Conclusion:
When the first of the 500GB, 16MB cache SATA 3 Gb/s drives (the Hitachi Deskstar) made its way on to the test bench back in July 2005 I was extremely impressed. From that moment on I have been waiting to see what the other drive manufacturers would/could possibly do to keep up with them, as I was unsure that they would be one-upped so quickly. Well, Seagate has done it. They have launched a product with the same basic features and specifications, but the performance might have you questioning that.
The Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 500GB hard drive offers incredible speed, low noise output, and what can never be overlooked with a Seagate product... the 5 year manufacturer's warranty. Finding one negative aspect for this drive wasn't easy, but I suppose we could knock it for operating warmer than any of the other drives on hand. The difference was small, still well within the safe range of operating temperatures, and adding just one low-speed cooling fan could alleviate any concerns of overheating.
As you might imagine, a 500GB SATA 3 Gb/s hard drive is not going to be cheap! A search of PriceGrabber shows that the Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 500GB SATA 3 Gb/s hard drive will cost you at least $354.00 (US), and it is available at a handful of outlets in the range of $354 - $407. If that seems like too much to you, let's consider the price of the Hitachi Deskstar 7K500 500GB SATA 3 Gb/s hard drive. PriceGrabber shows many of the same outlets carrying this drive for at least $369.99 (US), and the range is from around $370 to $427.
As compared to SATA 1.5 Gb/s drives, the price may seem quite high. The price of either one of these 500GB SATA 3 Gb/s drives is equivalent to about 2-3 of the 300GB Maxtor DiamondMax 10 SATA 1.5 Gb/s drives, for example, so it may be hard to justify the price for some.
So, in the battle of 500GB SATA 3 Gb/s hard drives, the Seagate version not only offers better performance and a longer warranty, but it completes the hat trick with a lower price. At the elevated speeds these drives offer, the difference in performance may be hard to notice, but if you can save a few dollars and have an extra two years of coverage from the manufacturer, you might as well take it!
Final Rating (5 out of 5 stars): 
Pros:
• Amazing performance
• Quiet operation
• Costs less than the competition
• 5 year manufacturer's warranty
Cons:
• Warmest running drive tested
Special thanks to Seagate for providing the Barracuda 7200.9 500GB hard drive to BigBruin.Com for review!
Please drop by the Bigbruin.com Forum and feel free to post any comments or questions.
|
|
