[SOLVED] Why do laptop SDDs last longer than desktop HDDs? How can I get the same longevity from desktop HDDs?

[barkersofgeraldine]

I haven't had much success with HDDs, with almost every single one I've owned eventually failing on me in less than a year.

In comparison, my laptop's HDD from 8 years ago is still in in optimal health (according to Crystal Disk Info and Hard Disk Sentinel).

When I say "desktop" HDDs, I am referring to 3.5, 7500 RPM drives; and "laptop" SDDs as mSATA SSDs.


Why do laptop SSDs, last longer than desktop HDDs?? I've done my own research and have found that HDDs are mechanical drives, so there are a lot of moving parts that can break down; whereas, SSDs dont. But is there more to it??

My finally question is: because of my bad history with HDDs, would it be worthwhile to invest in flash-based drives for my desktop build, such as an M.2 SSD?? Would an M.2 SSD be more reliable or have HDDs been improved in the last 2-3 years that I dont know about, that would make them just as reliable? Thank you

 

[USAFRet]

"laptop SSD" and "desktop HDD" are 2 different things.
For one, there is no "laptop SSD". Any SATA III SSD is the same size, no matter what system you put it in. 2.5"
For two, SSD and HDD are different technolodies. One has a lit of miving parts, the other is completely solid state.

You're comparing apples and oranges.


And if ALL of your HDD's are dying within a year, you're doing something wrong.

 

[USAFRet]

My finally question is: because of my bad history with HDDs, would it be worthwhile to invest in flash-based drives for my desktop build, such as an M.2 SSD?? Would an M.2 SSD be more reliable or have HDDs been improved in the last 2-3 years that I dont know about, that would make them just as reliable? Thank you

There are more reasons than misplaced reliability concerns.
Speed, vibration, heat...
All my house systems are SSD only, except the 50TB in the NAS box, and an ancient low end laptop.

 

[barkersofgeraldine]

There are more reasons than misplaced reliability concerns.
Speed, vibration, heat...
All my house systems are SSD only, except the 50TB in the NAS box, and an ancient low end laptop.

Hello -- thank you for reply; learned a lot.

Yes, ALL HDDs I have owned have failed on me, or have shown problems that early . Can I get advice on how to lessen that? I feel the only thing I can do is to "shutdown" the PC first before turning the power off at the wall....

 

[Colif]

hdd are made with moving parts which if used constantly have a chance of failure over time. SSD are just flash memory, no moving parts to fail. They wear out over time, although can fail like any part unexpectedly at any time.

I haven't lost a hdd in any system for about 8 years, mainly as last 2 PC have had ssd or similar as boot drives, and hdd as storage. The hdd doesn't get as much usage as the ssd and essentially sleeps most of the day. the hdd in last PC reports as still 100% in performance 5 years after I bought it.

I would suggest a ssd or m.2 nvme as boot drive, and hdd as storage unless you can justify having 2 nvme in system. I was going to in this PC but large size hdd are still cheaper than the nvme alternative. Hdd might last longer then if its not asked to run windows every day.

I feel the only thing I can do is to "shutdown" the PC first before turning the power off at the wall....

if you do this on a regular basis, and run win 10. Turn this off - https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/4189-turn-off-fast-startup-windows-10-a.html although you might notice a slow down in boot up. Unplugging Win 10 after they are "off" can corrupt files. As with fast startup on, the PC is never really off.

 

[USAFRet]

Hello -- thank you for reply; learned a lot.

Yes, ALL HDDs I have owned have failed on me, or have shown problems that early . Can I get advice on how to lessen that? I feel the only thing I can do is to "shutdown" the PC first before turning the power off at the wall....

I currently have 11 HDDs running 24/7. In or attached to my NAS box. Some of them 6-7-8 years old.

I had one HDD die a few years ago.
Also, a dead SSD in Dec 2018.

 

[barkersofgeraldine]

Thank you everybody ! )