)

Phil

P.S. Oh, one more suggestion. If you want a more secure computer, I suggest you get two smaller, cheaper hard drives for your operating system and for some storage space for important files. Put it in a RAID 0 configuration, then get a larger hard drive for putting everything else on. This way if your hard drive goes bad, it's no big deal. If you don't want to spend extra money, I still recommend that you buy 2 hard drives rather than 1 super large one. It's quite a hit if a 500gb hard drive with everything on it goes bad you know.
 
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  • #7
My 500gb WD came formatted with vfat & I only noticed once I had 200gb+ used up. So now I can't write files over 4gb until I buy another drive to temporarily transfer stuff. Probably for the best, though.

I've had it for ~4 months so I can't say anything about reliability. My 100gb portable maxtor seems to be going strong & I've had it for quite some time.
 
  • #8
Thrice said:
My 500gb WD came formatted with vfat & I only noticed once I had 200gb+ used up. So now I can't write files over 4gb until I buy another drive to temporarily transfer stuff. Probably for the best, though.

I've had it for ~4 months so I can't say anything about reliability. My 100gb portable maxtor seems to be going strong & I've had it for quite some time.

You could probably use a program, such as partition magic (there might be some free software out there though), to split the drive into two partitions, then you format the blank 2nd partition with NTFS, move the files from the first partition to the second, then format the first with NTFS, merge the partitions, and reinstall windows.

I would check to see if the WinXP could convert the file table to NTFS first though. I know it will for FAT32.
 
  • #9
BoredNL said:
You could probably use a program, such as partition magic (there might be some free software out there though), to split the drive into two partitions, then you format the blank 2nd partition with NTFS, move the files from the first partition to the second, then format the first with NTFS, merge the partitions, and reinstall windows.

I would check to see if the WinXP could convert the file table to NTFS first though. I know it will for FAT32.

Most hard drive manufacturers will have free software on there websites allowing you to split hard drives etc

To convert a hard drive and its contents to NTFS format in xp i believe its quite simple ,though I've never done it.

(someone may need to check this ;)

In the run box type CMD

Then in the window which appears type. > convert d: /fs:ntfs

THE D IS THE DRIVE LETTER AND SO WILL NEED CHANGING DEPENDING ON WHICH DRIVE YOU WISH TO CONVERT.
 
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  • #10
HDD preferences

Maxwell said:
Does anyone have a strong hard drive preference? I used to buy only Seagate drives, but I recently had a Seagate drive die and I'm thinking about going with another company this time.

What do you guys think about Western Digital or Maxtor?


A am also a Seagate fan, but I think all hard drives are more or less the same. About your dead Seagate, well I had dead drives from about all the major manufacturers.:smile:
 
  • #11
BoredNL said:
You could probably use a program, such as partition magic (there might be some free software out there though), to split the drive into two partitions, then you format the blank 2nd partition with NTFS, move the files from the first partition to the second, then format the first with NTFS, merge the partitions, and reinstall windows.
Hmm I didn't even think of that. And I just use it for backups so I woudn't have to reinstall windows.

Is there a more linux-friendly filesystem? If I don't 'safely remove' the 100gb drive in windows, I keep having to boot back into windows and scan it otherwise it won't mount. Something about an unclean NTFS log file.
 
  • #12
I got a western digital because my friend requested it to me. It was supposed to be 160gb but came as 130gb. Needless to say I was pretty upset about that. Just to put this out there this was 130Gb BEFORE I formatted it and installed the operating system on it. I got a 120Gb Seagate about a year ago and it was only 117Gb when formatted. I took a dagger in the chest losing 30Gb of Hdd space. I d go with Seagate, I've never had a problem with them.
 

Related to Which brand of hard drive do you prefer?

1. What is the best storage capacity for a hard drive?

The best storage capacity for a hard drive depends on your specific needs. If you require a large amount of storage for media files, a hard drive with at least 2TB of space would be ideal. However, if you are only using the hard drive for documents and basic programs, a 500GB to 1TB drive should suffice.

2. Is it better to have a solid-state drive (SSD) or a traditional hard drive (HDD)?

Both SSDs and HDDs have their own advantages and disadvantages. SSDs are faster and more durable, but they are also more expensive for the same amount of storage compared to HDDs. HDDs are slower but have higher storage capacities and are more affordable. It ultimately depends on your budget and what you prioritize in a hard drive.

3. How important is the RPM (rotations per minute) of a hard drive?

The RPM of a hard drive is important for its overall performance. A higher RPM means faster read and write speeds, which can be beneficial for tasks that require a lot of data access. However, for general use, a hard drive with a lower RPM will still perform adequately.

4. Should I prioritize brand or specs when choosing a hard drive?

Both brand and specs are important factors to consider when choosing a hard drive. A reputable brand can provide better reliability and customer support, while good specs ensure better performance. It is recommended to do research on both the brand and specs before making a decision.

5. Do I need to consider the interface of a hard drive?

The interface of a hard drive is important as it determines how the drive connects to your computer. The most common interfaces are SATA and USB, with USB being the most versatile. Make sure to check if your computer has the necessary ports for the hard drive you are considering.

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