SAMSUNG HD502HI 500GB 5400 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

While all of these various models are interesting, the F2 HD502HI is the most compelling because it is a single platter 500GB drive. The conventional wisdom is that the fewer the number of platters in a hard drive, the lower the noise, heat and power. It doesn't always hold true because manufacturers sometimes change not only the number of platters, but also the casing and other aspects of the drive that impact noise. For example, a single platter takes up less room and weighs less, so sometimes a less substantial casting is used, with the result that the drive ends up vibrating more and making more noise.In accordance with conventional wisdom, the F2 HD502HI does, in fact, have the lowest specified noise of all the EcoGreen models. It is rated for 2.2 bels (sound power) in idle and 2.7 bels in performance seek; the same parameters for the lower capacity F1 models are 2.45 bels and 2.8 bels.The 500gb/disk areal density is the current peak, reached not only by Samsung but also Western Digital and Seagate. It is the first single-platter 500GB model to be tested here.Although the buzz in the SPCR forums is that the EcoGreens are very quiet and offer good performance (see forum thread Samsung EcoGreen F2 500GB platter is out!), Samsung has been unusually mum about the entire EcoGreen series thus far, at least in the retail space. Not only is there no PR and marketing effort, there is simply no distribution in Canada. Luckily, both the US and the EU have access to the EcoGreen line. A SPCR forum member who lives nearby decided he'd order a pair of the HD502HI from Newegg.ca (which actually ships the drives from the US) and have it delivered directly to SPCR for review and analysis for a few weeks before he took possession of them. It was "frEEk"s thoughtful initiative which allowed us to get to this review.

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