Ultra ATA 66 Hard Drive Roundup - March 2000

The IBM Deskstar 34GXP we reviewed is the 27.3 GB version in the 34GXP model line. It features a 2 MB buffer, 9 ms average seek time, Ultra ATA/66 interface, and a rotational speed of 7200 RPM.

The Deskstar 34GXP, as with most of the current drives in the Deskstar family, features IBM's Giant Magneto Resistive (GMR) heads and No-ID sector formatting technology. These two technologies allow an increased amount of data to be stored on each disk surface and reduce the number of platters and heads required for a given capacity. With fewer heads and disks per gigabyte, the drive uses less power and generates less heat and noise than conventional drives.

The performance of the IBM Deskstar 34GXP was right at the top of the charts, neck and neck with the Seagate Barracuda and Western Digital drives and is a very high quality unit. With a outer physical appearance very similar to that of the WD Expert, along with similar technical specifications and almost identical test scores, it is apparent that the IBM Deskstar 34 GXP and WD Expert drives are close cousins, if not the same drive. This comes as no surprise, since WD has been licensing the IBM technology for the last couple of years. Due to the almost identical performance of each drive, I would assume they both come off of the same assembly line and are, in essence, one in the same. Pretty much everything said here about the IBM Deskstar 34 GXP applies equally well for the Western Digital Expert drive.

The 7200-RPM rotational speed really proves beneficial, and with the 2 MB cache memory, the IBM pulls away in the tests that take advantage of a larger buffer. The only test where the IBM 34GXP really fell back was during the raw data transfer tests under Winbench Disk Transfer test. During this test, the Seagate Barracuda really ran away with the show, as it had an average of 4 MB/sec better transfer times across the entire disk surface. However, in the remainder of the tests, the IBM and WD combination dominated the top of the charts.

In testing, the IBM drives were among the quietest of the group; this was especially noticeable during the drive access time tests. While some of the other tested drives sounded like miniature coffee grinders, the IBM drives were barely perceptible in operation. Both drives remained fairly cool to the touch, indicative of a quality product.

Overall, the IBM Deskstar 34GXP line of drives are excellent performers and would be an excellent choice to include in your system. The only real contender to the IBM and WD units is the Seagate Barracuda. The IBM Deskstar 34 GXP 27.3 hard drive comes with a standard 3 year warranty and runs about $240.00.