1,000 GB: Three Samsung TB Drives

Conclusion

Spinpoint F, Spinpoint F RAID or EcoGreen F—which model wins? If you’re looking for a desktop hard drive for your new PC, or to upgrade an old PC, we recommend going for the ordinary Spinpoint F mainstream model, because it provides the best bang for the buck at a cost that will soon be reaching $100 for a full terabyte of storage. The Spinpoint F1 isn’t a power saver, but the potential power savings of an EcoGreen F drive on a mainstream desktop PC aren’t worth the consideration. At the same time, the EcoGreen F will noticeably reduce your storage performance on a desktop PC, which is not what you want.

However, the Spinpoint F RAID edition is an option you should consider if you know that your PC will be running all the time, or if you want maximized I/O performance and throughput. The more you do with your PC, the better off you are to go for a more robust hard drive. The RAID edition comes at a little premium, but the cost is typically worth it for enthusiasts.

The EcoGreen F by Samsung remains an attractive option if you’re looking for a hard drive for storing data as efficiently as possible. HTPCs, NAS servers and similar devices do not require the highest performance; here we are more concerned with efficiency and low noise. Users looking for an additional storage hard drive for their PC or an external hard drive should also consider the EcoGreen F, as it not only requires less power, it also runs noticeably cooler.

HDD Segments Comparison Table

Swipe to scroll horizontally
Segments Standard Desktop 24/7, Performance Power Efficient
HitachiDeskstar 7K1000.BUltrastar 7K1000Deskstar P7 series
SamsungSpinpoint FSpinpoint F RAIDEcoGreen F
SeagateBarracuda 7200.11Barracuda ES.2n/a
Western DigitalCaviar BlueCaviar BlackCaviar Green