WD Blue 1 TB Desktop Hard Drive: 3.5 Inch, 7200 RPM, SATA III, 32 MB Cache - WD10EALX

I got this last month for storage usage and it's been running very good.It is very quiet! I was first going to get the Caviar Black but I see so many reviews about it saying that it is very loud... so instead I got the Blue and its amazing.I use this to store games (I have OS on my SSD). It's pretty fast loading up games and I never crashed yet.So if you're looking for a HDD, I would recommend this! Even for you gamers out there that want to store games! It's quiet and fast and a lil cheaper than the Black!

I went with Amazon.com based on reviews that they now cushion the hard drive box with special packaging, and free super saving method of shipping being the most gentle, even though Amazon's price is higher. Who cares about price if something delicate is ruined in shipping? In any case this hard drive is running quiet and perfect with no problems this long, means there should not have been any mechanical damage done to it while in Amazon.com (Amazon.com and not an affiliate) hands, and it was treated with the extreme care such very delicate devices require. Unlike some things throwing these against a wall - type of damage with insufficient CUSHIONING won't be good. Since I am more concerned with reliability than speed, is the reason I chose this model at the time. After Partitioning and formatting, this is the main drive of a newly built i5-2500K 16GByte Computer, and it was all I could afford until I can afford to get the operating system running on a Solid State, but whatever the load time for Windows 7 is is OK for me.I am so happy Amazon.com fixed their "Hard Drive Problem" - the right way by shipping them properly (little plastic inserts) for the electro-mechanical devices they are. Be sure to pick the most gently-handled (non-throwing) shipping method too in my opinion. Bottom Line is I'm happy.

Good drive, reasonable speed. Using as a backup in a external USB case. MUST be partitioned before use or windows can't see it. There is FREE partitioning software available from several secure download sites. (Majorgeeks{dotcom} is my favorite download site) Once you partition the drive you can format and use it normally. I am using this as a backup with cloning software from WD's website which works very well. Saved my ash just last week. I had switched from ESET to MS Security Essentials (it's free and now I know why) and within three day I got a highjacker. Couldn't do anything, couldn't even reformat the drive! Popped in the just-cloned drive and I'm back in business. (Also went back to ESET right away) BEWARE of FREE security!!!!(IT AIN'T SECURE!!!!)

Bought 2 of these drives and installed them in Roswell fan cooled USB enclosures. Had them set up for file backup on a Linux server at a radio station.The first one failed in 2 months so I pulled them both out of service.I put the second one back in service on a off site file backup machine and it lasted 3 months.I had my IT expert look at them and one of them he was able to fix by fixing the partition table.The other one he could not repair.Not sure why these failed so soon but i will try to get the one warrantied and keep a close eye on the other one.Guess I will stay away from Western digital drives.

nothing fancy, it works 4 years down the road still in operationSTAR RATINGS: Each product is carefully reviewed in an unbiased manner. Star ratings are earned, never given.1 Star: This product is not worth your time. There may be something wrong in the product details or description, it does not live up to what it is advertised as or made extremely low quality. I would tell my friends, acquaintances, and strangers that they shouldn't use their hard earned money on this product.2 Star: This is not a great product at all. It has mistakes in the product details or description and does not live up to what it advertises or normal customer expectations. It is still now worth the money.3 Star: This is a neutral rating. I could take it or leave it. It met the product description and details for the most part but isn't something I am ever likely to order again. It could have some really cool features, An awesome looking design, Or maybe it’s just a killer deal. But overall the price of the product is not worth it.4 Star: I like this product. This item has met all expectations, The design is sound, The build is great and the product does what it was made for. It’s a great product that i can recommend buying. However it didn’t completely wow me. It does what it is supposed to do.This is what most products fall under.5 stars: Wow! This item is amazing, I absolutely love it, it is an exceptional, impressive product. Not only does it meet all expectations but it’s a product that’s well made (designed, formulated, composed, etc) and lives up to the product details and description. It exceeds normal consumer expectations

The technical run down: The Blue drives have very similar performance to the Black drives on average, except they come with a three-year limited warranty instead of the Black’s five-year (best in class). The Black drives typically have a larger buffer as well; for example, the WD1002FAEX Black has a 64MB cache vs. the 32MB cache of our WD10EALX Blue. Compared to the Greens, the Blues have a higher rotational speed (7200RPM vs. ~5200RPM) which equates to better performance. In essence, the Blue is Western Digital’s bread-and-butter drive. The WD10EALX’s technical highlight is its 6Gb/s interface, which is the latest SATA III standard.Their are faster drives on the market yes, but WD reliably and value keeps me in their camp.I still own some 20Gig WD drives that have over 2700 hours on them and work flawlessly still. I will be purchasing this drive in the near future.