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    How to pick a new HD

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Stonkey, Jul 8, 2010.

  1. Stonkey

    Stonkey Newbie

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    Hey everyone!

    I'm pretty sure that my hard-drive is about to crash. I'm looking to get a replacement. But I have no idea how to go about buying a new one that will fit/work with my laptop. I have an Acer Aspire 5102WLMi. Anyone know what kind of hard-drive I need and/or where is a good place to get one?
     
    Stonkey, Jul 8, 2010
    #1
  2. NJoy

    NJoy Няшka

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    you can fit any IDE 2.5" laptop hdd in there. If you want to get a performance boost as well, try to find 7200RPM drive, but it might be difficult due to the old interface not being used much nowadays.
     
    NJoy, Jul 8, 2010
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  3. sean473

    sean473 Notebook Prophet

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    IMO , ur best off getting a cheap 100GB IDE drive.. really not worth paying a bomb for bigger drives but its ur money :D
     
    sean473, Jul 9, 2010
    #3
  4. DetlevCM

    DetlevCM Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Actually, a small capacity drive is a waste of money :)

    The smallest ones are more expensive per GB than the larger ones - at least in the "lower end".
    (Found that out when I replaced the HDD in the laptop my grandfather has)

    I'd possibly say get either 160GB, 250GB or 320GB - more will most likely be more expensive per GB and less will be more expensive per GB.

    On that note though - if you need storage, store outside of your laptop on external drives at home.
     
    DetlevCM, Jul 9, 2010
    #4
  5. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Fastest IDE drive is Samsung HM160HC. Just search for the review.
     
    Phil, Jul 9, 2010
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  6. Stonkey

    Stonkey Newbie

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    Sweet. Thanks guys.

    What do you guys think about solid state drives? I have an external hard drive for storage. I really only use my laptop for internet and word processing (and maybe one game at a time). Would it be worth it to get maybe a 64 gig solid state? Can I even get a solid state drive that would work in my machine?
     
    Stonkey, Jul 9, 2010
    #6
  7. DetlevCM

    DetlevCM Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    SSDs are great :)

    But you might be hard pressed to get an IDE one - and IDE might limit your speeds, although the important 4K speeds are below the IDE limit.
     
    DetlevCM, Jul 10, 2010
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  8. Stonkey

    Stonkey Newbie

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    Well, after I asked that, I actually went and looked at some SSDs. I think they are out of my price range. Does anyone know a good place to get them? I usually use Newegg, but if there's a cheaper place, I'd like to know.

    Also, does thickness matter at all? Or they all basically the same thickness?
     
    Stonkey, Jul 12, 2010
    #8
  9. Pitabred

    Pitabred Linux geek con rat flail!

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    You might consider the Seagate Momentus XT, then. It has a fair bit of the performance boost of an SSD without costing nearly as much, and has a lot more space to store things.

    9.5mm is the standard height... don't buy anything taller than that. You shouldn't really be able to find anything bigger, but you never know.
     
    Pitabred, Jul 12, 2010
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  10. Stonkey

    Stonkey Newbie

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    Does the Momentus come in the 2.5" ide? I looked it up on Amazon and Newegg, but it only came back with SATA stuff.

    Unfortunately, Newegg does not have a listing for the width. So I guess I'm just going to have to buy it and hope.
     
    Stonkey, Jul 12, 2010
    #10
  11. Pitabred

    Pitabred Linux geek con rat flail!

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    oops... sorry. No, no IDE version. Totally spaced that. IDE drives are getting expensive and rare :-/
     
    Pitabred, Jul 12, 2010
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  12. dlai

    dlai Notebook Consultant

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    I think WD makes something called a WD Scorpio Blue IDE in a 320 gb size. Not sure what the cost is but I recall it's a bit below $100...
     
    dlai, Jul 13, 2010
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  13. sean473

    sean473 Notebook Prophet

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    best IDE drive is 160GB Samsung... its already got double the space and greater speed so should be a good upgrade...
     
    sean473, Jul 13, 2010
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  14. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Yes get the Samsung, you'll get a nice boost. Yet it stays cool and uses little power.
     
    Phil, Jul 13, 2010
    #14