Which is better SSD vs HDD?
The right storage isn't just about comparing its capacity or its cost. The performance, power usage and reliability matters for the type of storage your computer uses. The two main storage options are the Solid state drive (SSD) and the Hard disk drive (HDD).
What is an HDD?
An HDD is a storage device that is found in a computer. It has a spinning disk inside where the data is stored magnetically. HDDs are considered a legacy technology as they have been around much longer than SSDs. They cost much more lesser than SSDs and are practical to store data that is not accessed frequently, such as backups of photos, videos or even business files.
What is an SSD?
An SSD is a storage device which has their name because they use solid-state devices to perform. All the data is stored in its integrated circuits. As the SSD does not need a spinning disk to store data, SSDs can reduce to the shape and size of a small postage stamp or even a stick of chewing gum. Their capacity or how much data can be stored is varied. It also reduces access time dramatically, as users don't have to wait for the disk in a HDD to spin up. It can make starting a computer for 10 seconds with an HDD to 1 second with an SSD. Though the SSDs are more expensive than HDDs per amount of storage (Gigabytes (GB) / Terabytes (TB)), the price of SSD is lowering at a constant pace as technology improves over the years.
| HDDs | SSDs | |
|---|---|---|
| Access time | 1x faster | 100x faster |
| Price | Considerably cheaper | Expensive |
| Reliability | No moving parts, which provides better performance and reliability | Has moving parts and magnetic platters, so wear and tear will cause it to fail. |
| Capacity | Storage over 3TB is usually very expensive | Varying amount for an affordable price |
| Power & Noise | Less power & no noise | More power & noisy disk |
| Physical size | Smaller than most HDDs (2.5" – 1.0") | Quite large (3.5" and 2.5") |
| Magnetism | Not affected | Information could be lost/erased when affected by strong magnets |
It is still unclear whether SSDs will replace traditional HDDs, especially when we have shared cloud storage now waiting to grow. The pricing of SSDs is continuing to decline, but is still very expensive to replace the terabytes of data some users and businesses have stored in their computers/data storage. Cloud storage isn't free either as users have to pay continuously as they want to use personal storage on the internet, so local storage won't go away until we have reliable wireless Internet all around, including in planes and out in the wild. Though, by that time it happens, there may be a better alternative then.
Ready to make your selection? ACM makes it easy to find the SSD or HDD models you desire. Contact us for by calling 6295 5962 or email us at info@achievement.com.sg Today.
