Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 SATA HD

[Pardus]

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

$129.99 shipped - LINK

Manufacturer Western Digital
Manufacturer Part # WD6400AAKS
Product Description 640gb Caviar Sata Ii 7200 Rpm 3.5in
Type Hard drive - internal
Form Factor 3.5" x 1/3H
Approximate Dimensions (WxDxH) 4 in x 5.8 in x 1 in
Approximate Weight 1.4 lbs
Capacity 640 GB
Interface Type Serial ATA-300
Data Transfer Rate 300 MBps
Average Seek Time 8.9 ms
Spindle Speed 7200 rpm
Buffer Size 16 MB
Manufacturer Warranty 3 years warranty

WD Caviar® SE16
WD6400AAKS

SATA Hard Drives
640 GB, 3 Gb/s, 16 MB Cache, 7200 RPM
Lightning Fast
Cool
Quiet
Lightning-fast performance and cool, quiet operation perfect for Windows Vista?.


WD Caviar SE16 drives combine 16 MB cache with 3 Gb/s transfer rate for lightning-fast performance in demanding desktop and workstation applications. Technologically advanced acoustics minimize noise and cool drive operation and enhanced reliability features help protect the drive and the data stored on it.

Compatibility Summary (PDF)
Key FeaturesTop performance for Windows Vista - WD Caviar SE16 SATA and EIDE drives are certified for Windows Vista and are top performers on the Windows Vista Experience Index.

16 MB Cache - Bigger cache means faster performance. A massive 16 MB cache combined with advanced acoustic and power-reducing technologies make these ultra-fast drives the perfect solution for the fully loaded PC.

Perpendicular Magnetic Recording (PMR) - The latest generation of WD Caviar SE16 drives employs PMR technology to achieve even greater areal density.
(750 GB only)

IntelliSeek? - Calculates optimum seek speeds to lower power consumption, noise and vibration. View demo >

SecurePark? - Parks the recording heads off the disk surface during spin up, spin down and when the drive is off. This ensures the recording head never touches the disk surface resulting in improved long term reliability due to less head wear, and improved non- operational shock tolerance.

StableTrac? - The motor shaft is secured at both ends to reduce system-induced vibration and stabilize platters for accurate tracking, during read and write operations.
(750 GB only)

Ideal For
Designed for use in the fastest PCs on the market, including high-performance business computers and multimedia or gaming systems. Perfect for Windows Vista.

How this WD hard drive protects your data
Data Lifeguard? is an exclusive set of data protection features, including shock protection, an environmental protection system and real-time embedded error detection and repair. WD's Data Lifeguard technology automatically finds, isolates, and repairs problems that may develop over the life of a hard drive.
Data Lifeguard Tools? are software utilities designed for WD hard drives that work with the embedded Data Lifeguard features to make hard drive installation,diagnostics and repair both simple and worry-free. (Download Data Lifeguard Tools)
ShockGuard? instantaneously protects the hard drive against damage from bumps and vibrations while it is running. This technology enables WD Caviar drives to achieve industry-leading shock specifications.

Important interface information
This drive requires a SATA interface

Up to 182,800 digital photos
Up to 160,000 songs (MP3)
Up to 16,000 songs (uncompressed CD quality)
Up to 49 hours of Digital Video (DV)
Up to 280 hours of DVD quality video
Up to 77 hours of HD video

(Examples of the number of photos, songs, videos and any other files that can be stored on a hard drive are provided for illustrative purposes only. Your results will vary based on file size and format, settings, features, software and other factors.)
One gigabyte (GB) = one billion bytes. One terabyte (TB) = one trillion bytes. Total accessible capacity varies depending on operating environment.

 

[Stas]

too lazy to search: is this 2x320GB platters?

 

[hans007]

Originally posted by: Stas
too lazy to search: is this 2x320GB platters?

im thinking it probably is...

it seems like a new drive, and western digital's last drives has 250gb, no point in them releasing anything with less.

 

[Bozo Galora]

yeah, 640GB means 2 platter - cant be anything else - they arent gonna bring out a 4 stack 160GB platter perpendic. drive in 2008
these should be killer drives with starting HDTach numbers @ ~ 110mb/s
its like 2 Seagate 320's for $65 ea.

 

[Netopia]

Wonder how long they're gonna wait for a four platter 1.25TB drive. Seems like the next logical step.

Joe

 

[soccerballtux]

Originally posted by: Bozo Galora
yeah, 640GB means 2 platter - cant be anything else - they arent gonna bring out a 4 stack 160GB platter perpendic. drive in 2008
these should be killer drives with starting HDTach numbers @ ~ 110mb/s
its like 2 Seagate 320's for $65 ea.

In fact they are/have.

There was a thread on here about this, and the OP tracked down an ebay provider that will sell you specifically the 320gb platter model. Ran some tests on it and it was uber fast.

Can't wait for 1.2GB.

 

[jjmIII]

Do any of the hdd tools tell you the number of platters??

 

[toslat]

Samsung seem to have lost their early advantage by being slow to the market. WD announces in January, and in 2 months 320GB and 640GB are available, while Samsung can only ship their buggy 1TB F1 drives. Hope the 640GB F1 wont be too late to the party. Competition is usually good for the consumers.

 

[Bozo Galora]

http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3236

 

[bradley]

Originally posted by: toslat
Samsung seem to have lost their early advantage by being slow to the market. WD announces in January, and in 2 months 320GB and 640GB are available, while Samsung can only ship their buggy 1TB F1 drives. Hope the 640GB F1 wont be too late to the party. Competition is usually good for the consumers.

The Samsung F1 drives aren't buggy. HUTIL is incompatible with them, and is expected to be updated shortly.

 

[bigsnyder]

But Samsung announced the drives last summer. Must be more to it than the HUTIL problem.

 

[MurrysBudgie]

Yup. That sounds better. Thanks.

 

[toslat]

Originally posted by: bradley
The Samsung F1 drives aren't buggy. HUTIL is incompatible with them, and is expected to be updated shortly.

HUtil is Samsung's own utility. IMO if your drives are incompatible with ur own utility software points to it being buggy. Apart from the HUtil problem, if u look around on forums and retailer feedback sections, a lot of people have been RMAing the drives cos of issues like DOA and corrupted RAID.

 

[bradley]

Originally posted by: toslat

HUtil is Samsung's own utility. IMO if your drives are incompatible with ur own utility software points to it being buggy. Apart from the HUtil problem, if u look around on forums and retailer feedback sections, a lot of people have been RMAing the drives cos of issues like DOA and corrupted RAID.

Western Digital probably took the right approach in not rushing a monolithic 320x3 to the market, and started with a single platter drive. Especially Samsung's 334x3 was unprecedented and comes with its own host of problems. And I certainly don't blame consumers for not caring about the details and just wanting their stuff to be compatible right out of the box.

Otherwise HUTIL is likely misreporting surface errors on the F1 1TB that don't actually exist.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/...ostorder=asc&start=210

And at least the F1 1TB ReadyNAS compatibility problems have been fixed.

http://www.infrant.com/forum/v...postorder=asc&start=60

Western Digital also had serious conflicts with RAID controllers in their RE/RE2 line, which required a recent firmware update. The drives were dropping from the array and causing corruption. And currently there have been similar reported problems with GP, I believe.

http://support.wdc.com/downloa...?cxml=n&pid=15&swid=57

Personally I have never felt the underlying complexities of deploying desktop RAID was worth the cost, hassle, and risk based on the gain. As far as the DOA issue, I haven't looked extensively at Newegg's reviews, but it seems drives from virtually all OEMs are being poorly shipped by Newegg, at times, and thus failing.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Originally posted by: soccerballtux

Originally posted by: Bozo Galora
yeah, 640GB means 2 platter - cant be anything else - they arent gonna bring out a 4 stack 160GB platter perpendic. drive in 2008
these should be killer drives with starting HDTach numbers @ ~ 110mb/s
its like 2 Seagate 320's for $65 ea.

In fact they are/have.

There was a thread on here about this, and the OP tracked down an ebay provider that will sell you specifically the 320gb platter model. Ran some tests on it and it was uber fast.

Can't wait for 1.2GB.

Man me either, I hate only having a 800 MB drive. I run out of space so fast with it. The 1.2 gb drive should help though, hopefully it will be a PATA drive too I hear those are screamers.

 

[scootermaster]

Originally posted by: DisgruntledVirus

Originally posted by: soccerballtux

Originally posted by: Bozo Galora
yeah, 640GB means 2 platter - cant be anything else - they arent gonna bring out a 4 stack 160GB platter perpendic. drive in 2008
these should be killer drives with starting HDTach numbers @ ~ 110mb/s
its like 2 Seagate 320's for $65 ea.

In fact they are/have.

There was a thread on here about this, and the OP tracked down an ebay provider that will sell you specifically the 320gb platter model. Ran some tests on it and it was uber fast.

Can't wait for 1.2GB.

Man me either, I hate only having a 800 MB drive. I run out of space so fast with it. The 1.2 gb drive should help though, hopefully it will be a PATA drive too I hear those are screamers.

No kidding. The move from MFM to IDE should be astounding!

Now only if I could get this SCSI Zip drive to work.

 

[AMD K9]

Originally posted by: scootermaster

Originally posted by: DisgruntledVirus


Can't wait for 1.2GB.

Man me either, I hate only having a 800 MB drive. I run out of space so fast with it. The 1.2 gb drive should help though, hopefully it will be a PATA drive too I hear those are screamers.

No kidding. The move from MFM to IDE should be astounding!

Now only if I could get this SCSI Zip drive to work.[/quote]

What is this SCSI interface you speak of? This sounds like the new fangled techno geek stuff you think of when you think of the distant future like 1999.

 

[mageslayer]

Originally posted by: AMD K9

Originally posted by: scootermaster

Originally posted by: DisgruntledVirus


Can't wait for 1.2GB.

Man me either, I hate only having a 800 MB drive. I run out of space so fast with it. The 1.2 gb drive should help though, hopefully it will be a PATA drive too I hear those are screamers.

No kidding. The move from MFM to IDE should be astounding!

Now only if I could get this SCSI Zip drive to work.

What is this SCSI interface you speak of? This sounds like the new fangled techno geek stuff you think of when you think of the distant future like 1999.

[/quote]

wow you are flaming him pretty bad for a single typo

 

[Netopia]

Originally posted by: scootermaster

Originally posted by: DisgruntledVirus

Originally posted by: soccerballtux

Originally posted by: Bozo Galora
yeah, 640GB means 2 platter - cant be anything else - they arent gonna bring out a 4 stack 160GB platter perpendic. drive in 2008
these should be killer drives with starting HDTach numbers @ ~ 110mb/s
its like 2 Seagate 320's for $65 ea.

In fact they are/have.

There was a thread on here about this, and the OP tracked down an ebay provider that will sell you specifically the 320gb platter model. Ran some tests on it and it was uber fast.

Can't wait for 1.2GB.

Man me either, I hate only having a 800 MB drive. I run out of space so fast with it. The 1.2 gb drive should help though, hopefully it will be a PATA drive too I hear those are screamers.

No kidding. The move from MFM to IDE should be astounding!

Now only if I could get this SCSI Zip drive to work.

The good news is that you don't have to wait for IDE! I've got some AWESOME COOL RLL drives that SMOKE MFM... of course, you've still got to low level format them in debug (c=g800:x), but that's not too bad.

Joe

 

[Tullphan]

So what's the better overall drive (assuming it gets handled & shipped properly)...this or the Samsung Spinpoint F1 750GB?

 

[GarfieldtheCat]

Originally posted by: Tullphan
So what's the better overall drive (assuming it gets handled & shipped properly)...this or the Samsung Spinpoint F1 750GB?

Probably the WD 640GB.....320Gig platters vs the 250Gig of the 750Gig F1

 

[Midnight Rambler]

As far as the DOA issue, I haven't looked extensively at Newegg's reviews, but it seems drives from virtually all OEMs are being poorly shipped by Newegg, at times, and thus failing.

Yep, I have no idea why they pack their drives so poorly.

I only buy my drives from ZZF as they often still use the dense foam "nests", or ClubIt as they wrap their drives in about 10 yards (slight exaggeration) of heavy duty bubble wrap.

 

[OneStepsAhead]

Hmmm... from the size, I would say it is a 1 TB drive with a bad platter, so they downsized and sold it anyway rather than throw away.

I dont' know what that says about the long-term reliability, but I am not impressed.

 

[hans007]

Originally posted by: scootermaster

Originally posted by: DisgruntledVirus

Originally posted by: soccerballtux

Originally posted by: Bozo Galora
yeah, 640GB means 2 platter - cant be anything else - they arent gonna bring out a 4 stack 160GB platter perpendic. drive in 2008
these should be killer drives with starting HDTach numbers @ ~ 110mb/s
its like 2 Seagate 320's for $65 ea.

In fact they are/have.

There was a thread on here about this, and the OP tracked down an ebay provider that will sell you specifically the 320gb platter model. Ran some tests on it and it was uber fast.

Can't wait for 1.2GB.

Man me either, I hate only having a 800 MB drive. I run out of space so fast with it. The 1.2 gb drive should help though, hopefully it will be a PATA drive too I hear those are screamers.

No kidding. The move from MFM to IDE should be astounding!

Now only if I could get this SCSI Zip drive to work.

you shoulda went to esdi in the medium term. i hear its got great performance for those 40mb drives

 

[taltamir]

Originally posted by: OneStepsAhead
Hmmm... from the size, I would say it is a 1 TB drive with a bad platter, so they downsized and sold it anyway rather than throw away.

I dont' know what that says about the long-term reliability, but I am not impressed.

You couldn't be more wrong. This isn't a defective 1TB drive, this is a 2x320 platters drive with no defective platters. Its a new platter size that allows unusual sizes.