8 best laptop hard drives

Any new laptop comes with a hard drive initially, as well as other vital devices for the system. But as it is used, the user may want or even need to replace the hard drive with a more productive or capacious model. Often, such changes to the package are made immediately after the purchase of the laptop itself. In this case, the hard drive must be purchased separately, while clearly understanding that the device must meet several requirements. The editors of expert.bigbadmole.com/en/en/ offer you a ready-made solution to the issue in the form of a rating of the most successful, according to our specialists, models of hard drives for laptops.

How to choose a hard drive for a laptop

To begin with, we will guide you on the main criteria that should guide you in choosing the right hard drive for your laptop.

HDD or SSD

The first and most obvious is the upcoming choice between an “immortal classic” in the form of a mechanical HDD or a more advanced modern option - high-speed solid-state SSD. Some restrictions on this choice may be imposed by the laptop itself - it may be that the SSD will not become banal to it, then the issue of choice is solved by itself.

If the choice allows for any variations, you need to understand that SSD with an equal volume with the HDD will be incomparably more expensive. However, its speed performance also does not go to any comparison with the mechanical hard drives, the difference on the unprepared user acts simply stunning.

In most cases, the best solution would be to purchase a pair of disks - a low-cost, inexpensive SSD for installing an operating system and a large HDD for data storage. In some cases, a ready-made solution in the form of a hybrid SSHD disk may be suitable, and we will consider examples of such models.

Volume

This item echoes the previous one. Of course, there is no “too much” disk space, but the capacity of the carrier, as a rule, directly determines its cost, especially SSD. Therefore, if the budget is not dimensionless, the question must be approached rationally. Thus, SSD for the operating system should be purchased with a capacity of at least 120 GB. A mechanical disk can already be looked after for practical reasons, but still it hardly makes sense to take less than 500 GB.

Connection interface

This is an important point on which the speed of the disk will depend, or even the ability to connect it to an existing laptop. The first step is to find out if the laptop supports SATA III 6Gb / s. If there is no such possibility, and there is only support for SATA II 3Gb / s, then there is no sense in overpaying for a more advanced disk - it will still not work faster than the interface bandwidth. If the budget allows, you can not bother, and take immediately SATA III "for growth", since the physical interfaces are fully compatible, and the difference is only in speed.

Another important point - which connector is provided in your laptop for connecting a hard disk. It may be mSATA or M.2 or less often anything else. Here, the requirement is hard - the disc connector must match the existing connector on the laptop.

Performance

Selecting a number of disks according to the criteria described above, you need to pay attention also to performance. if we are talking about HDD, it is better that the spindle speed is 7200 rpm, and the buffer size is at least 16 MB. But quite often and at a speed of 5,400 rev / min, the discs show very good results in terms of speed due to the application of innovations, general optimization, etc. Therefore, here it is desirable to see the results of independent testing.

For SSD, the “talking” parameter in terms of performance is the random write speed (IOPS). It is desirable that this parameter be at least 50 thousand IOPS at a write / read speed of at least 250 MB / s.

User Reviews

And finally, when it remains to make the final choice, it is desirable to get acquainted with the reviews of real buyers on reputable resources. Positive feedback may not be very informative, but negative, especially regarding a single flaw, received from a significant proportion of buyers, can warn against a failed purchase.

Top laptop hard drives

Nomination	a place	Name of product	price
Best hdd for laptop	1	Toshiba HDWL120UZSVA	5 129 ₽
	2	Western Digital WD Black 500 GB (WD5000LPLX)	2 806 ₽
	3	Seagate ST500LM021	2 900 ₽
Top SDD for laptop	1	Crucial CT256M4SSD2	8 960 ₽
	2	Intel SSDMCEAC180B301	13 284 ₽
Best hybrid laptop drives	1	Western Digital WD Blue SSHD 1 TB (WD10J31X)	13 540 ₽
	2	Seagate ST95005620AS	9 430 ₽
	3	Toshiba MQ01ABD100H	10 270 ₽

Best hdd for laptop

Consider in the first selection of the rating of the classic mechanical hard drives HDD. From the point of view of performance, as mentioned above, this is not the best option, but for some cases this solution can be either optimal or even the only possible one. Our experts have proposed three models from three of the world's most famous manufacturers - Toshiba Corporation of Japan, Western Digital and Seagate American.

All three presented models are made in a “notebook” compact form factor 2.5 ", but their full linear dimensions, although slightly, differ, and this may be relevant in the context of a specific laptop model. All of them also support the technology of large sectors of 4 KB each. Another common feature is the same shock resistance performance, which is 400 G in the work and 1000 G in statics.

Toshiba HDWL120UZSVA

Rating: 4.9

Let's start with the drive that has the largest volume - 2 TB and, accordingly, the highest cost. Its linear dimensions are 69.85x9.5x100 mm, net weight is 117 g. Buyers point out the increased reliability and safety of the package in which this hard drive is supplied, unlike many other models, for the safety of which we often have to fear.

In the operating mode, the disk consumes up to 1.65 W, heating up to a nominal temperature of 65 ° C with normally operating cooling. If to compare with hard drives from other manufacturers, then this model heats up on average more than almost everyone, but only by a few degrees. The declared noise in the work - no more than 24 dB, in idle time - up to 23 dB.

The frequency of spindle inversion here, unfortunately, is not the most outstanding - 5400 rpm, but the data density, optimization, and the huge 128 MB buffer partly compensate for this disadvantage. The average delay time is 5.56 ms.

The device is connected via high-speed SATA 6Gbit / s interface. External data transfer rate - 600 MB / s. The disk also supports NCQ technology, which is designed to improve the performance of SATA devices.

The MTBF time for this hard disk is set at 600 thousand hours. We remind you that this parameter takes on the meaning almost exclusively for server systems, where dozens or hundreds of hard drives work in conjunction. If you buy a drive just for a laptop, this feature can be neglected.

Western Digital WD Black 500 GB (WD5000LPLX)

Rating: 4.8

The second position in the first compilation of the rating is a half-terabyte disk from Western Digital. This model is two times cheaper than the previous one, which is dictated by much smaller capacity.

Physical dimensions of the device are 69.85x7x100.2 mm, net weight is 92 g. In operation, it consumes up to 2 W of electric power. Nominal noise in the work - no more than 25 dB, in idle - no more than 23 dB. As you can see, in terms of noise, this model is almost similar to the previous one, but many independent reviews suggest that the “hard drive” is even quieter, and significantly. The same goes for heating - the model almost never overheats.

The volume of the buffer in this case is no longer as impressive as the previous model, but this is not necessary because of the smaller volume. Plus, the spindle rotation here is "more decent" - 7200 rpm. The SATA 6Gbit / s interface also has a positive effect on performance. All these characteristics in combination give the speed of work, which is emphasized by users praise.

Manufacturer's warranty for this hard drive is 60 months.

Seagate ST500LM021

Rating: 4.7

Completing the "mechanical" selection of the rating of the best hard drives for laptops according to expert.bigbadmole.com/en/en/ is a model from Seagate with the same volume as the previous example.

Winchester dimensions are 70.1x7x100.55 mm, net weight is 95 g. In the operating mode, even at maximum load, it consumes no more than 1.8 W of electric power, while not warming up at all - on average, the operating temperature varies around 40 degrees. The operating noise figure stated by the manufacturer does not exceed 24 dB, idle noise does not exceed 23 dB. Independent reviews are practical and unanimous in their appreciation of work silence.

The parameters of the buffer memory here are the same as in the previous model - 32 MB. The speed of circulation is also exactly the same - 7200 rpm, as well as the connection interface - SATA 6Gbit / s. The real (not “external”) data exchange rate reaches 135 MB / s. The read access time reading is 11 ms.

Manufacturer's warranty for this hard drive is 24 months.

Top SDD for laptop

The second selection of devices in the ranking of the best hard drives from expert.bigbadmole.com/en/en/ are solid-state drives SDD. In this case, our specialists took into account a number of factors, including affordability, so the capacity of the device was not the determining factor. As part of this review, we consider two examples of SDD with the most successful combination of important characteristics: one is the Crucial trademark (parent brand is Micron Technology, USA) and the other is from Intel itself.

Crucial CT256M4SSD2

Rating: 4.9

The trademark Crucial Ballistix was isolated from the parent brand Micron recently - in 2016. The products are produced by the subsidiary company Crucial in relation to Micron Technology. Many of the Crucial media lines have earned many positive reviews from independent experts around the world.

The SDD CT256M4SSD2 hard disk is made in a case with dimensions of 69.85x9.5x100.5 mm, which conditionally corresponds to the 2.5 form factor. Net weight is 75 g. Energy consumption level is up to 0.16 W.

Based on a combination of factors, this model is recommended for use in gaming PCs and laptops. Its capacity is 256 GB, MLC-type flash memory is used, large 4 KB sectors are supported. The maximum write and read speeds are 260 and 500 MB per second, respectively. Random entry - about 50 thousand IOPS.

Connects the device through the interface SATA 6Gbit / s. The Marvell controller, which is very highly regarded in professional circles, controls the data exchange. Another plus to the performance of this model is support for NCQ technology.

Indicators of mechanical impact resistance correspond to 1500 G for both the operating mode and statics. As part of server systems, the mean time between failures is up to 1.2 million hours.

The manufacturer’s warranty period for this hard disk is 36 months.

Intel SSDMCEAC180B301

Rating: 4.8

The second disk, which is included in the presented selection of the rating, is Intel's 180-gigabyte SSD. In contrast to the above example, there is an integrated data encryption function, and in some cases this is a significant advantage.

The dimensions of the device are quite modest - 50.8x29.85x3.8 mm, the net mass is minimal - only 10 g. In operation, it consumes no more than 0.30 W of electric power. Controlled by SF-2281 controller brand Sand Force.

Also, as well as the example considered earlier, this drive is recommended in particular for equipping gaming laptops, modern game consoles or, in some cases, desktop gaming personal computers. It also supports the technology of large 4-kilobyte sectors and uses multi-level flash memory - MLC. Speed ​​characteristics are even better than the above solution - 520MB and 550MB per second, respectively. Random-record blocks of 4KB - about 60 thousand IOPS.

Mechanical indicators of impact resistance equal to 1000 G for the operating mode and for the storage mode. The drive is connected via the 3rd generation SATA connection (6 Gbit / s) via the compact mSATA connector.

The warranty period of service provided by the manufacturer is 36 months.

Best hybrid laptop drives

In the third and final selection of our rating, we consider the so-called hybrid hard drives, the form factor of which allows you to successfully complete laptops. These devices combine the properties of a mechanical HDD and a solid-state SSD into a single system. Our experts identified three interesting models - two American Western Digital and Seagate and one Japanese from Toshiba.

Western Digital WD Blue SSHD 1 TB (WD10J31X)

Rating: 4.9

Let's start with the production model of the world famous American company Western Digital. This is a carrier with a mechanical capacity of 1 TB with an additional 8 GB of solid-state memory on board.

The dimensions of the device are 69.85x9.5x100.2 mm, which corresponds to the compact form factor 2.5 ". Net weight - 120 g. In operation, it consumes up to 1.65 W of electrical power. The declared noise performance is 24 and 25 dB in idle and work, respectively. Shock resistance in operation - up to 400 G, in storage - up to 1000 G.

Performance speeds (100 MB / s for writing and reading) allow you to successfully use this model as part of gaming computers or consoles, such as Sony PlayStation. Large 4KB sectors are supported, the “advanced” MLC flash memory is used. Buffer size - 64 MB.

The drive is connected via a high-speed SATA 6Gbit / s interface. The spindle rotates at a frequency of 5400 rpm. Otherwise, this would be a disadvantage, but the device is sufficiently optimized for data transfer and equipped with a sufficiently large buffer to compensate for this.

The warranty period of service provided by the manufacturer is three years.

Seagate ST95005620AS

Rating: 4.8

The second "American" in the selection of the rating of hybrid hard drives, a representative of the well-proven lineup Momentus XT. The capacity is half that of the above model - 500 GB of mechanical parts and 4GB of flash-memory.

The device was also made in the 2.5 "form factor with the exact physical dimensions of 69.85 × 9.5 × 100.35mm. Net weight - 110 g. It consumes up to 1.10 W of power output.The declared noise level is almost equal to the previous solution in the list - 23 and 25 dB. Shock resistance indicators - 350 G in work and 1000 G in storage.

In terms of the speed of work, everything is noticeably better here than in the previous decision, starting already at the spindle turning speed of 7200 rpm. The buffer is less than twice - 32 MB, but NCQ technology is supported. Estimated read access time is 11 ms, write time is 13 ms, average delay is 4.17 ms.

Connect the drive, like all previous ones, through the SATA 3Gbit / s interface. External bandwidth - 300 MB / s. Independent testing shows maximum heating at work up to 55 degrees with adequate cooling.

The warranty period of service provided by the manufacturer is 24 months.

Toshiba MQ01ABD100H

Rating: 4.7

And completes the selection of the rating of hybrid carriers and at the same time the entire review of a good "Japanese" from Toshiba. This disk is characterized by the capacity of the mechanical part of 1 TB (on two plates) and additional flash memory of 8 GB. Suitable for gaming systems, as well as the two previous models.

The form factor is the same compact, “notebook” - 2.5 ", accurate linear dimensions –69.85x9.5x100 mm, net weight - 117 g. The declared noise level is 23 and 24 dB in idle and work, respectively. Shock resistance - 400 G in and up to 900 G in storage.

The speed of the spindle is low here - 5400 rpm, but the remaining characteristics effectively compensate for this. For example, in this hard disk large sectors of 4 KB are supported, the disk is connected via high-speed SATA 6Gbit / s interface. The average access time for reading is 12 ms. Buffer size - 32 MB.

The warranty period of service provided by the manufacturer is 24 months.

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Attention! This rating is subjective, is not advertising and does not serve as a guide to the purchase. Before buying, you should consult with a specialist.