Seagate or WD 750GB?

[MrDisco]

I've decided to add a 750GB drive in lieu of another 1TB drive. Which model would you take:
Seagate 7200.11 32MB cache 750GB
WD 16MB cache 750GB

I haven't been able to find too many comparisons for these drives so I don't know how they stack in terms of performance and amount of heat generated.

Thank you.

[Cheator]

Seagate has a longer warranty and has a decent amount of cache. I'd go for them cause I trust em.

[MrDisco]

I was aware of the warranty and the cache difference. The extra 2 years doesn't mean much to me. I am curious to know how the cache difference impacts real world performance.
As for trust..I'm ok with all the major brands.

[DaleF]

Well, I have a 500GB 7200.10 and a 500GB 7200.11, and the .11 performs (and benches) noticeably better than the .10, although I'm not sure if this is firmware related, or due to some other technology in the new drive other than the cache. Or maybe a combination of all three factors.
I'm actually a big fan of Seagate drives, so they're what I recommend.

[topaimz]

The thing is, if you are using it for storage purposes, you'll hardly notice the difference
between a 32MB cache and a 16MB cache drive...

If you are installing programs on to it, go seagate.
I have two family members with the exact same computer with just differing 500GB HDD.
One is seagate 7200.11 and one is western 500 AAKS.
Starting windows and opening apps were faster, but by only couple seconds at the most.

FYI, the Seagate and Western both are quite silent, but I feel that Western is more quiet.
In addition, Western runs more cooler then seagate, but only by couple degrees difference from
what I can assess (with the sunbeam fan controller/heat sensor).

Silence, cooler operation, cheaper and just storage = Western
Performance and for programs = Seagate

[no_pulse]

Maybe I've been extremely unlucky, but I bought 2 500gb Seagate drives last month and both just died. I thought I would try Seagate since my Western Digital drive died after 3yrs. But then I've read on the net that Western Digital has had hiccups as well. It seems the larger capacity drives are having a lot of hardware failures lately. I have a 30gb that's at least 10yrs old and its still going.

[ChuckleBrother]

@Guy above me: Well, speaking purely for myself, I have a Seagate 500GB(roughly 6-8 months old) and its running perfectly to date(queue crazy hdd failure), and I have the WD 750GB that I believe you're referring to. So far it seems like a good hdd, but time will tell.

@OP: They both seem like good drives, I have the WD one and my buddy has the Seagate one, both seem about equal in performance, enough so that I can't tell a difference to the eye, and heat generation is about the same.


Edit: I'd go for the WD, but thats just me. Not at NCIX though, RB Computing has it on sale right nowl:
shopRBC.com :: WD SATAII 750Gb 7200RPM 16Mb Hard Drive, 3Yr

[DaleF]

I'd get it at NCIX. Less money there.

As for the reliability of Seagate's drives, I have 7 7200.10s and 1 7200.11, and I've never had issues with them. Additionally, I've gotten a few more (~10) for others and none of them have had any issues.

[Empty_Quarter]

I think the WD 750GB/1TB are the best in the business. Better than Seagate in terms of performance. However, seagate does hold the crown in the 500GB market.

[yycraven]

I have the WD 750HDD and its a great in performance, have no issues what so ever,
also have own seagate's and there a good brand as well.
But I would go with the WD 750HDD, thats just my opinion.