How to Choose a New Hard Drive. The great thing about owning a computer is that you can customize everything. One of the most commonly customized components is the hard drive. But what most people don’t realise is that there is a lot more to your average disc drive than storage.
If you are looking to buy a new one – either for building a new laptop or PC or to replace your old drive – then you need to know what to look for. Here’s how to choose your next hard drive.
Internal or External?
One of the most critical questions to ask when it comes to hard drives these days is, “Internal or external?” Both have their advantages, so it helps to know what they bring to the table. Internal drives mean that you don’t have to bring an additional piece of equipment wherever you go. It is also protected by the body of the computer or laptop.
That said, external hard drives are hot in the world of tech. External hard drives are great for transfers, backups, and general storage. They connect using the latest in USB technology and have transfer speeds that range from 60MB/s all the way up to 1,250MB/s. Having a portable mass storage option makes it far easier to move files from one place to another.
Know Your Price
When you are choosing a new hard drive, one of the most important factors is going to be cost. At the end of the day, the vast majority of us have a budget to work within. While it would be nice to get the latest and greatest in disc drives, that may not be financially possible.
Look around and compare features and prices. You should be able to find something with the proper storage size and features that you need. Prices can be different for internal and external drives as well, so do your homework and compare the two before you make a decision. There is usually a device to fit just about any system out there.
HDD vs. SDD
Not all drives are created equally. As you look, you are going to find two types: hard disc drive and solid state drive. Knowing the differences between the two is critical. A hard disc drive has spinning components to transfer data. These are a bit older so they are also quite a bit cheaper. It is great for those working on a tight budget.
Solid state, meanwhile, has no moving parts. Because of that, they tend to last quite a bit longer. More importantly, SSDs have faster transfer speeds as well. The caveat is that they tend to be a bit more expensive, but it is an investment that should pay off for years to come.
Check the Features
There are two major features to be aware of. When picking a drive, storage capacity and transfer speed are the two things that get the most attention. The former is easy enough. The larger the storage capacity, the more you are able to store. For gamers, programmers, or those who love to download videos, a larger drive is going to be the best choice.
Transfer speed is also important. With lower transfer speeds, it will take longer to move data onto and off of your device. Faster speeds can start to get a bit negligible the higher you go, but when it comes to bigger files, the benefit is clearly there. Check these out and you will have a good idea of what kind of drive you are investing in.
This guide should help you land the right drive for your computer.
Hope you’ve found our article, How to Choose a New Hard Drive useful.
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