Notebook Hard Drives: 750GB And 640GB Models Reviewed

Features
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Remember when 500GB was the most you could get from a notebook drive? It seems like most vendors have made the transition to 640GB. Western Digital even has its own 750GB model that fits within the 9.5 mm z-height. So, which of these drives is the best?

Test Setup And Comparison Table

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System Hardware
HardwareDetails
CPUIntel Core i7-920 (45 nm, 2.66 GHz, 8MB shared L3 cache)
Motherboard (Socket 1366)Supermicro X8SAX Revision: 1.0; Chipset: Intel X58 + ICH10R; BIOS: 1.0B
RAM3 x 1GB DDR3-1333 Corsair CM3X1024-1333C9DHX
HDDSeagate NL35, 400GB, ST3400832NS, 7,200 RPM, SATA/150, 8MB Cache
Power SupplyOCZ EliteXstream 800W, OCZ800EXS-EU
Benchmarks
Performance Measurementsh2benchw 3.12PCMark Vantage 1.0
I/O PerformanceIOMeter 2006.07.27Fileserver-BenchmarkWebserver-BenchmarkDatabase-BenchmarkWorkstation-BenchmarkStreaming ReadsStreaming Writes
System Software and Drivers
DriverDetails
Operating SystemWindows Vista Ultimate SP1
Intel Chipset DriversChipset Installation Utility 9.1.0.1007
AMD GraphicsRadeon 8.12
Intel Matrix Storage8.7.0.1007

Comparison Table

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ManufacturerSamsungSeagateToshibaWestern Digital
ModelM7EMomentus 5400MKxx65GSXWD Scorpio Blue
HM641JIST9640320ASMK6465GSXWD7500BPVT
Form Factor2.5" (9.5 mm)2.5" (9.5 mm)2.5" (9.5 mm)2.5" (9.5 mm)
Capacity640GB640GB640GB750GB
Spindle Speed5,400 RPM5,400 RPM5,400 RPM5,400 RPM
Other Capacities160, 250, 320, 500GB160, 250, 320, 500GB160, 250, 320, 500GB160, 250, 320, 640GB
Platters2222
Cache8MB8MB8MB8MB
NCQYesYesYesYes
InterfaceSATA 3Gb/sSATA 3Gb/sSATA 3Gb/sSATA 3Gb/s
Operating Temperature5-55°C0-60°C5-55°C0-60°C
Specified Idle Power0.9W0.7W0.8W0.7W
Measured Idle Power0.7W0.8W0.8W0.6W
Operating Shock (2 ms, read)400 G350 G400 G350 G
Warranty3 years3 years3 years3 years
Patrick Schmid and Achim Roos