Makes no difference - the heads never touch the platters when the drive is operating, and it's perfectly find to operate the drive upside down or right-side up - no difference.
Thank you very much! Just to clarify, I'll ask this. Even though the platters would be above the read/write head, this wouldn't produce any more "wear and tear" on the device than it would flipped the other way?
Also, I forgot to ask one question in my first post: What are the expected lifetimes for these external drives?
Well, I ran some speed tests (HD Tune) on my hard drive when it was in three different positions.
1. On its right side - Average access time = 13.6ms
2. On its left side - Average access time = 13.6ms
3. Standing up (original skeptical position) - Average access time = 13.5ms
I guess these things are designed with everything in mind. I actually shaved .1ms off of the access time by leaving it in its original position! (like that matters :smileywink: ).
Thanks again! I will try it on the side and see if I notice any speed increase.
But wow, a 5-year life? I thought it would be more like 50!
I have a WD 80GB hard drive in one of my computers and I can't even remember how old it is. My guess is that it's way past the 5 year mark. I used the heck out of the thing, and it still works great, despite being a little loud!
That's good to know. I would assume that the life is also affected by how much you actually use the drive. Also, magnets do wear out over time. Though, the magnetic platter would most likely die out long after the mechanical parts of the drive stop working.
The bearings are quite robust, yes. And while many drives will last longer than five years, that's still the design life of the components - that figure hasn't changed in over 20 years.
ejn63
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87.5K Posts
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March 23rd, 2008 00:00
Makes no difference - the heads never touch the platters when the drive is operating, and it's perfectly find to operate the drive upside down or right-side up - no difference.
bassmann710
62 Posts
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March 23rd, 2008 02:00
Thank you very much! Just to clarify, I'll ask this. Even though the platters would be above the read/write head, this wouldn't produce any more "wear and tear" on the device than it would flipped the other way?
Also, I forgot to ask one question in my first post: What are the expected lifetimes for these external drives?
Thanks again!
ejn63
9 Legend
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87.5K Posts
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March 23rd, 2008 12:00
The heads never touch the platters in normal operation.
Hard drive lives vary more from environmental factors than anything else. All hard drives have a 5-year design life.
bassmann710
62 Posts
0
March 23rd, 2008 14:00
Well, I ran some speed tests (HD Tune) on my hard drive when it was in three different positions.
1. On its right side - Average access time = 13.6ms
2. On its left side - Average access time = 13.6ms
3. Standing up (original skeptical position) - Average access time = 13.5ms
I guess these things are designed with everything in mind. I actually shaved .1ms off of the access time by leaving it in its original position! (like that matters :smileywink: ).
It seems that gravity is not a factor here!
bassmann710
62 Posts
0
March 23rd, 2008 14:00
Thanks again! I will try it on the side and see if I notice any speed increase.
But wow, a 5-year life? I thought it would be more like 50!
I have a WD 80GB hard drive in one of my computers and I can't even remember how old it is. My guess is that it's way past the 5 year mark. I used the heck out of the thing, and it still works great, despite being a little loud!
bassmann710
62 Posts
0
March 23rd, 2008 15:00
ejn63
9 Legend
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87.5K Posts
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March 23rd, 2008 15:00
The bearings are quite robust, yes. And while many drives will last longer than five years, that's still the design life of the components - that figure hasn't changed in over 20 years.