Would a 7200RPM 2.5 HD make a difference?

[RafeDonson]

If you're running games entirely off the hard disk, would having a 7200RPM 2.5 hard disk actually make the games load faster?

[onimushaclan]

If you're running games entirely off the hard disk, would having a 7200RPM 2.5 hard disk actually make the games load faster?

depends if u have a fat ps3 i suggest not to use 7200RPM it'll reduce the lifespan of ur ps3 due to overheating and u'll get a YLOD. a slim ps3 could handle it.

in my experience the 7200RPM does load games slightly faster only a couple seconds difference

[Derr]

It's really not much extra speed at all but a lot more heat, not worth the extra cost IMO.

[itsthemike]

I'd like to see some hard proof that indicates 7200RPM drives and YLOD are related. Comparing two Hitachi 500GB SATA 3.0GB/s drives, one 5400RPM and one 7200RPM (these two: Newegg.com - HITACHI Travelstar H2IK500854SP (0S02857) 500GB 5400 RPM 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive and Newegg.com - HITACHI Travelstar 7K500 HD20500 IDK/7K 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache 2.5" SATA 3.0Gb/s Internal Notebook Hard Drive , chosen for no reason other than that I just picked up a half dozen of the 7200 model), the 5400 claims a power draw of 700mA @ 5V and the 7200 claims 800mA @ 5V. This is 0.1A @ 5V = 0.5 watts of extra heat being dissipated in the case.

Consider that the power consumption of a PS3 Slim is at least 73 watts and the original models drew up to 200 (source: PlayStation 3 hardware - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) - I find it hard to believe that another half a watt is going to tip the scales in any significant manner. From what I gather, this 7200-RPM drives causing YLOD scare is all hearsay. (comparison: Half a watt is less than eight blue LEDs' worth of power [assuming Vf=3.2V, If=20mA] - if we're that worried, we could consider removing all the indicator lights to keep things cooler... and don't get me started on the power consumption compared to the now-dormant BD-ROM...)

[Edit: correct minimum power figure for Slim]