SSHD vs. HDD

[Metalrenok]

I have a couple years old 7200 rpm 1TB HDD and and about 3 months ago i Bought an SSD (Intel 320 160GB)
My HDD has been making me erase stuff because I don't have enough space so I'll buy a new drive in the next couple of weeks..
I have to choose between a HDD and a SSHD which are at the exact same price but with 1TB of difference:
These are the models:

HDD > http://www.amazon.com/Toshiba-3-5-Inch-SATA3-Drive-DT01ACA200/dp/B009QOGBZE/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1389657748&sr=8-3&keywords=2tb+toshiba

OR

SSHD > http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Solid-Hybrid-2-5-Inch-ST1000LM014/dp/B00B99JUBQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1389409669&sr=8-1&keywords=SSHD+1tb+2.5%22

I got a friend who is selling me both at the same price

 

[Onus]

I'm not familiar with the reputation of Toshiba hard drives.
Note that the SSHD is a 2.5" drive.
As a data drive, the higher capacity is probably the better choice, unless you'll be reading/writing the same file(s) repeatedly. The SSHD only spins at 5400RPM, so it will offer slower access to uncached data.

 

[CaedenV]

If 1TB is not enough space then why would you even consider a smaller drive?

The choice between SSD and HDD is one of use. SSDs are great as a system drive, and to hold lots of small things that you may need to access at random. HDDs are great at holding big bulk data fairly reliably, and modern drives are plenty fast enough to stream several HD video streams without choking. So the choice is simple: If you are going to install programs, or keep lots of small files (pictures, and documents) on it then go with the SSD. If you are in need to bulk space to store things like backups, music, videos, etc. then go with a HDD.

 

[Metalrenok]

I'm not familiar with the reputation of Toshiba hard drives.
Note that the SSHD is a 2.5" drive.
As a data drive, the higher capacity is probably the better choice, unless you'll be reading/writing the same file(s) repeatedly. The SSHD only spins at 5400RPM, so it will offer slower access to uncached data.

What is the problem with using a 2.5 drive? I have a Phantom 530 and it bays allow me to mount it without any problem

If 1TB is not enough space then why would you even consider a smaller drive?

The choice between SSD and HDD is one of use. SSDs are great as a system drive, and to hold lots of small things that you may need to access at random. HDDs are great at holding big bulk data fairly reliably, and modern drives are plenty fast enough to stream several HD video streams without choking. So the choice is simple: If you are going to install programs, or keep lots of small files (pictures, and documents) on it then go with the SSD. If you are in need to bulk space to store things like backups, music, videos, etc. then go with a HDD.

I bought the 1TB HDD back when it wasn't as cheap as now
I think you should re-read my question.. I already have a HDD for storage and a SSD as a system drive, my HDD is out of space and need a new drive.. an HDD or a SSHD

 

[CaedenV]

I'm not familiar with the reputation of Toshiba hard drives.
Note that the SSHD is a 2.5" drive.
As a data drive, the higher capacity is probably the better choice, unless you'll be reading/writing the same file(s) repeatedly. The SSHD only spins at 5400RPM, so it will offer slower access to uncached data.

What is the problem with using a 2.5 drive? I have a Phantom 530 and it bays allow me to mount it without any problem

If 1TB is not enough space then why would you even consider a smaller drive?

The choice between SSD and HDD is one of use. SSDs are great as a system drive, and to hold lots of small things that you may need to access at random. HDDs are great at holding big bulk data fairly reliably, and modern drives are plenty fast enough to stream several HD video streams without choking. So the choice is simple: If you are going to install programs, or keep lots of small files (pictures, and documents) on it then go with the SSD. If you are in need to bulk space to store things like backups, music, videos, etc. then go with a HDD.

I bought the 1TB HDD back when it wasn't as cheap as now
I think you should re-read my question.. I already have a HDD for storage and a SSD as a system drive, my HDD is out of space and need a new drive.. an HDD or a SSHD

Same advice applies. Having SSD for part or all of the drive is an issue of performance. If you are using it for programs and other things that will see a benefit of an SSD then use an SSD or hybrid, but typically (outside of an OS drive) there is little to no practical improvement when it comes to storing things like music, videos, and backups. As far as I have seen SSHDs are great for laptops where space is a major concern and you cannot afford a dedicated SSD and HDD for different types of storage. In a desktop situation it is typically best to avoid the complication of a hybrid and just get the biggest drives of each that you can afford.

 

[Onus]

I mentioned that it is 2.5" just to be sure you could mount it; apparently you can, so no problem there.
Otherwise, I agree with CaedenV. Particularly for data, larger capacity will likely be better for you than greater speed. As a single drive in a laptop, as he mentioned, the SSHD offers some of the benefits of both worlds, but in a multi-drive desktop PC, there are likely better choices.

 

[Metalrenok]

I'm not familiar with the reputation of Toshiba hard drives.
Note that the SSHD is a 2.5" drive.
As a data drive, the higher capacity is probably the better choice, unless you'll be reading/writing the same file(s) repeatedly. The SSHD only spins at 5400RPM, so it will offer slower access to uncached data.

What is the problem with using a 2.5 drive? I have a Phantom 530 and it bays allow me to mount it without any problem

If 1TB is not enough space then why would you even consider a smaller drive?

The choice between SSD and HDD is one of use. SSDs are great as a system drive, and to hold lots of small things that you may need to access at random. HDDs are great at holding big bulk data fairly reliably, and modern drives are plenty fast enough to stream several HD video streams without choking. So the choice is simple: If you are going to install programs, or keep lots of small files (pictures, and documents) on it then go with the SSD. If you are in need to bulk space to store things like backups, music, videos, etc. then go with a HDD.

I bought the 1TB HDD back when it wasn't as cheap as now
I think you should re-read my question.. I already have a HDD for storage and a SSD as a system drive, my HDD is out of space and need a new drive.. an HDD or a SSHD

Same advice applies. Having SSD for part or all of the drive is an issue of performance. If you are using it for programs and other things that will see a benefit of an SSD then use an SSD or hybrid, but typically (outside of an OS drive) there is little to no practical improvement when it comes to storing things like music, videos, and backups. As far as I have seen SSHDs are great for laptops where space is a major concern and you cannot afford a dedicated SSD and HDD for different types of storage. In a desktop situation it is typically best to avoid the complication of a hybrid and just get the biggest drives of each that you can afford.

I'll make a partition on the drive to install games and software, will I see any improvement on the hybrid? Or the performance gain of the SSHD is not worth the extra Terabyte of the HDD?

 

[CaedenV]

I'm not familiar with the reputation of Toshiba hard drives.
Note that the SSHD is a 2.5" drive.
As a data drive, the higher capacity is probably the better choice, unless you'll be reading/writing the same file(s) repeatedly. The SSHD only spins at 5400RPM, so it will offer slower access to uncached data.

What is the problem with using a 2.5 drive? I have a Phantom 530 and it bays allow me to mount it without any problem

If 1TB is not enough space then why would you even consider a smaller drive?

The choice between SSD and HDD is one of use. SSDs are great as a system drive, and to hold lots of small things that you may need to access at random. HDDs are great at holding big bulk data fairly reliably, and modern drives are plenty fast enough to stream several HD video streams without choking. So the choice is simple: If you are going to install programs, or keep lots of small files (pictures, and documents) on it then go with the SSD. If you are in need to bulk space to store things like backups, music, videos, etc. then go with a HDD.

I bought the 1TB HDD back when it wasn't as cheap as now
I think you should re-read my question.. I already have a HDD for storage and a SSD as a system drive, my HDD is out of space and need a new drive.. an HDD or a SSHD

Same advice applies. Having SSD for part or all of the drive is an issue of performance. If you are using it for programs and other things that will see a benefit of an SSD then use an SSD or hybrid, but typically (outside of an OS drive) there is little to no practical improvement when it comes to storing things like music, videos, and backups. As far as I have seen SSHDs are great for laptops where space is a major concern and you cannot afford a dedicated SSD and HDD for different types of storage. In a desktop situation it is typically best to avoid the complication of a hybrid and just get the biggest drives of each that you can afford.

I'll make a partition on the drive to install games and software, will I see any improvement on the hybrid? Or the performance gain of the SSHD is not worth the extra Terabyte of the HDD?

If installing software on it then sure, the SSD caching will bring you a nice benefit for programs and files that you access regularly, but it won't be nearly as fast as a native SSD, and it won't be as spacious as a HDD. So long as your system drive is not full to the brim then I would go with a large HDD. Good 2-3TB HDDs are going to be nearly as fast as the cached part of a SSHD, and much faster than the noncached parts.

 

[Onus]

If you install programs on it, you may see a worthwhile speed increase (after you've run the program a few times and the drive knows to cache it). I think we are assuming that you are going to add this as an additional drive in your system, otherwise if you're already out of space on one 1TB drive, you'll be out of space on this one too.

 

[CaedenV]

If you install programs on it, you may see a worthwhile speed increase (after you've run the program a few times and the drive knows to cache it). I think we are assuming that you are going to add this as an additional drive in your system, otherwise if you're already out of space on one 1TB drive, you'll be out of space on this one too.

Ya, drive space is a funny thing. I upgraded from a 500GB and 1TB drives that were full to a set of 3TB drive is RAID1 and I ran out of space in just a few months because I started using it for backups. I kept the system image, but turned a lot of the backup features off in order to conserve space. When I get arround to it then I am going to just build a NAS with a 6-12TB RAID5 in it... then I might have enough space for all of my files and backups... I might even finally be able to digitize my DVD/Bluray collection... but knowing me I will probably fill it up with junk again before I manage to do anything useful with it. lol

 

[Metalrenok]

Thanks a lot for your help! I'll get the HDD, is Toshiba realiable for HDDs?

I won't use RAID, I don't know how to do it and I don¿t understand it completely, so I'll just stay out of trouble! I can have the three drives without RAID right?

 

[CaedenV]

Thanks a lot for your help! I'll get the HDD, is Toshiba realiable for HDDs?

I won't use RAID, I don't know how to do it and I don¿t understand it completely, so I'll just stay out of trouble! I can have the three drives without RAID right?

Toshiba is just a brand, they are actually Western Digital HDDs. They are fine as far as WD drives go, and you get what you pay for. Personally I enjoy Seagate better as you tend to get more bang for your buck, and I don't appreciate how WD requires you to buy expensive drives for RAID use, but in the grans scheme of things they are all on a similar playing field in terms of quality and reliability.

 

[CaedenV]

Oh, and don't be afraid of RAID. RAID is a wonderful thing and has saved my butt on multiple occasions. It is expensive in that you have a fair amount of drive space 'wasted' in the form of redundancy... but when a drive finally dies (as they do) it is nice to know that your data is still safe instead of being completely gone. Much easier to restore a RAID1 than fiddle about with old backups or re-downloading all of your data from cloud storage.

 

[Onus]

I'm also running RAID1 data pairs in my systems. RAID1 is very forgiving on drive specs, unlike RAID0 and RAID5. I've got WD Black pairs, Seagate barracuda pairs, and Seagate LP pairs, all working fine.