Types Of Storage For Laptops (Ultimate Guide)
Laptops are the ultimate gadget for those who need to be on the go and want to do everything at their fingertips. With so many different types of storage available, it can be difficult to choose which one is best for your needs.
That’s why we’ve put together this informative article and hope that you will find our recommendations helpful! The first thing you should know about laptops is that they come with a variety of types of storage - read on to find out more about them all.
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Types Of Storage For Laptops
HDD (Hard Disk Drive)
It is most likely that your laptop uses an HDD for storage. These are the traditional hard drives with spinning disks you see in older desktop computers and laptops. They can be beneficial, but they do have some drawbacks - like less speed (especially if it's a slower "5400rpm" drive). But overall, HDDs provide great value for money.
You can get one these days at pretty much any computer store or online retailer starting from around $70! If you don't need high-capacity external hard drives, then this might be the option to go for!
If you don't need much storage space, then an HDD is the best type of external hard drive to use. They are cheap and offer great value for money! However, if you need lots of storage space (more than 500 GB), consider getting an SSD instead.
Hybrids
These are a bit of an in-between option. They will combine the speed and low cost of SSDs with HDD storage capacity at a lower price than pure SSD external hard drives. Depending on which one you get, they may have either small, medium, or large amounts of flash memory - but typically, they store most data on disk to keep costs down.
Hybrid external hard disks are good for people who need lots of storage space (more than 500 GB) but do not want to go all out for an expensive SSDS drive. When buying hybrids, it is important that you check how much flash memory there is as this can vary quite dramatically!
—You should also check whether the hybrid has any special features like TRIM support because this helps to maintain the speed of these drives over time.
These types of external hard disks are also good for people who work with lots of large files that they need to access quickly, such as video editors and graphic designers. However, if you do not need much storage space, then it is probably better to get an HDD instead.
Hybrid HDDs provide a nice balance between performance and value-for-money and can be ideal for many laptop users! They make great secondary backups or extra storage devices, too - we recommend getting one this size.
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eMMC (embedded Multi-Media Controller)
eMMCs are used in many newer laptops and tablets. They provide blazing fast speeds (similar to SSD) but at a much lower cost than pure SSD drives. However, they typically have very little storage space - usually 32GB or less.
These types of external hard disks can be pretty expensive for what you get, so most people would prefer an HDD drive instead! If your laptop has no other option, it will work fine though and provides decent speed with low power consumption.
If the only type of storage that your laptop supports is eMMC, we recommend getting this size eMMC device because larger ones might not perform as well due to slower read/write speeds on the memory chips inside them.
But if your laptop supports other types of external hard disks like HDDs and/or hybrids, then we would not recommend getting an eMMC because the performance will likely be worse than using an HDD or hybrid.
With these things in mind, you should now have all the information you need to make the right decision on storage for your next laptop! There are lots of options available, so it can be tough deciding which one is best - but hopefully, this article has given you some ideas!
SSD (Solid State Drive)
SSDs are similar to the memory chips that you find inside your computer. They offer blazing fast speeds, but at a much higher cost than other types of storage - it can be around 15 times more expensive!
These types of external hard disks make great primary backups for people who need lots of storage space (more than 500 GB) because they have very few moving parts, and there is no risk of losing data due to mechanical failure. However, if you only need a bit more space, then an HDD would probably be better value-for-money; if this sounds like something that could work well for your laptop, then we recommend getting one of these sizes instead.
However, if eMMCs or hybrids fit in with your budget/requirements, then we would not recommend getting an SSD because they are expensive and will likely have worse performance than eMMCs or hybrids - especially if your laptop only supports these types of external hard disks.
With all this in mind, you should now have a better idea of what type of storage best fits the requirements/budget for your next laptop! There are lots of options available, so it can be tough deciding which one is right - but hopefully, this article has given you some ideas!
Cloud Storage
Cloud storage is another option that you might want to consider if your laptop supports it. You can find out more about cloud storage here, but the main thing is that they provide huge amounts of extra space with minimal cost - essentially free!
This means that you will not need an external hard disk because all your files are stored on servers at a remote location which you access over the internet anywhere in the world.
These types of external hard disks work best for people who travel or spend long periods away from home/office and need good performance without using much power. They also allow multiple users to share one account, so this makes them great for families too. However, most laptops do not support these drives yet (see below).
Conclusion
These types of external hard disks work best for people who travel or spend long periods away from home/office and need good performance without using much power. They also allow multiple users to share one account, so this makes them great for families too. However, most laptops do not support these drives yet (see below).

Michael Restiano
I support product content strategy for Salt Money. Additionally, I’m helping develop content strategy and processes to deliver quality work for our readers.