One of the innovations in computer technology that increases the speed of computers is hybrid hard drives. These high-performance storage media have replaced conventional hard drives.
Hybrid Hard Disk Drive (SSHD) is a storage medium that combines SSD and HDD technologies. That is, a solid state drive (SSD) and a magnetic disk (HDD) are installed inside such a medium.
Hybrid drives differ from HDDs in low power consumption, since SSDs do not have rotating elements. For the same reason, they practically do not make noise during operation and do not heat up like conventional hard drives.
How a hybrid hard drive works
In order for ordinary PC users to understand what an SSHD is, its device can be thought of as a flash drive and an ordinary magnetic disk (rotating "pancake"), located in the same case.
The presence of flash memory allows to increase the speed of reading data, and thanks to the presence of magnetic disks, large amounts of information can be stored on the SSHD. This technology is convenient because hybrid drives have a larger volume than conventional SSDs, and they are significantly less expensive than SSDs, which makes them more affordable for a wide range of buyers.
Hybrid hard drives can read data approximately four times faster than conventional HDDs (at 7200 rpm).
Applications of hybrid hard drives
SSHDs are available for both desktops and laptops. In the second case, they are more in demand, since in laptops there is no technical possibility of simultaneous installation of SSD (for the operating system) and HDD (for storing information).
Therefore, hybrid hard drives can significantly improve the performance of the laptop and increase the loading speed of the operating system several times. SSHD performance depends on the size of its built-in solid state drive. The larger the volume, the higher the speed will be. Thanks to their low power consumption, hybrid hard drives can increase the battery life of the laptop by about 30 minutes.
It should be noted that initially SSHD technology was developed for storage media used in portable computers and mobile devices. And the first hybrid media came in a 2.5-inch form factor. However, now hybrid media are also available in the 3.5-inch form factor, so personal computer users no longer need to deal with complex configuration of redundant array of independent disks and the simultaneous installation of SSD and HDD, which also requires a rather complicated setup.
