R40 Harddrive upgrade.. 5400 vs 7200 RPM + other concerns

[Chiana]

As the subject says, I am thinking of upgrading the Harddrive of my R40 2681-HU1. I was going to upgrade the processor, but none of the upgrade options were actual feasible (battery life vs. speed). However in reading it seems the weak link in my TP is the harddrive. So, now the decision is between a 5400 and a 7200 RPM hard drive. I know I want at least 8mb cache.

I have read over these sites:
http://www.mobilityguru.com/2003/10/31/ ... page5.html
http://www.tomshardware.com/2003/08/13/ ... page9.html

My concerns:

1) Battery life. I have read that a 7200 drive will reduce my battery life about the same as a 5400 drive, which will be about 10 minutes... or are there lower power 5400 drives.

2) Heat. Particulary for the 7200 drive. I have heard that it will generate enough heat for it to over heat in my R40.. also it will generate enough heat to make the cooling fan run longer, which would equate to a faster battery drain.

3) IBM's shock protection. I believe it is called ASP. Does my system even have it, if so, how will replacing the harddrive effect its operation?

Another thought is that since the two upgrade options will run faster than the current drive and hence not have to run as long.. will I actually see a battery decrease?

Any personal experience?

Also, I am looking at the Hitachi 7K60 and the Seagate Momentus.. any other suggestions?

From this site i am fairly familar with the install process... get a UB module for a harddrive and some type of partition copy software and go to town.

Thanx,
Chris

[christopher_wolf]

Well, a 7200RPM drive doesn't siginificantly affect battery life; it all depends on how much it is used and whether or not it has spin-down enabled. Also, there are several states of operation for it, NHC has three and they work pretty well; they also reduce any vibration and heat issues.

So far I have not seen a HDD actually overheat a system; the maximum operating temperature for a HDD is well below that needed to add to the overall temperature of a laptop, especially with active cooling.

The APS system is independent of the HDD and is actually inside the Thinkpad, not on the HDD itself; to my knowledge, just about all of the HDDs out there are compatible with it.

I have an 80GB Hitachi 5400RPM drive in the priary and a 60GB Hitachi 7200RPM in the Ultrabay. They both operate just fine.

HTH

[jdhurst]

My 7200 rpm runs quietly and very cool. It does not overheat the computer. Battery drain should be roughly the same as for a slower drive. I don't notice any change in battery life (chemical aging is a prime factor in battery life). ... JD Hurst

[Chiana]

Also, there are several states of operation for it, NHC has three and they work pretty well; they also reduce any vibration and heat issues.

NHC?

So, you reocmmend I should go with the 7200 drive? What interface should I be loooking for? ATA-6, PATA?

[Chiana]

Actually, it looks like I want one of the 7K100 drives.. correct?

[christopher_wolf]

Notebook Hardware Control; it allows you to set spin down and various other parameters of your system.

PATA is what you should get, the T43, Z60, and (I think) the T60 support SATA.

[Aroc]

Yes, you want the Hitachi 7k100, not the 7k60. The 7k100 is faster than the 7k60 it replaces. The 7k100 also runs cooler and it cheaper than the 7k60. I don't see much reason to get the 7k60 any more. The price of the 7k100's are very attractive, especially the 60GB and 80GB sizes. I sprung for the 100GB, myself.

The density is higher on the 100GB model compared with the smallers ones, so all things being equal (and they rarely are!) the 100GB should be potentially faster than either the 60GB or 80GB. Whether that is worth the price premium is up for debate!

[Chiana]

Notebook Hardware Control; it allows you to set spin down and various other parameters of your system.

.

OK.. how do I get to that? Is it the battery Maximizer, or is there something else I should be looking for? Bios?

-Chris

[wolfman]

I have an R40 (model 2896) with a 7200 rpm drive (Hitachi E7k60 - I believe this is a "second generation" drive and the new 7k100's would be "third generation" drives). It runs a little hotter than the 4200 rpm 30 gig that shipping with the unit, but I've never had any issues with it causing the machine to overheat. I believe I measured a 2-3c increase in temp overall from the change in hard disk - enough to be influenced in whole or in part by the room temp the day I ran the test (in my opinion).

I'd definately recommend the 7200 - and I think the 10 minute reduction in battery life is pretty close to right on as well. I've been using the 7200 rpm disk in mine for about 1 and a half years now...

Good luck.

[Chiana]

I have an R40 (model 2896) with a 7200 rpm drive (Hitachi E7k60 - I believe this is a "second generation" drive and the new 7k100's would be "third generation" drives). It runs a little hotter than the 4200 rpm 30 gig that shipping with the unit, but I've never had any issues with it causing the machine to overheat. I believe I measured a 2-3c increase in temp overall from the change in hard disk - enough to be influenced in whole or in part by the room temp the day I ran the test (in my opinion).

I'd definately recommend the 7200 - and I think the 10 minute reduction in battery life is pretty close to right on as well. I've been using the 7200 rpm disk in mine for about 1 and a half years now...

Good luck.

Wolfman, I sent you a PM, did you get it?

-Chris

[wolfman]

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