Western Digital WD5000KSRTL/WD5000AAKS Caviar 500 GB SATA Hard Drive
by Western Digital
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Customers in the UK,
buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Photo Product Details
Manufacturer: Western DigitalAudio: English (Original Language)
Format: CD
Platform: Windows
Model: WD5000KSRTL
Product features:
- 500 GB SATA 3.5-inch internal hard drive; advanced acoustics and cool operation for high-end computers, multimedia and gaming systems
- 7200 RPM spin rate; 16 MB cache; 300 MB/s transfer rate
- WhisperDrive technology minimizes noise; SoftSeek technology increases operational efficiencies
- Data Lifeguard Tools protect data; ShockGuard protects hard drive during operation
- Designed for low-power consumption, 3-year limited warranty
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Western Digital WD5000KSRTL/WD5000AAKS Caviar 500 GB SATA Hard Drive
Customer Review: Quietest drive I've ever owned
Summary: 5 Stars
The main harddrive in my computer (about 3ish years old. A western digital 250gb SATA drive) was getting full, so I decided to add in a second drive. After shopping around, and reading reviews, I decided to buy the WD5000KSRTL. After installation (which was harrowing. Bios saw the drive just fine, but Windows didn't want to start up. Zero fault of the drive, just a Windows XP quirk according to forums I read) I formatted the drive (took maybe half an hour) and then I was up and running.
I play alot of games, most of which have been bought from the Steam store. The old drive, having been heavily fragmented, was slowing the load times of my games by a pretty high degree. After installing the new drive, I migrated all of my Steam games over to it (a process that was lightning fast, considering it was 10gb or so worth of games. Everything from Counterstrike to Half-Life 2 and Heroes of Might and Magic) and I've come to the conclusion that this is easily the fastest, and the most silent drive I've ever owned. Honestly if I couldn't see the files transferring to the new drive (on the screen) I wouldn't have believed that it was actually in operation. This drive would be perfect for a media center computer (though I'm not using it for that purpose).
There is only one oddity, which might not be an oddity at all. When I looked at the model number on the drive, it was WD5000AAKS. If you take away the "RTL" from the WD5000KSRTL (RTL meaning retail) you are left with WD5000KS, not WD5000AAKS. Reading a few forums, I think this might be an upgraded version of the WD5000KS, though I cannot independently confirm this. Looking at WD's website, the WD5000AAKS seems to be the current model number for this generations 500gb Caviar SATA. A few forums mentioned that the WD5000AAKS is a superior drive, and while I can't speak to that, I can honestly say that the performance I've seen from this particular drive has been spectacular.
Oh and someone earlier said that this box doesn't come with the SATA cable needed to connect this drive to your computer. He is infact half correct. There is no SATA to Molex adaptor included in the box. If you don't know what Molex is, it's the name for the connector that connects computer hardware to the computers power supply. Recently, alot of power supplies have been shipping with SATA power connectors built in (which was the case for me, I got lucky) but if you are using the power supply that came with your computer (from Dell, HP, Gateway etc) you may need to check and make sure you have a SATA power connector on it before you attempt to buy this drive. Unlike alot of drives, this drive cannot be powered by a Molex connector. You may have to buy a Molex to SATA adaptor if this is the case with your power supply. There is however an included SATA data cable, so you won't have to purchase an additional one to install this hard drive (which a few people did unfortunately).
If you are looking for a new drive, that is basically silent, at a good price, this is the drive for you.
Description of Western Digital WD5000KSRTL/WD5000AAKS Caviar 500 GB SATA Hard Drive
WD Caviar SE16 7200 RPM next-generation SATA hard drive features 500 GB of storage and a 16 MB cache for lightning-fast performance. Yes, this reliable drive is fast, but it still delivers technologically advanced acoustics and cool operation. Designed for high-performance computers, multimedia and gaming systems.Digital Cameras and Photo Categories
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