We found out a lot of interesting information about the 500 GB hard disk drives available on the market today. In summary, not all 500 GB drives are equal.

We have clearly two winners: the new Western Digital RE3, which is targeted to the enterprise market, and Seagate Barracuda 7200.11, which is a mainstream product and thus the 500 GB hard disk drive that we recommend to the average user. Samsung HD502IJ in an option only if you can’t find Seagate Barracuda 7200.11. All other models should be avoided.

Here is a breakdown of what we found out about each hard drive included in our round-up:

• Hitachi Deskstar P7K500 (HDP725050GLA360): It is cheaper than the other reviewed drives and, believe, there is a reason for that: lower performance. Even though it achieved an average transfer rate comparable to Samsung’s model, it has a terrible access time. Don’t buy.
• Samsung Spinpoint F1 DT (HD502IJ): Although it is faster than Western Digital Caviar SE16, it is slower than Seagate Barracuda 7200.11. It is an option only if you can’t find Seagate Barracuda 7200.11.
• Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 (ST3500320AS): This is the drive we recommend for the average user. It provides a performance higher than other mainstream units at the same price range, thus providing the best cost/benefit ratio. If you can spend a little more a better option is the new Western Digital RE3.
• Seagate Barracuda ES.2 (ST3500320NS): An enterprise drive with good performance, but Western Digital RE3 is faster and thus our recommended product for this segment.
• Seagate SV35.3 (ST3500320SV): A hard disk drive targeted to digital video surveillance systems with a good transfer rate. What killed this hard disk drive was its access time: it was the drive with the worst access time in our round-up. Don’t buy. Western Digital RE3 costs the same thing and is faster.
• Western Digital Caviar GP (WD5000AACS): This is a “green” drive with variable rotational speed in order to save energy. We didn’t measure power consumption, so we can’t talk specifically about energy savings. Its performance was one of the worst and thus we can’t recommend this product. Don’t buy.
• Western Digital Caviar SE (WD5000AAJS): Performance worst than the majority of drives we tested, probably due to its lower buffer size (8 MB). Don’t buy.
• Western Digital Caviar SE16 (WD5000AAKS): Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 is far faster and costs the same thing. Don’t buy.
• Western Digital RE2 (WD5001ABYS): Lousy performance. Don’t buy.
• Western Digital RE3 (WD5002ABYS): This was the best drive in our review. But since it is targeted to the enterprise market – meaning it has a higher reliability – it costs more. If you are looking for an enterprise-class product, this is the one you should pick. This product is also recommended to regular users that want a higher performance and can pay a little bit more to have the fastest 500 GB drive around. Of course a VelociRaptor 300 GB will be faster, but it costs far more and you will have less storage space: if you want to have more than 300 GB you will have to buy and put two of these in RAID0, what will create a huge hole in your wallet.