500GB Seagate Momentus XT Hybrid *special* vs 750 WD Scorpio Black WD7500BPKT

[Luxas]

As the topic says I am considering one of these two:

500GB Seagate Momentus XT Hybrid. SATA 3Gb/s, (7200rpm) *special* vs WD Scorpio Black WD7500BPKT, SATA 3Gb/s, 16MB Cache (7200rpm)

The 500GB Momentus XT Hybrid is:
- is only 36quide more than standard 250Gb (5400rpm)
- 250Gb less
- 5 quid less than WD Scorpio
- probably has SSD inside as it's hybrid but is it for sure?


Do you know what is the Cache in 500GB Seagate Momentus XT?
Is 500GB Momentus XT faster than 750GB WD Scorpio (7200rpm) ?
Which one would you choose if it wasn't for capacity?

 

[Buzz]

The Momentus is a 32MB cache, 7200RPM,
Interface Options are SATA 6Gb/s, SATA 3Gb/s
Quote from a review

What I found is that the XT doesn't match today's popular SSDs for read speeds, or most SSDs when it comes to write performance. It does come close to today's fastest hard disk drives for read speeds and it beats them -- as well as some SSDs - on write performance -- and, more importantly, on price.

The WD is a 16MB cache, 7200RPM,
Interface Options are SATA 3Gb/s

I would personally go with the Momentus if capacity is not in question. But Id also go for the Sata 6Gb/s one not the 3.

 

[Skilty]

The Momentus is a 32MB cache, 7200RPM,
Interface Options are SATA 6Gb/s, SATA 3Gb/s
Quote from a review



The WD is a 16MB cache, 7200RPM,
Interface Options are SATA 3Gb/s

I would personally go with the Momentus if capacity is not in question. But Id also go for the Sata 6Gb/s one not the 3.

Ok the 500GB Momentus uses SATA II so 3Gb/s, it cannot utilise the full bandwidth so SATA II or SATA III makes no difference. It has 4GB SLC which it uses to cache the most used files over time. It has a 16mb cache for disk operations in the same way all hard drives do.

The 750GB Momentus uses SATA III so 6Gb/s, again it cannot utilise the bandwidth either so you could plug it into a SATA II port and it would operate at the same throughput. It has 8GB SLC which like the 500GB version it uses to cache the most used files over time. It has a 32mb cache for disk operations.

If it were me I would go for the 750GB drive for two reasons. One it has more capacity and two it has double the SSD cache at 8GB so can store more files to accelerate. Remember it only gives you SSD like speed for cached files so READ operations, write operations will be as slow as a 7200rpm hard drive. I believe the third generation Momentus will support write operations.

However you might also consider a standard 500GB 7200 rpm hard drive and a smaller SSD and use it as a cache using Intel SRT.

 

[Luxas]

Thank you! Unfortunately I can not go with 6Gb's. My budget is some sort of closed, but I also can not go with 250Gb 5400rpm as it hurts mentally.

 

[tom_gr7]

If it makes you feel better i've gone for a 500gb version,

 

[Buzz]

Ok the 500GB Momentus uses SATA II so 3Gb/s, it cannot utilise the full bandwidth so SATA II or SATA III makes no difference. It has 4GB SLC which it uses to cache the most used files over time. It has a 16mb cache for disk operations in the same way all hard drives do.

The 750GB Momentus uses SATA III so 6Gb/s, again it cannot utilise the bandwidth either so you could plug it into a SATA II port and it would operate at the same throughput. It has 8GB SLC which like the 500GB version it uses to cache the most used files over time. It has a 32mb cache for disk operations.

If it were me I would go for the 750GB drive for two reasons. One it has more capacity and two it has double the SSD cache at 8GB so can store more files to accelerate. Remember it only gives you SSD like speed for cached files so READ operations, write operations will be as slow as a 7200rpm hard drive. I believe the third generation Momentus will support write operations.

However you might also consider a standard 500GB 7200 rpm hard drive and a smaller SSD and use it as a cache using Intel SRT.

The 500GB is actually 3Gb or 6GB. and it has 32 MB cache not 16...

 

[Luxas]

Thank you everyone !
I am going for the 500GB Hybrid