Western Digital Drive Creates Dilemma for Laptop Buyers

27.07.2009
It's pretty much a given that solid state drives (s) are the future of PC storage, and that hard drives are on the way out. But if you're buying a laptop today, which option is best?

The latest notebook drives, like 1-terabyte model, are astonishingly huge and relatively cheap. Priced at $250, the 1TB Scorpio Blue has more storage than most consumer laptop users will ever need. Amateur filmmakers shooting HD video may want a 1TB drive, but the rest of us could get by with a lot less space. Even the 750GB Scorpio Blue, which sells for a very reasonable $190, is probably overkill for the average user.

Smaller and less expensive hard drives are always an option, of course. But if you're shopping for a premium notebook in the $1500-and-up range, the SSD vs. HD debate may be the hardest part of configuring your system.

Which Is Best?

Solid state drives are faster than hard drives, at least most of the time. , although it hasn't worked out all the kinks yet. For instance, older and cheaper SSDs running the new OS may perform worse than conventional hard drives. But Windows 7 notebooks with the latest SSDs should have a performance edge.

Unlike whirring hard drives with their spinning platters, SSDs are silent and use less energy. Since they have no moving parts, they're far more rugged too. They're slimmer and lighter than hard drives, and manufacturers are finding ways to trim them even more. that weight only 7.5 to 8.5 grams, considerably less than the 75 to 85 grams that 1.8- and 2.5-inch SSDs weigh.