Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. While the change from 4 to 5
platters changed a lot of parts (as you identified) I was proposing that
that change, while certainly posing some risks, was actually a rather
low risk change since it utilized well known mechanical design
techniques. Drive manufacturers (although perhaps not the current
3-1/2" engineering crew) have been to 5 platters (and far beyond) in the
past. On the other hand, the change from horizontal to vertical
recording was a dramatic change of the entire technology... and no one
had ever been there before. Even so, I'd avoid 2TB drives in favor of 1
or 1.5TB for a while. :-)
Chuck Norcutt
Moose wrote:
>
> I don't know how carefully you read my original post. I suggested
> buying one step below the latest designs - for exactly those reasons.
> To quote Chuck on the same subject:
>
> On 7/4/2010 4:57 AM, Chuck Norcutt wrote:
>> I do have one rule that I follow that I think makes for a somewhat
>> better chance of getting a reliable drive... don't get the highest
>> capacity drive available. Although some capacity increases are
>> done with rather conventional methods (I think the recent increase
>> from 1.5TB to 2.0TB was done using 5 platters rather than 4)
>> sometimes it's done with very new technology and under competitive
>> pressure. Working OK in the lab and working OK off the end of a
>> high volume manufacturing line perhaps with totally new and
>> untested components are different things. I prefer to give the
>> technology a bit of time to settle.
>
> Consider a drive design that switches from 4 to 5 platters in the
> same form factor. That will means many components that have to be
> redesigned, spindle, head placement arms, heads themselves, perhaps
> platters, and undoubtedly other mechanical parts. In a competitive
> market, it is impossible to throughly test these new designs long
> enough and in enough environments to be sure of the level of
> reliability that the last generation of the technology has by then
> achieved.
>
> One has to do one's best in design, manufacturing design and testing
> and get to market before others have eaten into your market share.
> It's a delicate, risky game. Sometimes, like Toyota, you lose.
>
> As Chuck and I suggest, when I last bought HDs, i went with 1 TB when
> 1.5 TB ones had been on the market for a few months, and apparently
> were working.
--
_________________________________________________________________
Options: http://lists.thomasclausen.net/mailman/listinfo/olympus
Archives: http://lists.thomasclausen.net/mailman/private/olympus/
Themed Olympus Photo Exhibition: http://www.tope.nl/
|