Are 2.5" HDDs OK?

[FullNuclearBreakfast]

Hey guys

 

I'm helping a friend of mine to build his first (budget) gaming PC. I was going to use a £45 (about $60 I think) 3.5" WD Blue 1TB drive, but this would of course require the use of the 3.5" cage. The case we'll be using is the Fractal Arc Mini R2, which has a pair of 2.5" mounts behind the motherboard tray. This lead me to wonder: would it be better to use a 2.5" HDD and mount it there? It would mean I can remove both 3.5" cages for better airflow.

 

Are there any cons to using 2.5" drives?

The 2.5" mounts don't have anti-vibration grommets - will this be a problem?

 

Thanks

FullNuclearBreakfast

 

Also sorry for the wordy OP

[rustikles]

For the little bit of extra airflow you could get by removing the drive cages, compared to the increased price of a 2.5" drive, not worth it at all IMO.

 

Just stick with the 3.5".

[miyabwah]

cons : cost

[acidydragon]

You won't have any issues with the 2.5", just an increased cost. I would most likely just stick with the 3.5"

[Chriz6097]

Hey guys

 

I can remove both 3.5" cages for better airflow.

 

If you want better airflow, Seagate makes slim 3.5 inch drives that aren't much more expensive than the normal ones. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

[alpenwasser]

Are there any cons to using 2.5" drives?

The 2.5" mounts don't have anti-vibration grommets - will this be a problem?

Primary con, as mentioned, is cost IMO, although 2.5" drives also tend to

be slower when it comes to transfer bandwidth (at least last I checked).

As for vibrations: Up until a few years ago, we used to mount our HDDs

without any vibration dampening, it worked just fine for many decades.

[FullNuclearBreakfast]

Thinking about it, putting a hard drive round the back means it won't be cooled at all. I've seen hard drives (ok they were ATA) get fairly warm before.

 

To be honest, I don't think the added cost is worth the extra airflow in this case. I need to cut costs as much as I can, and personally I don't think my friend is going to notice a difference in temps.

[ForsakenLive]

performance-wise the 3.25" drive is a bit ahead, not too much, probably not noticeable if you have an SSD as main drive.

[FullNuclearBreakfast]

performance-wise the 3.25" drive is a bit ahead, not too much, probably not noticeable if you have an SSD as main drive.

I won't be using an SSD - I'll be using the HDD as the boot drive. My friend simply can't afford to buy an SSD yet.

[Legion]

I won't be using an SSD - I'll be using the HDD as the boot drive. My friend simply can't afford to buy an SSD yet.

 

Then get the 3.5" if cost is that much of an issue

[IdeaStormer]

Well most of you's better stock up on 3.5" drives because they will be come instinct pretty soon, all manufacturing to concentrate on 2.5".

[consoleconvergence2pc]

 

This one seems ok for price compared to other 1tb 3.5" drives 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/HITACHI-0J22423-Travelstar-7K1000-Drive/dp/B00B4QESVQ/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1390581533&sr=8-11&keywords=1tb+laptop+hard+drive