IGCSE ICT Storage devices and media 0417

Unit 3 – Storage Media and Devices

Magnetic backing storage media:
Fixed Hard Drives : Large storage capacity, data access speed is very fast, data transfer rate is
very fast, It has both read-write facility.
Advantages in comparison with SSD:
 More affordable than SSD- SSD with a storage capacity similar with an HDD can be twice as
expensive
 Higher storage capacity than SSD- 500GB is standard in a computer while computers that
use an SSD storage system have a base capacity of 128GB.
 HDD is easier to buy in most stores- To upgrade a computer or want to buy an external
media storage to backup data, HDD is more convenient to find.
 Longer lifespan than SSD- The flash memories can be used for a finite number of writes. An
SSD writes a single bit of information by first erasing and then rewriting very large blocks of
data at one time. Hence, can become unusable much quicker than HDD.
Disadvantages in comparison with SSD:
 HDD is slower than SSD
 A computer with an HDD storage system will boot slower than SSD
 Consumes higher power than devices with SSD.
 Produces noise while in operation. Devices are heavier.
 Not durable compared to SDD. Has moving parts. Hence, cannot move around while the
device is in use.

Portable hard disks:

Advantages:
• It is portable and operates on plug and play basis. It can be used as a storage device for any
computer with a USB or Fire Wire capability.
• It can be used as an emergency backup drive.
• If you use external drive as your main drive, you can speed up the performance of devices
with slower internal drives.
Disadvantages:
• Risk of data loss – these hard drives can be attacked by viruses, worms, corruption. They
can also be affected by sunlight, heat, humidity, liquids, dust and magnetic fields.
• Most external hard drives have no password. If your hard drive or flash drive is lost or
stolen, your information is available to anyone who plugs the device into a computer.
• File versioning is difficult to set up on external hard drives. If you back up to an external
hard drive once per day, you’re often left with a single backup to rely on instead of
multiple file versions.

Magnetic Tape
Advantages
• Stores large amounts of data up to 1 Terabyte. Large cartridges are used by big companies
and institutions that require continuous recording and backup of data.
• Data collection can go on without interruption overnight or for an entire weekend.
• Magnetic tape can be recorded over and reused repeatedly.
• Large amounts of information is stored.
Disadvantages
• Special equipment must be purchased and set up for recording and storing data. The data
can only be read on the special equipment.

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IGCSE ICT Storage devices and media 0417
• If the data is stored near a strong magnetic field or a large speaker, the tape can be
damaged.
• Magnetic tape has a lifespan of 15 years. Data quality gradually erodes over time.
• It is necessary to keep older tape equipment just to be able to read the stored data
Memory cards
 Memory cards have non-volatile memory & require less amount of power.
 They are highly portable. They can be easily used in number of small, lightweight and low-
power devices.
 They do not produce any noise while on work.
 They allow more immediate access. They come in all sorts of sizes. Cost effective.
 They have relatively large storage space compared to old backup devices.
 They can easily fit in memory card slot in different devices and are easily removable.
 They can be used in different devices such as cameras, computers or mobile phones.
They can be lost, misplaced or smashed.
These cards may be affected by electronic corruption and make entire card unreadable
Optical Disks:
Optical CD (CD’s) 1. Data can become unreadable if there are
1. Very cheap to produce some scratches on the disc.
2. Widely available. Most computers can read CDs. If there 2. The data is unwritten-able.
is no CD drive, a DVD drive can usually read them.
3. No moving part.
4. No need of power supply.
5. Long lifespan if kept safely.
6. Fairly fast to access the data - quicker than magnetic
tape
DVD’s 1. DVDs do not work in CD drives
1. Large storage capacity 4.7-9 Gb 2. There is no single standard of DVD
2. Sound and picture quality is excellent, making them 3. They can be easily damaged by breaking or
ideal for storing films with video and sound scratching
3. DVDs are now mass produced so they are relatively
cheap
CD/DVD-R 1. Disc can become unusable.
1. Cheap and data can be written only 2. Errors can occur when inputting the data.
2. Most computers can read and write this type of discs. 3. Data can't be deleted.
3. Long lifespan (about 50 years). 4. Have similar disadvantages to optical CDs
and DVDs.
CD/DVD-RW 1. Shorter lifespan than other types of optical
1. Every part of the disc can delete and rewritten many discs. Disc can stop working .
times. 3. Can only be uses with some types of disc
2. Have similar advantages to CD/DVD-R players.
DVD-RAM 1. More expensive than normal optical discs.
1. Data can be re-writable. 2. Doesn't work properly with household
2. Have higher quality and longer lifespan than CD/DVD- players sometimes.
RW. 3. Data can be written slower than normal
writable discs.
Blue-ray disk drive 1. You need a dedicated Blu-ray player to play
1. They store much more data than a DVD disk the disks
2. They are able to store a full length high 2. Loading a film can take minutes as so much
definition film data needs to be read

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IGCSE ICT Storage devices and media 0417
High Capacity Optical Discs
Blu-Ray –
i. They are a recent replacement for DVDs.
ii. Holds 25 - 50GB of data (a dual-layer can hold twice that).
iii. Random-access devices.
iv. Used to store very high-quality, high-definition(HD) video.

HD DVD – High-Density DVD Discs

i. Holds around 15GB of data (a dual-layer can hold twice that).
ii. Random-access devices.
iii. Used to store very high-quality, high-definition (HD) video

Solid state drives

 Durability - Since no moving parts. Lasts for longer.
 Less Power Consumption – no moving parts
 Faster Reading and Writing Speed : Data is read electronically.
 Less Noise- it uses computer chips which are non-mechanical. Hence no noise.
 Less Heat: No motors, they generate less heat.
Price - costs more than a conventional hard disk drive.
Recovery of Lost Data - Data is permanently and completely deleted from the drives.
Storage Capacity: SSDs are mostly available in smaller and affordable storage sizes.
Write Speed - Although, SSDs can access data quickly, they usually take more time to
save data. The device on the SSD must first delete the old data in order to write the new
one.
Flash Memory
• Electronically-Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM).
• Non-volatile, data can be stored, can be erased or changed.
• Saving data is slower than to saving it to RAM.
• Solid-state ‘discs’, so robust , compact and longer battery life.
• They have both read-write facility.
USB Memory Sticks
• They are non-volatile, random-access storage devices.
• Each of these small devices has some flash memory connected to a USB interface. Plug it
into your computer and it appears as a drive.
• You can then add files, erase files, etc. You can use it to move any type of file between
computers.
• Flash memory is expensive than a CD-R or CD-RW. And it has more storage capacity. It
has both read-write facility.
Smart Cards
• Credit cards (e.g. ‘chip-and-pin’ cards), door entry cards, satellite TV cards have flash
memory.
• This is reliable and has a much larger storage capacity.
• Cards with flash memory are called smart cards

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