Conclusion:
Western Digital's newest 2.5" drive made a splash when it was announced because it marked a new high in this form factor's capacity. While all of that disk space in such a small package is great, it was all of the other things revealed during the review that make this such an impressive drive... high speed, low noise, and low heat production. The 320GB Scorpio fared well in all benchmarks and did so without breaking a sweat.
The 250GB Scorpio drive was tried out in a Playstation 3 during its review, and it proved to be an excellent upgrade option for those who find the stock drives a bit limiting. While the review sample 320GB unit hasn't made it into a Playstation 3 (yet), searching the Internet shows that plenty of other people have already done so. While Windows reports an available capacity of 298.09GB, it seems that about 263GB will be available when used with a Playstation 3. During the review of the 250GB unit we found that about 205GB was available, and both figures represent about 82% of the rated capacities.
After spending a few weeks using this drive I have no real negatives to report, but there is always room for a wish list. For those seeking the ultimate in performance, it would be interesting to see a 7200RPM Scorpio hit the market. A 5400RPM rotational speed allowed the drive to perform exceptionally well, but you have to imagine that there could be a tangible boost if it spun even faster. And as my typical comment on drives that come with anything less, a five year warranty would always be welcomed (the 320GB Scorpio carries a three year warranty).
A search of PriceGrabber reveals a handful of retailers, including Newegg.com, with the 320GB Scorpio starting at just about $200 (US) before shipping and tax. At sixty to seventy cents per GB, the price is really quite competitive with other 2.5" SATA drives with similar specifications and capacities.
Given the strong performance, high capacity, low noise, and competitive price, the Western Digital Scorpio 320GB 2.5" SATA Hard Drive earns the "Highly Recommended" award with ease.
Pros:
» 320GB is presently the highest capacity for 2.5" hard drive
» Strong performance
» Very cool
» Very quiet
Cons:
» A 7200RPM model would be interesting
» Three year warranty is OK, but five years would obviously be better
Special thanks to Western Digital for providing the Western Digital Scorpio 320GB 2.5" SATA Hard Drive to Bigbruin.com for review!
Please drop by the Bigbruin.com Forum and feel free to post any comments or questions.
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