PMR vs SMR hard disk drives: Understanding the difference!

PMR (Perpendicular Magnetic Recording) and SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording) are two different types of hard disk drives. PMR drives are the traditional type of hard drive, while SMR drives are a newer type that offers some advantages over PMR drives.

PMR hard disk drives work by storing data on spinning disks that have magnetized areas on them. The data is stored as magnetic flux transitions between these magnetized areas. When you write data to a PMR drive, the head writes new data by changing the polarity of the magnets in the targeted area. This creates new magnetic fields that overwrite the old fields.

SMR hard disk drives work by taking advantage of the fact that not all data stored on a hard disk is accessed equally. In fact, most data is only accessed occasionally. SMR drives allow for the storage of more data per inch on the disk by taking advantage of this fact.

Traditional hard disk drives store data in sectors that are fixed in size. A sector is a small amount of space on the disk that stores a certain number of bytes of data. When a file is stored on a traditional hard drive, the entire sector containing that file’s data is copied to the hard drive, even if the file only takes up a fraction of that sector. This limits the amount of space available for storing files on a traditional hard drive. 

Also Read:- 6 Reasons Behind Hard Disk Failure

Advantages of PMR Hard Disk Drive

• Performance – PMR technology results in performance that is up to 30% faster than traditional hard disks.
• Capacity – PMR drives can store up to 3TB of data, making them an ideal choice for high-capacity storage needs.
• Energy efficiency – PMR drives consume less power than their predecessors, making them an environmentally friendly choice for your storage needs.

Also Read:- How to Increase Hard Drive Performance on

Disadvantages of using PMR Hard Disk Drive

• These drives are reaching their limits in terms of areal density (the amount of data that can be stored on a hard drive platter). This means that PMR hard drives are becoming increasingly more difficult and expensive to manufacture.
• PMR hard drives suffer from a Host Writes Per Day (HWPD) problem. This means that the more you write to a PMR hard drive, the shorter its lifespan becomes.
• PMR hard drives use more energy than newer technologies such as Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR) and Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR).

Benefits of using SMR Hard Disk Drive

• SMR hard disk drives offer a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) than traditional HDDs.
• These drives have greater storage density than traditional HDDs, allowing you to fit more data into the same physical space.
• SMR hard disk drives are more vulnerable to errors and data loss, making them less reliable choice for storage-intensive applications.

Also Read:- Opting For Hard Drive Data Recovery Service

Disadvantages of using SMR hard disk drives

The top three disadvantages of using SMR hard disk drives are as follows:

• They are more expensive than traditional hard disk drives.
• SMR hard drive reliability is less than other types of hard disk drives. Although they are more energy-efficient than CMR hard drives.
• They’re less efficient at storing data, meaning you get less storage capacity for your money.

SMR vs PMR: which one is better?

There is no definitive answer to this question since both PMR and SMR hard disk drives have their own advantages and disadvantages. However, in general, SMR hard disk drives tend to be more expensive but offer greater storage capacity, while PMR hard disk drives are less expensive but have a shorter lifespan.

How can Melbourne’s Data Recovery Experts help?

If you have lost files on your computer, our hard disk data recovery company in Melbourne can help. We can recover data from any type of storage device, including hard drives, SD cards, and USB sticks. We use advanced techniques to retrieve your lost data, and we always work carefully to avoid causing any further damage to your device.

If you would like us to help you recover your lost data, please get in touch with us today. We will be happy to answer any questions you have about our services or about the process of recovering your lost files. You can also hire us for hard drive data recovery in Sydney.

Call us on 03 7016 8120.