Also known as a hard disk drive, HD, or HDD, a hard drive is a storage device that stores and retrieves data or digital contents.
These contents include your applications, music, videos, pictures, and programs.
Hard drives make it possible to store our data, get our work done, and talk to friends and family from different places on the internet.
So, we can call it a digital storage bank. However, there are different types of hard drives, and this article will take you through them.
Different Types of Hard Drives
Different types of hard drives exist, each with a price range, additional storage capacity, physical factor, and interface.
It is also according to the connectivity between the drive and computer, and they all have different functions, but we shouldn’t forget that they all serve the same purpose: data storage. Now, let’s delve into the different types of hard drives!
1. Parallel ATA
Parallel ATA is also known as enhanced integrated drive electronics(EIDE).
One of the oldest hard drives, which so many other drives have replaced, was first introduced by Western Digital and Compaq in 1986 for CD, DVD, and compatible hard drives.
They use a drive interface for connecting devices and hard drives to the computer. It uses 40 or 80-wire ribbon cables and simultaneously transfers data in 16-bit pockets.
PATA provides a data transfer rate of 133MB per second. Moreover, they depend on parallel signaling technology, which describes the transfer of several data bits.
It may be challenging to find a PATA hard drive among the different types of hard drives as it is outdated.
But we can not clear that it is the base for our modern hard drives.
2. Serial ATA (SATA)
Due to better functions and performance, SATA hard drives have replaced PATA in desktop, server, and laptop computers.
They transfer data faster as they have transfer speeds of 150/300/600MBs/s, and their cables are more flexible and thinner.
Unlike parallel signaling technology, they use serial signaling technology, which transfers the data one bit at a time.
They are also cheaper and consume less power than the PATA, making them still relevant in our everyday use.
3. Small Computer System Interface(SCSI)
The small computer system interface is also among the different types of hard drives.
It allows the connection and transmission of data between the computer and peripheral devices such as scanners, printers, CD drives, and more.
It connects both internally and externally; one of its many advantages is storing and transferring a large amount of data.
4. SSD or Solid-state Drives
One of the major features of the SSD is that it does not have any moving parts. So, it stores the data in a semiconductor device.
The data stored in the device instead of moving parts makes it have fewer chances of damage.
They provide faster data access, and people also use them for mobile transfers; even at that, it costs almost 3 times more than SATA hard drives.
Conclusion
You have learned about the types of hard drives and their uses. So, you should be able to choose suitable hard drives for your services after considering the correct interface and capacity.
Also, it’s essential that you still pay attention to the power consumption rate.
