Computer Upgrades: Hard Drives, Part 1

Hard Drives can be an easy computer upgrade.

My computer repair company services thousands of PCs each year.  In my experience, there are some constants: no one’s computer or Internet speed is ever fast enough and all hard drives will eventually fail.

Hard drives physically fail more than any other internal component: no surprise, given it’s the workhorse of your PC or laptop.  This data-storage and data-retrieval device consists of one or more “hard” discs that spins really fast and a read/write spindle that accesses and records data on the disc.  I liken it to a record player (remember those?).  Now ponder that the ability of your system to boot up, run Mine Sweeper, and give you access to your precious data is resting on this somewhat tenuous structure.

As with every internal component in a computer, manufacturers have developed a series of acronyms and codes to describe everything from size, to speed, to capacity.  While I can’t tell you why the industry seems devoted to confusing consumers, I can help breakdown the specifications so that when the day comes to replace your drive (see how I say that as an inevitability?) you’ll be prepared.

Form Factor: This is the physical dimension of the hard drive.  The most popular size is 3.5 inches – the standard size for desktop (tower) PCs.  Laptop hard drives are typically 2.5 inches.  Hard drives that are physically larger accommodate more storage space while the smaller drives consume less power and produce less heat, key factors in the notebook environment.

Capacity: Anyone familiar with computer-speak has probably heard of "megabytes" and "gigabytes," possibly even "terabytes," but it’s hard to guess how much space you’ll really need.  Documents and device drivers don't take up much space.  You can store 150-200 high-quality photos in 1 GB.  A standard-definition DVD takes about 2-5GB.  The main wild card is if you take a lot of high definition home videos, as the higher the quality of the image, the larger the file.  HD content can eat up hard drive space quickly and it will vary with the length of video.  If you're a "gamer," you’ll probably need lots of space for the data-heavy files that make big games run smoothly.  I typically tell the average user not to upgrade capacity beyond the standard 500GB drive likely to come installed in a new PC, but these days it depends on your photography habits.

RPM: Just like with your car, this means revolutions per minute.  As you’d expect, the faster your drive’s RPM, the less time it takes your computer to access stored data.  Higher RPM may sound nice, especially when you've dealt with slower computers in the past, but keep in mind that it comes with a price.  Higher RPMs can equate to louder-sounding machines and more heat generation (and thus less energy efficiency).  They can also fail more often, given that they're living under a higher-stress environment.  The average desktop user should be comfortable with a 7,200 RPM hard drive, though speeds in the industry can go as high as 15,000 RPM.  Laptop users will find 5,400 RPM to be more typical.

Cache: Cache is a small area of faster memory within the hard drive used as a buffer between the CPU, memory (RAM) and hard drive.  Think of it like a carryon bag – the bigger it is, the more stuff you can get to quickly without having to dig into your suitcase.  You'll typically find cache sizes of 2MB, 8MB and 16MB in the standard 2.5 inch and 3.5 inch drives.  Larger cache size equates to faster performance and tends to cost more.

Stay tuned next week for the lowdown on the next generation of hard drives for a computer upgrade: solid state drives and hybrid drives.  Is it worth the cost to upgrade?  You’ll have to wait and see!