Disk Disc helps you find the hard drive that is right for you!

Find the right hard drive using Disk Disc

Finding the right hard disk for your computer can seem like an overwhelming task, as there are so many models to choose from. Here, Disk Disc breaks it down, so you can easily find the one that is right for you.

Inside of a hard disk drive

How hard disks work

The more things change, the more they stay the same… Ever since the first hard disks with a few megabytes of storage capacity in the late 50s, hard disk drives have worked roughly the same; a rigid magnetic disk spins really fast with a tiny electromagnet hovering over the surface. When current is applied through the magnet, the underlying surface is magnetized. When current is left off, the magnetized surface induces currents in the electromagnetic reader, which can be interpreted as data.

Throughout the years, the problems challenging designers have been roughly the same as well; how can one keep the read/write head really close to the surface without the disk being damaged from slamming into the head in case of vibrations or dust, and how can one reduce the area of the disk being written to and read from for each bit of storage and still be able to distinguish one bit from another. In other words, we want to make reliable hard disks containing as much data as possible.

When selecting a hard drive, you need to consider a few factors:

How much storage space do you need?

500GB to 3TB are common drive sizes these days, and 4TB drives are just starting to come on the market. 500-750GB drives are more available in the small 2.5″ form-factor needed to fit the drive inside a laptop. As an external drive, these are much lighter weight, and fit more easily into your pocket.

Do you want an internal drive or a portable/external hard drive?

An internal drive means that the drive is mounted inside your computer. Internal drives cost less, and are useful when you just need more space, or to replace a failed drive. If you’re adding a drive, make sure a slot is available before you buy.

An external hard drive is mounted in its own protective enclosure and attached to the computer with a cable. External hard disks can be useful just to add space for music, movies, and more, but are especially useful for backing up your computer to ensure you don’t lose your stuff if the main drive fails, and they are portable, allowing you to easily move information between computers.

Which connection standards do your computer support?

This can seem confusing, as there have been many conflicting standards through the years. Common connections standards are:

External: ESATA, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, Thunderbolt or Firewire.

Internal: SATA, ATA/IDE, or SCSI.

The simple version is this: If you are getting an external drive, unless you know your computer uses Firewire (older) or ESATA (newer), you can fairly safely choose USB. 3.0 is faster if your computer supports it, but as of this writing, most computers do not. Even if your computer does not support USB 3.0, it can still use the drive, but at the slower USB 2.0 speeds, so as long as it says USB, you’re safe. There is also an even faster interface that’s just beginning to take hold called Thunderbolt, but unless you have a recent Mac, most likely your computer doesn’t support it yet.

For an internal drive, if the computer is less than about 5 years old, it likely uses SATA. The connector to the drive is about 1/2 inch wide. If your computer is a dinosaur, it may use the older ATA/IDE standards. These use wider 2 inch connectors. SCSI used to be common in higher-end servers.

What kind of performance (speed) do you need?

For most people, a slower spinning drive is a better choice. Unless you are running high-performance data bases or do lots of video editing, your drive is likely idle most of the time anyway, and faster spinning drives use more power, produce more heat, and are more likely to break down. 5400RPM is the standard speed for slower turning drives, 7200RPM is the middle ground, and a few drives sport 10000 or even 15000RPM for the fastest transfer speeds. For normal home users, the type of connection to your computer tends to matter more than the spin speed for your drive speed experience, however.

For greater reliability and faster response, you may also want to take a look at solid-state drives. These generally cost more and have smaller capacities, but can be a great choice, especially when used in laptops.