The 7,200rpm spindle speed used to be the sole province of high performance SCSI drives targeted at the server and workstation markets, while EIDE drives were relegated to a maximum of 5,400rpm and aimed at the desktop market. Drives like the Seagate Medallist Pro changed all that and showed that 7,200rpm drives were both feasible and affordable on the desktop. As this Labs proves, the 7,200rpm standard has taken off in the desktop market, and provides significantly superior performance compared to 5,400rpm drives. The Western Digital Expert drive is oriented towards performance and features the 7,200rpm spindle speed along with a 2Mb data buffer.

Performance is excellent, both in the PC Authority Benchmarks, where it topped the chart, and in the Threadmark test, where the Expert was only beaten by the two Quantum drives. Overall, while the Quantum Fireball Plus KX came close, the Western Digital Expert managed to take home the prestigious Award for Speed. This makes the drive suitable for both the high-end desktop market and those individuals looking to put together a small server or workstation on a budget. Given the drives low price, it is also exceptional value for money. So if you are looking for a top performance drive with a reasonable capacity and terrific price, then the Western Digital Expert simply cannot be beaten.