Hard Drives

A hard disk drive (HDD) is used in a computer and it is a non-volatile storage device. Its task is to store the digital data of a computer on rotating metal platters that have a magnetic surface. The word ‘drive’ mainly refers to an electronic device which is distinct with its original medium, like a tape and its tape drive or like a floppy disk and its floppy disk drive. It is one of the most important parts of the PC and the programs that are installed on your PC including the operating system are stored on the hard drive. In the old days, the hard drive had a limited storage capacity and was quite bulky.

Thanks to modern technology, the sizes of hard disk drives have become smaller and their storage capacities have increased by leaps and bounds. There are different types of hard disk drives available nowadays and they are the ATA and the SATA. Whole 20MB was considered to be a huge space way back in the early 80’s, nowadays, the entry level hard disk drive is of 80GB and it costs less that whet the 20MB used to during its heydays. This is amazing when one considers that 1GB equals 1024MB. The HDD contains a single head placed on a spindle that is positioned on a common arm for each of the magnetic platter surfaces.

An actuator arm in the HDD moves the heads in an arc across the magnetic platters while they spin. This allows each of the heads to access the whole surface of the magnetic platter while it spins. There are various types of hard disk drives available in the market. Prior to the invention of the hard drive, the data of a computer used to be stored on removable media like floppy disks, but they do not have sufficient storage capacity. As new applications demanded more and more space, it led to the manufacture of the hard drive.

The desktop drive is mainly black in color and sleek in design. It is also compact and sturdy. It is designed with a solid metal cover on top for its longevity and for heat dissipation. They measure 4.4 x 1.6 x 7.6 inches (W x H x D) and weigh less than two pounds. They are also available in portable versions that can easily be put inside your pocket and carried anywhere. The design of the HDD is stackable which will allow you to save enough space if you feel like adding another drive and increase your computer’s storage capacity.

The laptop hard drives provide enough capacity for you to store all the date for your needs. The same hard drives that are used for normal computers are used in laptops too. If one wants to increase the storage capacity of their laptop, they should replace the internal hard drive with a higher capacity one, but this task should be carried out by trained professionals only. You can also opt in for a portable hard drive that can be attached to your laptop.