Green drive vs 2.5 inch drive - what would make more sense in a SFF case?

[AndyD2k]

I got a Dell Zino which has a 3.5 drive. I'm thinking I can improve temps by going with either of the two but not sure if a Green drive makes sense because the size is still 3.5. It also would be a waste of hard drive space because I have no intentions of using anything more than 40gbs as everything will be streamed off my main PC or a future WHS machine

So what do you guys think?

 

[MalVeauX]

I got a Dell Zino which has a 3.5 drive. I'm thinking I can improve temps by going with either of the two but not sure if a Green drive makes sense because the size is still 3.5. It also would be a waste of hard drive space because I have no intentions of using anything more than 40gbs as everything will be streamed off my main PC or a future WHS machine

So what do you guys think?

Heya,

Are your temps a problem or something?

A green drive is quiet, and it runs pretty cool, but it's still something that makes sound, it still produces some heat, and has low access time so it will be less responsive. You could get a laptop 2.5" drive. And it won't be any different really, it's just smaller. Still makes the heat and still makes sound. You could also just get a 30Gb SSD. It's tiny. It makes zero noise. It stays pretty cool. And it's super responsive. For the money though, a WD Green 3.5" HDD is quiet enough, cool enough, and has plenty of capacity. Depends on how much you want to spend.

I personally use an SSD in my machine and keep most of my data on my server. Sort of like what you're talking about doing with your WHS server.

Very best,

 

[Zap]

I was thinking the same thing as MalVeauX, except one of those Intel-based Kingston 40GB SSDs.

 

[AndyD2k]

I thought about that but I was hoping not to spend over a $100. Maybe I'll stick with my current drive and wait for ssds to drop in price. Though I don't know if I want to wait too long

MalVeauX - temps are sort of a problem yeah. Idles tend to be around 55-60. Load around 65-70. I'm expecting it to be warmer because of the small form factor but I don't think the 3.5 helps since it may effect airflow. Really not sure if it would make a difference but figured it might be worth a try at $60 or so

 

[EarthwormJim]

I honestly doubt swapping out your hard drive is going to make a significant difference. A hard drive consumes maybe 5 watts of power (A velociraptor consumes around 7 watts). So maximum, it's dumping 5 watts of heat into your case (less in reality since it is mechanical).

Going to a green drive or a 2.5" drive that consumes 2.5 watts, is not going to matter. Next to your CPU, motherboard and graphics chip, that's nothing.

 

[EarthwormJim]

Wierd double post...

 

[AndyD2k]

Well, here's the thing - I disconnected the hard drive and booted off of a live cd...it seemed to cut down on temps by about 7-10C. Plus the drive is operating at 55C. That seems to high for a drive

 

[21stHermit]

A 2.5" HDD wins hand down vs. a 3.5" Green Drive in terms of power. If it were me, I use an old 40 - 80GB laptop drive.

 

[pjkenned]

I use a Patriot PS-100 32GB SSD that I picked up from Fry's for $60 about a month ago in my Atom/ION box and stream everything to that box from my WHS. The setup works great! Since the 250w case PSU sits above the Asus's heatsink, I removed the Atom/ION fan and literally cannot hear the thing unless I put my ear within 5 inches of it.

 

[Phanuel]

Odd request, but this is one of those new Dell mini square computers? Can you post a shot of the inside of it? I was wondering if they had 3.5" drives and how much trouble they'd be to replace or change drive sizes.

 

[AndyD2k]

I'll take a picture of the inside tomorrow. When you say drive sizes do you mean from 3.5 to 2.5? Hard to say at the moment because I still haven't made the switch. Still debating on what I want to do. Part of me is thinking I should just keep it the way it is but concerned about HD temps. Then again, I won't have anything important on there and I have a 1 year warranty

I can say this though - they screw the screws in way too tight. It took a lot of effort to get some of the screws - to the point that I almost stripped one. Felt deja vu as I had the same experience trying to replace the drive in my PS3.

 

[AndyD2k]

Below is what looks like inside. The drive is in that bracket underneath the dvd drive. I figured if I go with a 2.5 drive I should be able to use brackets

 

[AndyD2k]

If you want to see more shots of the inside, this guy has a bunch of shots...

http://www.jrin.net/2009_12_16/dell-zino-hd-review

 

[Phanuel]

Thanks a bunch, I had lost track of this thread.