Conclusions
Although the Caviar SE16 640GB doesn't break new ground in storage capacity, platter density, or cache size, Western Digital has struck a good balance between those elements and delivered perhaps the most capable 3.5" hard drive we've ever tested. Throughout WorldBench, the SE16 exhibited excellent performance with common desktop applications. The drive's sequential transfer rates were exceptionally quick, as well, although not always as fast as those offered by the SpinPoint F1. However, the SE16 also finished near the front of the pack in iPEAK, maintaining reasonably balanced performance across most of our multitasking workloads. That balance carried over to IOMeter, where unlike the SpinPoint, the Caviar didn't crumble under demanding multi-user loads.

We've focused on how the Caviar compares to the SpinPoint because the Samsung drive was our previous performance leader. It still is in many tests, but the F1 has a split personality that causes it to suffer badly in some tests. The 640GB SE16 doesn't have a Mr. Hyde lurking in the background, allowing it to maintain great performance across a broader range of workloads.

Of course, there's more to a drive's performance than transfer rates and response times. Power consumption and noise levels count for a lot these days, and the Caviar delivers on both fronts. Not only does its power consumption flirt with that of Western Digital's own GreenPower drives, but its noise levels are among the lowest we've ever measured, too. Even with a 7,200-RPM spindle speed, the Caviar SE16 640GB is for all intents and purposes just as quiet as a Caviar GP.

Our only real complaint about the SE16 640GB is the drive's scarcity. Only one vendor currently lists the drive in our price search engine, and it's going for close to $20 more than Western Digital's suggested retail price of $139.99. However, Newegg was selling the SE16 at just $130 before running out of out of stock last week—a price that should be more representative of what consumers can expect to pay for the drive once it's widely available.

If you can find the Caviar SE16 640GB for around $130, or even at its $140 MSRP, it's a fantastic value—and at a capacity point that should be more than sufficient for most of us. That's good enough to earn this drive our Editor's Choice seal of approval.