XPS 15 9570 HDD maximum size.

Hi. The 2018 manual states that the maximum size for a 2-1/2" HDD is 2TB. Does anyone know if this is still true, or is it that the maximum size Dell will supply is 2TB, but a larger one would work? I know it is limited to the physical thickness dimension, but HDDs are getting smaller all the time. I've seen it suggested that that the motherboard is limited in some way to 2TB. Is that still so?

Responses(4)

ejn63

10 Elder

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24.7K Posts

0

October 7th, 2018 09:00

The two largest remaining hard drive makers (and there are actually just three total) have likely pushed capacities about as far as they can go without major innovation, and it's now major innovation that is difficult to fund given the rapidly declining market for spinning drives, particularly those in mobile systems. The money remaining to be made in drives is in the cloud storage/server market - where slim form factors don't matter much. I'd be very surprised to see much in the way of capacity increase in 7 mm drives (which is the tallest this system will take). I think if someone reads this in 3-5 years, hard drives in notebook systems will be a historical curiosity. They've already largely disappeared from systems at 14" and under - and the future portends their complete replacement by solid state drives - sooner rather than later.

M

momist03

9 Posts

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October 7th, 2018 09:00

Thanks. I was thinking that the 9.5mm size might become available, but if the limit is 7mm that wouldn't work. I didn't know they were that small!

ejn63

10 Elder

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24.7K Posts

1

October 7th, 2018 09:00

There are no 2.5" 7 mm drives higher in capacity than 2T. If someone releases a drive larger in capacity than that in 7 mm format, it will work - but until then, it's a limitation due to drive availability, not the system.

Also note that on this model, having the 2.5" drive means taking the smaller battery - if you have the 97 WHr battery, you cannot install a 2.5" drive -- the larger battery takes up the drive bay.

C

CougarPilot

10 Posts

0

April 27th, 2019 04:00

I know this post is 6 months old, but at the time it was written Samsung was selling 7mm SATA SSDs in 4TB capacity (albeit at a major price premium). As of right now, Micron sells a 7.68 TB SATA SSD in 7mm form factor for about $1100, which would be exactly what I need. Both the XPS 15 and the Inspiron 7786 2-in-1 manuals list a 2TB max for the 2.5” drive. Is there any reason either of these computers wouldn’t recognize a 7.68TB drive as long as it physically fit?

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