The parts sharing theme continues with the Scorpio Black’s Texas Instruments SH6601AF motor driver–the same driver found in the 750GB WD Scorpio Blue. The latest Scorpio Black is constructed much like the rest of Western Digital’s current line of notebook drives.Ī handful of screws connect the PCB to the drive body a layer of foam serves as a vibration damper between the two.Ĭomponents utilized include a Samsung K4H561638J-LCCC 32MB DDR400 memory module, and a Marvell 88i9045-tfj2 controller chip (which the Scorpio Black shares with Western Digital’s 600GB Velociraptor desktop drive).

This includes a black machined-alloy body, a silver lid, and a white sticker with painted trim used to indicate the class of drive (Scorpio Black, Scorpio Blue, etc).Īn inward-facing circuit board allows the drive body itself to pull double duty as a heat sink, and helps protect delicate components from being accidentally damaged.

The 500GB Scorpio Black is designed and laid out using the same basic look and “blueprint” common to most current Western Digital notebook drives. Others have tried, but if anything can unseat the 320GB variant from its position at the top of the heap, we’re betting its another Scorpio Black. But among pure HDDs in 2.5-inch format, the Scorpio Black has, against all odds, continued to rule the roost for what can fairly be described as an eternity in the world of technology.Įarlier this year, however, the most likely challenger to the WD’s dominance emerged: the 500GB Western Digital Scorpio Black. Sure, some SSDs have turned in better numbers, and the hybrid SSD/HDD Seagate Momentus XT even succeeded in besting WD’s long-running benchmark champion. Although more than two years have elapsed since its public unveiling, the 320GB Western Digital Scorpio Black continues to hold the distinction of the fastest platter-only notebook drive we’ve tested at.

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