repair guy changed my HD, did i end up with something better/worse?

[kittie23]

My mid 2009 macbook pro was starting in safe mode for no reason. Since I needed a new battery already I took it into a shop to get repaired (its old so yeah no insurance) the repair guy fixed the battery, and upgraded my software. He did mention that it might be the hard drive that could be bad hence why it was starting on safe mode but when I picked it up from repair he said it was fine and said he fixed the hard drive, but he didn't charge me for anything so i assumed my old hard drive was fine.

Well when i got home i could feel the computer vibrate from both sides of the track pad but mainly from the back of the screen. I did a bunch of googling and noticed some people mention that rpm of 7200 did that. Looked into my specs and it turns out that was my rpm.

He switched my hard drive!!! and he didn't say anything except that he fixed it! I know nothing about computers so I don't know if i ended up with something worse or better! My old hard drive was a TOSHIBA 250GB 5400 rpm and the new one is

NVidia MCP79 AHCI:

Vendor: NVidia
Product: MCP79 AHCI
Link Speed: 3 Gigabit
Negotiated Link Speed: 3 Gigabit
Physical Interconnect: SATA
Description: AHCI Version 1.20 Supported

ST9250410AS:

Capacity: 250.06 GB (250,059,350,016 bytes)
Model: ST9250410AS
Revision: D005SDM1
Serial Number: 5VG52CTA
Native Command Queuing: Yes
Queue Depth: 32
Removable Media: No
Detachable Drive: No
BSD Name: disk0
Rotational Rate: 7200
Medium Type: Rotational
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status: Verified
Volumes:
EFI:
Capacity: 209.7 MB (209,715,200 bytes)
BSD Name: disk0s1
Content: EFI
Volume UUID: 85D67001-D93E-3687-A1C2-79D677F0C2E0
MACHD:
Capacity: 249.2 GB (249,199,591,424 bytes)
Available: 223.71 GB (223,713,067,008 bytes)
Writable: Yes
File System: Journaled HFS+
BSD Name: disk0s2
Mount Point: /
Content: Apple_HFS
Volume UUID: 5E6CBA79-B486-3C8E-B54F-823E0CA93987
Recovery HD:
Capacity: 650 MB (650,002,432 bytes)
BSD Name: disk0s3
Content: Apple_Boot
Volume UUID: 37D96F65-A24A-3268-87AF-78F9D970FA94


Just trying to figure out if he totally screwed me over or if he simply was nice and gave me a new hard drive at no cost (he did give me some other stuff for free so maybe he is just nice)

 

[Lifeisabeach]

Well some people prefer the slower drive because it's easier on the battery, but the faster one will perform better. Now, we have no idea if the drive he put in is new or used so far all we know, the replacement may be on its last legs. The big question is WHY he changed it, and is your data all copied over and intact? And importantly enough... was there anything of value on the old drive that you wouldn't want out of your hands?

 

[chscag]

Capacity: 250.06 GB (250,059,350,016 bytes)
Model: ST9250410AS

He likely put a used hard drive in your machine. The quote above which I copied from your specs says that the drive is a Seagate 250 GB model. Seagate hasn't sold that model for years so unless he happened to have an unopened, unused one on hand, I would say you have a used hard drive. And yes, 7200 RPM drives can be a bit louder and vibrate more than some 5400 RPM models. But not always. Only time will tell if you have something worse.

Good advice is to make backups often. ;D

 

[Lifeisabeach]

He likely put a used hard drive in your machine. The quote above which I copied from your specs says that the drive is a Seagate 250 GB model. Seagate hasn't sold that model for years so unless he happened to have an unopened, unused one on hand, I would say you have a used hard drive. And yes, 7200 RPM drives can be a bit louder and vibrate more than some 5400 RPM models. But not always. Only time will tell if you have something worse.

Good advice is to make backups often. ;D

They are still available for sale on NewEgg and Amazon. Seagate classifies it as an OEM drive, but there's no telling how long ago these were discontinued and if what they have is all old stock.

One way to check the drive is to run a "long" (aka "extended") SMART test using an advanced SMART tool like DriveDx or Smart Utility. They can tell you what the "power on time" is for the drive.

 

[kittie23]

Well some people prefer the slower drive because it's easier on the battery, but the faster one will perform better. Now, we have no idea if the drive he put in is new or used so far all we know, the replacement may be on its last legs. The big question is WHY he changed it, and is your data all copied over and intact? And importantly enough... was there anything of value on the old drive that you wouldn't want out of your hands?

Im waiting for him to call me back to let me know that my new battery has arrived and I'm going to ask him why he changed the hard drive. I had done a back up before hand so I had given him the OK to wipe the computer if he needed to. Everything runs fine, but I am worried that I will just end up buying a new hard drive a couple months down the road.

 

[chscag]

As long as the hard drive is working OK, don't worry about it. Just make sure from him that he replaced the Toshiba with a new Seagate drive not one he dug out of another machine. Also make sure you keep up with your backups.