Maxtor MaXLine III 7L250S0 250GB vs. Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB

[GTaudiophile]

Maxtor:
$104.99
SATA 150
16MB Cache
7200 RPM
5-year warranty

WD:
$115.00
SATA 3.0Gb/s
16MB Cache
7200 RPM
3-year warranty

I am looking for,

1) Performance (game load times)
2) Quietness
3) Heat production (low)

 

[OdiN]

WD > Maxtor

well...actually

* > Maxtor

 

[GTaudiophile]

You'd think WD would stand behind their products and offer a competitive 5-year warranty.

 

[Mem]

I'm using the 300GB version of that Maxtor model,quiet ,fast and no problems, HD temp is on the cool side in my case reading 33c at moment.I would go with Maxtor due to 5 year warranty,infact I did .

 

[DaveSimmons]

Samsung Spinpoint 120-series if 200 GB is enough and you don't mind giving up a little speed for a drive that is much cooler and quieter. See the review at StorageReview.com

WDs seem to have whine issues on a drive-by-drive basis (some do / some don't) and Maxtor went through a period of low reliability that might not be over yet.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
Samsung Spinpoint 120-series if 200 GB is enough and you don't mind giving up a little speed for a drive that is much cooler and quieter. See the review at StorageReview.com

WDs seem to have whine issues on a drive-by-drive basis (some do / some don't) and Maxtor went through a period of low reliability that might not be over yet.

Ouch! It has a lame 1-year warranty too!

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: OdiN
WD > Maxtor

well...actually

* > Maxtor

:thumbsdown:

 

[WebDude]

I'm running 2 of the MaxlineIII drives in a raid array for my HTPC. Very quite, and I like the 16mb cache. I only wish they supported SATA 3.0Gb/s, because my mb does.

 

[Crashedout]

I am in the same boat, and I am going with the WD. It seems to be faster based on benchmarks and the general opinion is that with the WD you won't have to use the warranty. Check storagereview.com for more info.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Any more?

 

[Trey22]

Originally posted by: OdiN
WD > Maxtor

well...actually

* > Maxtor

Truedat!

 

[Diasper]

Check the Hitachi T7K250 250GB - I've found it to be a truely excellent drive. Snappy, fast in everything thrown at it (benchmarks well), quiet and cool. Quietness and coolness compares well the the Samsung P120s as far as I'm aware but offers higher performance.

It's a really good drive IMO although I think some people have experienced clicking noises or so? Check that out.

The T version is the updated 125GB platter version of the earlier 7K series that was the leader at storage review for a long time - the larger platters give slightly improved data transfer while quieter and cooler operation compared to the previous set of hardrives.

Oh yeah it's a 3 year warranty if you want to know although given how easily data can be recovered I doubt I'll be rushing out to return any defect drive I own.


I'd certainly say it's worth looking at it over Maxtor (reliability issues?) and WD (heat and noise?)

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: GTaudiophile

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
Samsung Spinpoint 120-series if 200 GB is enough and you don't mind giving up a little speed for a drive that is much cooler and quieter. See the review at StorageReview.com

WDs seem to have whine issues on a drive-by-drive basis (some do / some don't) and Maxtor went through a period of low reliability that might not be over yet.

Ouch! It has a lame 1-year warranty too!

Yes, though the PATA version is 3 years.

Chances are if a drive lasts a year it will last 2 or 3, so the 1-year warranty might be worth accepting for the superior heat/noise specs.

 

[xtknight]

I have both of these exact drives in the same PC!

The Maxtor (sold under DiamondMax 10 in my case) is a tad faster and quieter too I believe. However I've had more luck with Western Digital lately. The Maxtor had problems with my A8N-SLI Deluxe nForce4 controller (still won't detect on half of cold boots). Fortunately, I don't have to cold boot too much. I think this is more ASUS's issue though, so don't let that deter you from this otherwise great drive. As for heat, I don't know, I'd have to take my case off but if you're worried about it you should get an HD fan. I would still say without a reasonable doubt the Maxtor is faster. The Hitachi outperforms the WD slightly according to an article in Maximum PC.

 

[raildogg]

Both are good quality drives. The Maxtor has a lower price and longer warranty. Both drives are among the fastest, quietest and coolest drives in their category. I have the Western Digital SE16 and I love it so far. The Maxtor might be possibly faster in some cases and has the option of NCQ and is quieter. But the WD is more efficient in its power usage and is sometimes faster in a non-multiuser enviroment.

Keep in mind that the Maxlines are designed for 24/7 operation.

 

[CrashX]

Originally posted by: OdiN
WD > Maxtor

well...actually

* > Maxtor

QFT