Does 5400rpm or 7200rpm make a difference?

[lordex]

I'm looking for a usb2.0 external drive, and wondering whether a 7200rpm drive would be significantly faster than a 5400rpm, or is the speed capped by the usb connection anyways?

Thanks for any input.

 

[Peter]

The speed cap on USB is in the 25 to 30 MB/s range, depending on the system chipset and the USB-IDE bridge in the external box.

Assuming you are talking about 3.5" drives, that'll be a no for linear throughput - even 5400 rpm drives are faster than the USB cap.

Access times are still faster on faster spinning drives, because the rotational latency is inherently shorter.

If you consider throwing more money at it, I'd recommend you aim for 2.5" drives. 3.5" hardware is not made for transportation and being bumped around.

 

[corkyg]

Consider an eSATA external while you are at it.

 

[lordex]

Peter,
In other words, if I use the drive as a working directory (e.g. developing, editing, etc.) faster drives would still be, well, faster, due to the access time difference? I'm indeed considering 2.5" drives. Does the same conclusion apply to those? Thanks.

corkyg,
I will need to move this drive between computers, some of which have only usb. Thanks for bringing it up though.

 

[Old Hippie]

faster drives would still be, well, faster, due to the access time difference?

Yep.

I'm indeed considering 2.5" drives. Does the same conclusion apply to those?

Yep.

I will need to move this drive between computers, some of which have only usb.

External cases come in all flavors. Get one with USB and eSATA ports.