Storage Devices

 Data storage 

 

Data can be stored on many different devices. The main data storage devices are: 


Hard disk drive – A physical device that contains a metal disk. Data is written on the disk as it spins round. When data is being used, an actuator arm collects the data on the disk and signifies whether it is a 0 or 1. 

Pros: 


    • Large capacity 
    • Small portable 
    • Fast 
    • Cheap 

Cons: 


    • Quite fragile 
    • Produce heat 
    • Mechanical parts wear out 

 

Tape drive – Maybe not used in modern times, tape drives store a flexible celluloid-like material that can be written on by magnetic particles. This data can be read and written. 

Pros: 


    • Cheap 
    • Durable 
    • Energy-efficient 
    • Scalable 

Cons: 


    • Slow 
    • Old 
    • Tape degrades over time 

 

Solid state drive – Solid state drives or SSDs use electronic circuits to store and retrieve data. The data is organised in blocks that can only be written once. To edit data, the whole block must be rewritten. 

Pros: 


    • Very fast 
    • Durable 
    • Silent 
    • Produce less heat 
    • Use less power 
    • Compact 


Cons: 


    • Expensive 
    • Can’t recover lost data 


 

USB flash drive – These contain a chip with transistors. A transistor is a switch that represents a binary digit, 0 or 1. Data can be written on this chip and transported around. 

Pros: 


    • Extremely compact 
    • No software required 
    • Durable 
    • Compatible with any OS 


Cons: 


    • Very limited storage capacity 
    • Expensive 
    • Slow 


 

Cloud storage – The cloud refers to a remote server where data can be stored. Users can transfer data over the internet to these remote servers where they are stored. This is a very typical use of storage for businesses. 

Pros: 


    • Accessible 
    • Usually quite secure 
    • Fast 
    • Cheap 


Cons: 


    • Data can be sold to third parties 
    • Downtime 

 

CD – A CD is a disk that contain tiny tracks on its surface. A laser is used to write data onto these tracks. 

Pros: 


    • Small portable 
    • Cheap 
    • Long lifespan 


Cons: 


    • Not all computers can read CDs 
    • Fragile 
    • Old 


 

SD card – Each card has a built-in tiny processor and NAND flash storage devices. SD cards are usually used inside devices such as cameras. 

Pros: 


    • Fast 
    • High capacity 
    • Small and portable 
    • Low power consumption

  •  

Cons: 


    • Limited lifespan 
    • Easy to corrupt 


 

Random access memory (RAM) - RAM is used inside all computers to store temporary instructions. These instructions are fetched by the CPU to run the computer. 

Pros: 


    • Fast 
    • Power efficient 
    • Cheap 


Cons: 


    • Small storage capacity 
    • Volatile memory 

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