SATA vs IDE Hard Drives

[willemvdm]

Ok, so now with 10GB download bandwith, my 60GB HD are getting a little bit crampy.

Need some advise. My motherboard don't support SATA, so if I get a SATA HD, it will be connected via a PCI card. As I understand it, by using a PCI card one don't get the full speed potential of a SATA HD. My question is this: Will a SATA HD with a PCI card be faster or slower than an IDE HD? How much faster/slower? I am looking at a Seagate Barracuda 300GB, either SATA2 or IDE. Simularly priced.

What about an external USB HD. Are they of any use? How would their speed compare to above mentioned?

Thanks

 

[supersunbird]

Except for physical connection difference, they will perform exactly the same...

 

[werner]

another option is to get a sata-->ide convertor, which plugs into the sata drive on one end and the ide cable on the other end...around £10 where I am, nice and tidy and small solution, but seriously, for single drive you wouldnt notice any difference if you hooked it up to a pci sata controller...all good..no problems

 

[ianb]

I have a 320 GB SATA II drive with USB external SATA case. it is quicker than my 5400 rpm ATA drive on my laptop. Costs about R 1300 and ur mobile!

 

[ForSure]

exactly the same just a sweeter connetion

 

[Yang]

SATA ic SATA II with NCQ is not too much faster than a IDE one. The strongpoint of SATA is easy to build a RAID system for boost the speed and security.

 

[spiderz]

I upgraded from a 20gb ATA to 320gb SATAII hdd. My BF2 loading speeds just about doubled. These hard drives are faster, or at least if feels that way.

 

[supersunbird]

Dude, it would not be faster because of the SATA though, its because of areal density (more data on platters that are still the same size), RPM's (that 20gb was probably 5400rpm and new drive is 7200), if you had gotten the 320gb PATA it would feel faster too.

 

[|tera|]

Okay, I agree with supersunbird, but I prefer SATA.

1.No Jumpers to configure
2.Easier Installation

If you choose to get the IDE to SATA cable werner suggested, you'd have to remember that it has to go into IDE 0 (or 1), the first IDE port on the mobo, thereby it's configured to be the master without using jumpers

 

[spiderz]

Dude, it would not be faster because of the SATA though, its because of areal density (more data on platters that are still the same size), RPM's (that 20gb was probably 5400rpm and new drive is 7200), if you had gotten the 320gb PATA it would feel faster too.

Yip, was a old 20gb hdd

 

[supersunbird]

All 20GB drives are old