Question Is this HDD still good ?

[knowledge2121]

I bought a 2.5" Seagate BarraCuda 1TB on April 7, 2021 . Never opened/unboxed it ... it is in its sealed anti static bag.

Do you recommend using this drive in a build in 2024 ?

 

[SkyNetRising]

I bought a 2.5" Seagate BarraCuda 1TB on April 7, 2021 . Never opened/unboxed it ... it is in its sealed anti static bag.
Do you recommend using this drive in a build in 2024 ?

For what purpose?
What are you going to put onto it?

That is a low performance 5400 rpm SMR drive.
Expect bad/inconsistent write performance.
It's not suitable for installing windows onto it.
Could use it for archives/backups/user media storage.

 

[hotaru.hino]

Not for a modern OS/apps drive.

 

[knowledge2121]

It's not suitable for installing windows onto it.
Could use it for archives/backups/user media storage.

I want to install some older steam and GOG games on it .... maybe some ROMS too...

 

[hotaru.hino]

I want to install some older steam and GOG games on it .... maybe some ROMS too...

That might be fine then.

 

[Satan-IR]

SMR drivse not good for much but archiving. Write once read a few times later.

Constant game-related use (reading to load levels, textures, etc and writing progress data and saves and such) if those games are loaded/played from the drive frequently would prrobably break it real soon.

 

[hotaru.hino]

SMR drivse not good for much but archiving. Write once read a few times later.

Constant game-related use (reading to load levels, textures, etc and writing progress data and saves and such) if those games are loaded/played from the drive frequently would prrobably break it real soon.

Unless there's actual data to back this up, this just sounds like fear mongering because it's an SMR drive.

 

[Satan-IR]

Unless there's actual data to back this up, this just sounds like fear mongering because it's an SMR drive.

Maybe I should have added it's more from personal experience and what I've heard from people who do IT and tech support.

I've as a side-job/hobby helped with repairing and troubleshooting PCs and laptops for 3 medium-size companies and friends and family. Out of the 60ish broken HDDs I've dealt with in the last 3 years 45-50 (don't remember exact number) of the drives that broke much sooner than expected, if we take the MTBF as a basis, were SMR ones.

I have had 3 HDDs break in the last 5 years and 2 of them were Seagate SMR ones. Two 2.5" and one 3.5".

Fear-mongering is a bit strong for something which is more persoanl experince and opinion based on that experience. You take it however you like it.

 

[USAFRet]

Unless there's actual data to back this up, this just sounds like fear mongering because it's an SMR drive.

SMR vs CMR

https://www.howtogeek.com/803276/cmr-vs.-smr-hard-drives-whats-the-difference/

https://www.salvagedata.com/cmr-vs-smr-hard-drives/

https://www.minitool.com/backup-tips/cmr-vs-smr.html

 

[fzabkar]

https://www.cheadledatarecovery.co.uk/2018/02/st2000lm007-st1000lm035-worst-hdd-ever/

 

[NedSmelly]

I want to install some older steam and GOG games on it .... maybe some ROMS too...

I once ran a Seagate Momentus 2.5" as an internal game drive whilst waiting for a replacement for a faulty IronWolf. It was dog slow. Wouldn't recommend it.

 

[Albert.Thomas]

I bought a 2.5" Seagate BarraCuda 1TB on April 7, 2021 . Never opened/unboxed it ... it is in its sealed anti static bag.

Do you recommend using this drive in a build in 2024 ?

No, but you already have it. May as well use it for something.

 

[Satan-IR]

Yes, I agree with @Albert.Thomas and basically everyone else. Maybe I should have said this explicitly to OP too.

@knowledge2121 You have the drive so use it by all means.

Just treat is as any user should treat any storage drive. It can fail anytime. So have backup of you important and irreplaceable data/files on some other storage media.