CPU Usage

Conclusion

Fujitsu did it! The MAM3184MP combines both high performance and acceptable environmental conditions. Subjectively, the noise generated by the drive is still louder than what we are used to from most other drives. Nevertheless, the performance you get is tremendous. Launching applications such as Adobe Photoshop is clearly faster than with standard IDE drives, particularly due to the quick access times of less than 6 ms.

This drive is currently one of the best choices for workstations with high performance demands - we liked the fact that the noise level was not any higher than what you get with 10,000 rpm drives.

This drive could also be quite a good choice for server systems. Of course you cannot set up huge drive arrays at maximum capacities of 36 GB per drive. Currently, however, a RAID array consisting of Fujitsu MAM drives will deliver the highest achievable performance for storage subsystems.

The high price of these drives make them less attractive for use in home systems. You have to shell out at least $340 for the 18 GB model, while the 36 GB version should be priced at $500 or even more. This doesn't make it a bargain buy, but then again, nobody would really expect low prices for a drive of this caliber.