Hardware

HD Tune Performance

HD Tune is a very popular hard drive benchmark that not only offers standard benchmark testing, but also provides detailed information on a drive's specifications and features, while also measuring things like CPU Usage and Drive Temperature. In this review, we have provided results for the following tests: Burst Rate (MB/sec.), Average Transfer Rate (MB/sec.), Random Access (ms), CPU Usage (%), and Drive Temperature (degrees C).

The Burst Rate benchmark results really highlight the difference between the older SATA 1.5 Gb/s drives and those with the newer SATA 3.0 Gb/s interface. Not only that, but the burst rate scores show the Seagate Barracuda 3.0 Gb/s drives with a noticeable advantage over the Western Digital model. We made sure the correct jumper was activated on the WD drive, and it does show higher performance than the older SATA 1.5 Gb/s models.

HD Tune also provides an Average Transfer Rate benchmark, which gives a score in the usual MB/sec. format. The Seagate 7200.11 1TB drive again proves to be a very able performer, taking first place in the benchmark, and is the only drive to exceed an 80 MB/sec. transfer rate.

The Random Access testing gets a bit more detailed, as it highlights the Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 1TB as the fastest at 12.5ms, and is the only drive to drop below the 13ms mark.

HD Tune also offers a Drive Temperature reading, which we took after the entire triple-run HD Tune benchmarking was complete. We tested each of the hard drives in the same position in the cage, and at this point, the temperature readings were very consistent. While all the hard drives are sitting above 40 degrees C, the Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 1TB is right in there with the rest of the performance models.

There is also a CPU Utilization portion to the HD Tune suite, and although SATA drives offer a very limited drain on CPU resources (all of our drives were under 2% at load), we though we'd post the data anyway.