Toshiba X300 5TB 7200RPM 128MB 3.5" SATA HDD (HDWE150EZSTA)

This now serves as the bulk storage drive on my PC. I'm running the OS from a separate SSD so can't comment on how it performs as a boot drive. For the purpose I'm using it for, storage of large amounts of mixed files including video's, music, games, it's perfect, and pretty cost effective on a price per Tb basis. I considered this drive against a few others like the cheaper Seagate Barracuda and WD Blue, but decided on the 5 Tb version of the X300, because it should be faster (being a 7200 rpm drive) and it offered a little more storage, for a small amount of extra money. They also make 4 and 6 Tb versions. Seagate and WD both make 7200 rpm drives in the large capacities (Barracuda Pro and WD Black respectively) but both tend to be more expensive than the X300. In terms of performance, I can't complain. It's modestly faster than the 7200 rpm Seagate 2 Tb drive I was using before. It has write speeds of up to about 190 mb/s according to a test program I ran. Also a quick test using "UserBenchmark" suggests it's performance is above average, with good random access times. I expect the large 128 mb cache helps in this regard. In terms of noise, it's not bad at all. I'm using a Fractal Design case which has rubber mounts for HDD's which helps dampen any noises, but I really don't notice it unless copying large files, and even then it's not loud. Having owned the drive for a month, I can't comment on reliability but I've read nothing yet to suggest the Toshiba drives are any less reliable than other brands. I'd recommend.

I have read many negative reviews on these drives but I am glad I did not listen. I have 4 of these in a RAID array for 2 years and they have been excellent workhorses - no problems whatsoever. In a 2 drive RAID 0 array I am getting read speeds of over 300Mb/s and write speeds of 220MB/s.I did try a pair in a NAS enclosure at one point and I would say that while they perform perfectly well in this capacity, they are noisy and run hot so I would not recommend them for NAS. However in a desktop with good cooling (I have 3 Noctua fans in my box situated under my desk), you will not hear them very much and they run for me at around 34°.If you are going to use these in an external enclosure, you must get either a fan cooled one or an aluminium one as they will get very hot due to their high performance.

It’s a good hard drive.. I got it for my iTunes library which Was just shy of 4TB but it grows daily.. and it’s good but it sounds a bit noisy.. but it’s a good hard drive though.. as I managed to format it.. as one big drive.. as I don’t know if you know the 2TB rule.. which says windows cannot run or operate a hard drive bigger that 2TB unless they changed it.. recently.. but nether the less I am quite happy with it as no issues yet..And FYI I have included a photo.. of it... you’ll see it shows 4.54 TB same as before but last time I had too format it.. it under MBR which stands for master boot record.. it’s okay but it makes the drive runs slowly when you use MBR so I am happy with my purchase

I used for archiving data and video files . but after having drive up and running I was getting hang-ups, transfer delays. clicking noises and then S.M.A.R.T. Warnings of potential drive failure. Saw over 3500 reallocated sector issues then it was time to call it a day and replace after less than a month.. not very good , and very disappointed,. amazon refunded and purchased a different drive as not going to try these again unless reliability is vastly improved.. could of been a one off or a bad batch or even a bad design, will have to wait and see other reviewers.. just be wary, don't use to store critical data..

Dropping one point as this drive is noticeably a lot louder than the 2Tb Seagate drive it replaced (working fine but ran out of space) when it is writing or reading data, but otherwise seems to be performing well so far. I'm using this purely for storage in a desktop PC (with a separate SSD for the operating system) and have fully encrypted the drive using VeraCrypt. No glitches. One thing that people ought to be aware of - this item does not include any power or data cables, so if you don't have any to use already, you'll need to get some.