Seagate is once again pushing the envelope of data storage. The Barracuda XT delivers 6Gbps transfer rates. If you aren’t familiar with the parlance, er, dat b really fast.
Just be careful when thinking about purchasing the Barracuda XT. If you are really wanting that 6Gbps rate, you will need a SATA3 controller on your motherboard. Sure, this thing will deliver back compatible SATA2 speeds. But why in the world would you want that if you are buying this drive?
There are now a few higher end motherboards, like the Asus P7P55D Premium, that will give you such a controller. Besides the blazing speed, you will be getting a 2TB hard drive. It’s hard to fathom the capacity increases in hard drives. You can grab the drive for around $299.
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Model Number | ST32000641AS |
| Interface | SATA 6.0Gb/s |
| Cache | 64MB |
| Capacity | 2 TB |
| Areal density (avg) | 347 Gbits/inch2 |
| Guaranteed Sectors | 3,907,029,168 |
| PHYSICAL | |
| Height (max) | 26.1 mm (1.028 inches) |
| Width (max) | 101.6 mm (4.0 inches) |
| Length (max) | 146.99 mm (5.787 inches) |
| Weight (typical) | 700 grams (1.543 pounds) |
| PERFORMANCE | |
| Spindle Speed | 7200 rpm |
| Sustained data transfer rate | 138 null |
| Average latency | 4.16 msec |
| Random read seek time | 8.5 msec |
| Random write seek time | 9.5 msec |
| null | 600 null |
| RELIABILITY | |
| MTBF | 750,000 hours |
| Annual Failure Rate | 0.34 |
| Unrecoverable read errors | 1 in 10^14 |
| POWER | |
| 12V start max current | 2.8 amps |
| Average idle current | 6.39 watts |
| ENVIRONMENT | |
| Ambient Temperature | |
| Operating | 5 to60 degrees C |
| Nonoperating | -40 to70 degrees C |
| Maximum operating temperature change | 20 degrees C per hour |
| Maximum nonoperating temperature change | 30 degrees C per hour |
| Shock | |
| Operating Shock (max) | 63 Gs null 2 msec |
| Nonoperating Shock (max) | 300 Gs null 2 msec |
| ACOUSTICS | |
| Acoustics (Idle Volume) | 2.8 bels |
| Acoustics (Seek Volume) | 3.2 bels |
