CONCLUSION

   Although we weren't impressed by the performance of the Archive HDD we also weren't disappointed since right from the start we knew that this is a 5900RPM "budget" oriented model with capacity and reliability (800.000 hours may not be the highest MTBF we've encountered but Shingled Magnetic Recording adds to that) as its two strong selling points. That being said the read/write performance we recorded is not bad at all since it's quite better than many other models that we've reviewed in the past (you can tell from our charts) and once again let's not forget that we're talking about a massive 8TB model. Unfortunately because of the technologies used in the Archive HDD (SMR/On-Drive Cache) Seagate doesn't recommend this model for use in RAID whether that's in a computer or in a NAS so once again i guess we can't have it all. Of course this doesn't mean that you can't use many Archive HDDs in RAID because you will run into problems, the sole issue is that read/write performance could become inconsistent which in turn could reduce performance and understandably to some people that may not be acceptable.

   Now the reason we call the Archive HDD a "budget" oriented model is because currently you can get the massive 8TB variant for just USD304.52 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 300Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) so i doubt anyone can complain for its price tag. Sure performance may not be on par with what we've recently seen from their Enterprise models but getting 8TB for less than what you'd need to get a 6TB model is a bargain if lots of storage capacity is what you need. Bottom line the Archive HDD is the perfect solution for people who need lots of reliable storage but care not much about performance and that's why we're awarding it with our Golden Award.

PROS

- Build Quality / Reliability
- Good Performance
- Massive 8TB Capacity
- SMR, AcuTrack & PowerChoice Technologies
- Temperatures / Noise Levels / Power Consumption
- 3 Years Warranty
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Not Ideal for RAID Use