Small File Transfer

For the small files, we have a Doom 3 installation, with 250 files spread across a few folders and totals 1.85GB. Files will be copied from the OCZ Agility drive to the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 (write) and after clearing the clipboard, copied from the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 back to the Agility drive.

The WD Blue and Seagate 7200.11 trail the Seagate 7200.12 here. The WD Black is an enthusiast designed drive, so we will be expecting it to finish ahead in our tests, just as it finishes 1 second faster than the 7200.12 here.

Medium File Transfer

For the medium file, we have a Vista 64-Bit Service Pack 1 installation, which is a compressed 743 MB file. The file will be copied from the OCZ Agility drive to the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 (write) and after clearing the clipboard, copied from the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 back to the Agility drive.

The write speeds are close but the results are the same as the small file test in terms of winners.

Large File Transfer

For the large file, we have a Windows MCE recorded movie of Appaloosa, which is a is 3.9 GB total. The file will be copied from the OCZ Agility drive to the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 (write) and after clearing the clipboard, copied from the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 back to the Agility drive.

Final Words

As it stands right now, the speed differences between desktop drives are pretty much a wash using current technologies. We're anxious to see the newer SATA 6GB parts, but the differences between the fastest and slowest drives in our tests today is about 10%. When asked to make a decision, I do tell people the first thing to consider is how much capacity do you need? Right off the bat this should make about 75% of the buying decision.

Next is reliability and warranty. With the 7200.11 drives, Seagate had taken a bit of a hit as there have been issues with the product, though the problem seemed to affect the 1.5TB drives more often. Issues of drive freezing and outright errors had been corrected with newer firmware and according to Seagate, these have been further remedied with the new 7200.12. , where most Seagate drives seem to be OEM models, Seagate does offer a 3 year warranty. On that shopping tip, for the 1TB model we reviewed, , which we think is a great price.

Solid State Drives (SSD) gets a lot of press due to the performance and other benefits, but the two big strikes going against them is price and capacity. At this time, SSD cannot touch traditional hard drives in this area. If you do have excess money, by all means, I would support a decision to pick up a SSD, but if you are more limited in funds, I would think a standard desktop drive is a better choice. I've used a lot of different drives over the years, and I would have no problems recommending the Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 if you're in the market for a reliable and decent performing desktop hard drive.

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