Guide: how to choose a hard drive
How to check a new hard drive after purchase: SMART and signs of a used drive
5-10 minutes on day one: how to make sure the drive is really new and arrived undamaged. Packaging, SMART in CrystalDiskInfo, key attributes...
External hard drive: what it is and how to choose one
What an external HDD is, when it beats a flash drive or SSD, and what to look for: enclosure type, interface, power, capacity and compatibil...
Hard drive interfaces: SATA, SAS, IDE and USB
SATA, SAS, IDE or USB - how a hard drive connects, whether SATA versions are compatible and why a SAS drive will not work in a regular PC.
Laptop hard drive: how to choose and replace it
A step-by-step guide to choosing a 2.5" HDD for your laptop, moving your data and installing the new drive. Plus an honest answer on when an...
Hard drive form factor: 3.5" or 2.5"
3.5" or 2.5", 7 or 9.5 mm - how hard drive form factors differ and how to get the size right for a PC, laptop or external enclosure.
Top 10 best hard drives: 2026 ranking
10 models for specific use cases: home PC, CCTV, NAS, server and external backup. With CMR/SMR recording type, pros and cons. Every item is ...
Hard drive manufacturers: who makes HDDs today
Only three hard drive manufacturers are left. Here are each one's series and what happened to the familiar brands of the past.
What hard drive capacity to choose: how many TB you need
500 GB, 1, 2, 4 or 8 TB? How much space you really need for different tasks, and why a new drive shows less in Windows than it says on the b...
How to tell if your computer or laptop has an HDD or SSD
Five simple ways to check whether your computer or laptop has a hard drive or an SSD. No need to open the case or install anything.
What is an HDD: hard drives explained simply
HDD, hard drive, hard disk - are they the same thing? A plain-language explanation of how an HDD works and why it is still useful in 2026.
5400 vs 7200 rpm: which hard drive speed do you need
Is 7200 rpm worth paying extra for, and when is 5400 the better choice? What spindle speed really gives you, with access latency figures.
How to choose a NAS hard drive: WD Red Plus or Seagate IronWolf
WD Red Plus or IronWolf, how many drives to buy and why a regular desktop HDD in network storage puts the whole array at risk.