HDD vs SSD

Hard disk / Solid state drives

Hard Disk Drives:

A hard disk drive is mechanism that controls the positioning, reading, and writing of the hard disk.The hard disk drive uses the largest amount of data storage in a PC.The most common ways to connect the hard disk to a computer are IDE and SCSI. Many disk drives usually improve their performance through a technique called caching.The hard disk drive and the hard disk are not the same thing but they are grouped together so either term is sometimes used to refer to the whole unit.The hard disk drive is the most common storage device used nowadays. Hard disk drives are sometimes called Winchester drives,Winchester was the name of one of the first popular hard disk drive technologies developed by IBM in 1973.

Solid State Drives:

Solid state drives are based on the hard disk concept however are widely more efficient for the majority of uses. Most solid states utilise Nand-based flash memory which retain data even when power is not supplied. Unlike hard disks which use a magnetic reader , solid state drives use semiconductors and have no mechanical parts, which makes them virtually silent in operation. This also means that solid state drives can load and save data much faster than the traditional hard disk while maintaining a fair reliability aspect.

Use In Gaming Industry:

Storage devices ( HDD and SSD ) are used in current gaming systems. When speaking about consoles (PS3, PS4, Xbox360, XboxOne) and computer systems , The storage device is used to:

• Store game data (This is when part of the game is installed on the system)
• Store save files (These files contain the progression within a specific game)
• Storage and playback of music and video/photo files.

The most popular storage device is the HDD due to its high capacity and relatively cheap cost. On the other hand, the SSD is preferred when it comes to performance and reliability, but lacks the high storage capacity and is more expensive than HDDs.

Other Uses:

• Any type of computer system
• Media players/recorders
• Movie Industry
• Music Industry
• Mobile Devices

The Effect Of Storage Devices In Games:

The storage device won’t really affect the gameplay, but will affect the amount of time it takes to “load” a level or anything in the game.

Below is an example of an SSD vs an HDD when loading the game: Call of duty: modern warfare 3

In this case, the SSD loaded the level before the HDD.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zxv1LTbjNDA#t=29