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Build Computers:
Choosing a Hard Drive
The hard drive is the long term memory for your computer. it is where you install and store all of your programs and files. When you turn your computer off anything not stored on the hard disk will be lost.
Hard disk sizes are measured in gigabytes and when your hard drive is full no new software can be installed without uninstalling some old software first. This is why getting a a hard drive that suits your needs is important when building your own computer.
This is the site where I purchase most of my computer components. They have the best prices and largest selection.
You will need a large hard drive if you plan on installing a lot of software, storing large amounts of photos, videos or music files or doing video editing.
The speed of your hard disk is also important. A slow hard drive takes a long time to load Windows on start up. It is important to get a hard drive with a RPM (rotations per minute) of at least 7200 when building your own computer.
Ultra DMA 33/66/100/133 ATA 100
This is the transfer speed of your drive. Ultra DMA 33 drives are the slowest and oldest while Ultra DMA 133 drives are faster. The newest standard is the ATA 100.
Newer drives are faster even if they are run at the same transfer speed.
RPM 5400/7200/10,000/15,000 (platter rotation speed)
This is the speed at which the metal disks inside the hard drive rotate. Faster rotation speeds make for much faster drives. 7200 RPM is the most common for IDE drives.
10,000 and 15,000 RPM drives use a different (SCSI) interface and thus require a SCSI controller card to be installed in your computer. These drives are made for heavy duty server work and are expensive.
Brands
There are several brands available but I recommend the Western Digital drive when building your own computer. They are very reliable and not too expensive.
Here is a list of the current line of Western Digital hard drives at my favorite supplier.
Selecting a hard drive that is right for you is not rocket science. One piece of advice is to always overestimate the size you will need. With the size of hard drives exploding and the prices falling there is no excuse to buy a hard drive with less than 80 GB.
Choose your hard drive
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