[Necrocool]

I'm about to get the Toshiba MK5024GAY 50GB 7200rpm 16MB cache hard disk and install in a 12" rev.B PowerBook. Does anybody have experience with the hard disk? How does it compare to the Hitachi 7K60? I can't find any review on the Toshiba weird...

[ech0]

where are you getting this? how much is it? this hd shounds awsome cept others say toshiba hd are noisy. i would also like to know if anyone has any experience with it.

[skyman]

Originally posted by Necrocool:
I'm about to get the Toshiba MK5024GAY 50GB 7200rpm 16MB cache hard disk and install in a 12" rev.B PowerBook. Does anybody have experience with the hard disk? How does it compare to the Hitachi 7K60? I can't find any review on the Toshiba weird...

This might help...

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/IDE/hitac...B_7200rpm.html

[bmhome1]

Bearfeats.com did a comparison test between the 72k Hitachi 8MB and the Toshiba 16MB cache drives. I chose the 72k Hitachi for my Powerbook. It is absolutely the quietest drive I've owned.

[StiZeven]

Toshiba makes one of the nosiest notebook HDs in the biz. Personally, I don't care what size the cache is, I'd stay clear away. Also, when Toshiba released their older 5400rpm HD with a 16MB cache, test showed that the extra cache showed little or no difference compared to a better HD with an 8MB cache. Not sure how this new drive is though. For all we know, Toshiba might have made it a quiet performer. If so, it's their first!

[Necrocool]

Ok... I've been the rat... Just installed it in my 12" DVI.

First of all, it's a lot more quieter than the 40G toshiba pre-installed. And it's the quest drive I've used. (But all my other drives in PC and Macs are all Toshiba... so don't really know how this is against the Hitachi).

Overall, it's faster (of course)... but by how much? I don't really know.. noticeable though...

And here's the XBench score... they are uncached benchmarks only.. so I guess the 16MB buffer won't have to do anything in this test.

Disk Test 77.20
Sequential 83.75
Uncached Write 75.26 31.37 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 67.58 27.68 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 145.17 22.98 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 78.18 31.59 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Random 71.61
Uncached Write 60.42 0.91 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 65.57 14.79 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 84.13 0.56 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 82.16 16.91 MB/sec [256K blocks]

[uv23]

Sorry for the hijack: but for those of you with the hitachi 7200rpm travelstar in your 12" PB (or any other really), have you noticed any reduced battery time or increased heat? I got my 12" Rev B with the base drive because I plan on upgrading to the faster travelstar later, but I wonder if it exacerbates heat/battery issues, or if in fact it's cooler/more efficient. Cheers.

[Meshghi]

Originally posted by uv23:
Sorry for the hijack: but for those of you with the hitachi 7200rpm travelstar in your 12" PB (or any other really), have you noticed any reduced battery time or increased heat? I got my 12" Rev B with the base drive because I plan on upgrading to the faster travelstar later, but I wonder if it exacerbates heat/battery issues, or if in fact it's cooler/more efficient. Cheers.

I put one in my Pismo 500. No loss of battery time - it is efficient and quick! Unfortunately it does get quite a bit warmer than the old stock drive did.

I don't know how it would feel in the cramped space of a 12" AL book as the Pismo is larger and plastic, but the heat difference is quite noticeable.

Chris.

[uv23]

Thanks, that's good info to know. I guess I'll hold out for now until something better suited to the alu books comes up. The last thing I want is more heat.

[Necrocool]

Can you hear or feel the spinning of the disk inside 7k60? The Toshiba spins like a small fan (a little quieter), and i can feel the spinning slightly. Is that normal? I'm a little worried it might be a deffective because the stock disk doesn't vibrate at all. But the system runs pretty fast and doesn't show any sign of a bad disk. Can you feel the 7K60 spinning? How does it compare to the stock 4200 when not reading/writing?

[bmhome1]

My experience with the Hitachi 72k drive in my Pismo is different: it is not only quieter (of all 42k and 54k drives I've had in it) but is also doesn't add ANY heat or vibration or affect battery life in any noticeable way. Again, my case top or bottom or sides doesn't get warm at all after hours of running and reads/writes.

[Meshghi]

Originally posted by bmhome1:
My experience with the Hitachi 72k drive in my Pismo is different: it is not only quieter (of all 42k and 54k drives I've had in it) but is also doesn't add ANY heat or vibration or affect battery life in any noticeable way. Again, my case top or bottom or sides doesn't get warm at all after hours of running and reads/writes.

I'll second the no extra noise or vibration, but since I predominatly use the Pismo on my lap, I do feel a good amount of extra heat since adding the Hitachi 72k. However, everyone's experiences will differ depending on how disk intensive your task etc.

Besides, now that it's winter it is actually quite comforting to have a warm laptop.

[zubro]

almost out of topic here:
If I want to use a bigger-faster HD, isn t it easyer to have a firewire (I know, then you have to carry it, to power it, etc..)

[tigas]

My Pismo's original HD was a IBM Travelstar 20GB 4200, that having ball bearing drive made a pretty nasty whine that got on my nerves (and still does when I use the Firewire case I have placed it in).

I swapped it for a Toshiba 4019GAX (the 40GB 5400 16MB one) and found that the little amount of noise it makes comes mainly from a 1st resonance in the top cover, that I successfully damped with a big blob of blutack placed right in the middle of it (not too much to avoid touching the keyboard and pressing carefully to avoid bending the cover inwards). It is silent as a sleeping kitten, in fact, I have to be in complete silence to hear it going.

The Toshiba's *head* movements make quite a racket, though, but even those are a lot more bearable that that crazy metallic dentist airbrush IBM whine. And the IBM vibrated while the Toshiba does not.

Pismos: the last do-it-yourself Powerbook. I have replaced RAM, Hard Disk, optical drive (now a Toshiba 2x DVD-R) and LCD, all with the help of a few web pages, a mini Swiss Army knife and a Torx8 driver.

[typoon]

How difficult is it to put one of these in a 12" pb?

[effgee]

quite tricky ... check here for more info ...