Couple of HDD Q's

[imported_blip]

Purchasing a new HDD, since my main one is hinting at dying. This will be my main OS HDD, photo/music storage, etc. (I won't be doing any gaming, photo editing is probably the most demanding thing I do) I'm probably going to get a 500GB, then add another 500GB later when I fill it up. Haven't bought one in a while, so had a couple of questions.

Looking at this batch:
Newegg HDD's
Is there much of a difference between any of the drives? 3 of the first 4 are WD 500GB drives, but I'm not sure what sets them apart from one another. I know one is their new "green" line, and I heard that those are bad for running your OS off due to the delays from the spin variations. Any truth? Will it even save enough power to make a difference?
Do you think I'll be able to tell the difference between a 16 and 32 cache?

Finally, are Seagate and WD still the most reliable? Any brands that I should consider/avoid?

Guess that was more than a couple questions...
thanks for any and all suggestions!
b

 

[Denithor]

WD has taken a lead in reliability this round. The 7200.11 drives have gotten kind of a bad rep for problems.

WD6400AAKS is the default recommendation these days ($75 for 640GB, fast, quiet, cool).

 

[imported_blip]

Thanks for the info. Bought the 640. Just annoyed that shipping for 2 cables would be $11...

 

[dfuze]

You can get the same cables at monoprice who only charge a reasonable couple of dollars to ship them to the east coast from California.

 

[Lightning983]

Originally posted by: blip
Thanks for the info. Bought the 640. Just annoyed that shipping for 2 cables would be $11...

I would have just recommended the WD 640... i have a couple and they're great.