Is a 7200RPM SATA laptop harddrive really faster than a 5400RPM one.

[Dougx1317]

I currently have a MHW2120BH Fujitsu 120GB 5400RPM hard drive in my laptop. I was thinking of upgrading to a MHW2160BJ Fujitsu 160GB 7200RPM hard drive. I don't really care that much about the extra 40GB. Would the increase to 7200RPM really increase the speed that much? It's only $50, but is it worth that? Would I notice?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822116044

Also, do 7200RPM hard drives make more heat or noise?

 

[Heyyou27]

I currently have a MHW2120BH Fujitsu 120GB 5400RPM hard drive in my laptop. I was thinking of upgrading to a MHW2160BJ Fujitsu 160GB 7200RPM hard drive. I don't really care that much about the extra 40GB. Would the increase to 7200RPM really increase the speed that much? It's only $50, but is it worth that? Would I notice?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822116044

Also, do 7200RPM hard drives make more heat or noise?

I purchased a 200GB 7200RPM laptop drive a little less than a year ago that I used to replace the 5400RPM drive in my PS3. Some things load a few seconds faster, but if money is tight I wouldn't spend the extra $50. Most newer 7200RPM drives are as quiet and cool as their 5400RPM counterparts, and any difference should be unnoticeable. I certainly didn't notice any difference in noise with my PS3 when I upgraded to the faster drive.

 

[malveaux]

Heya,

It's noticeably faster. It makes more noise. It makes more heat. So it depends on what you need your drive for. It makes a difference because Windows constantly writes to a pagefile unless you disable virtual memory (even in Vista), which constantly slows your drive and everything else your machine does. If you use Vista and you have like 8 gigs of RAM in your laptop, then the slower 5400rpm drive would be fine (and disable page file). But if you have less than that, get the 7200rpm.

Cheers,

 

[cliffro]

Its not worth $50 for a 40gb gain and minor speed increase, however if the hard drive were bigger say 200GB+ then it would be worth it.

79.99 w/Free Shipping
WD 250GB 7200RPM SATA 3G
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136279

I feel an extra $30 is worth the extra storage capacity.

And the performance increase.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=22-136-279&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&Pagesize=10&SelectedRating=-1&PurchaseMark=&VideoOnlyMark=False&VendorMark=&Keywords=(keywords)&Page=2

the people reviewing it like it alot.

 

[cjl]

It's fairly significant. I upgraded mine from a 5400 to a 7200, and stuff is noticeably faster.

 

[evongugg]

Battery life will be a little shorter with the 7200 rpm.

 

[KITH]

whether or not it is worth the $50 is up to you.

Performance will increase.

you can still use the old drive as an external. You can get cases for like $10.

 

[Dougx1317]

Thanks for all the replies.

Will battery life be much worse?

How much can I expect the increase in performance to be? Some reviews say <5%, and some say it'll be ~20%.


Other than storage space and price, is there any difference between the performance of these three drives?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822116044

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822116160

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148336

 

[cjl]

I'm not familiar with the Fujitsu line, but later model drives will be faster, as they have better seeks and faster sequentials. As for battery life, it shouldn't be significantly affected.