# Seagate BarraCuda 2TB Buying Guide: ST2000DM005 vs ST2000DM008

Canonical: https://cloudzat.com/seagate-barracuda-2tb/

Purpose: shopper-first buying guide.

Decision: Choose ST2000DM008 when the 7,200 RPM spindle and up-to-220MB/s specification justify its extra power or price. Choose ST2000DM005 for lower typical power and ordinary secondary storage. Both are SMR, so neither is the ideal choice for parity RAID or frequent full-drive rewriting.

- Choose ST2000DM008 for: Higher rotational speed — 7,200 RPM and the higher published sustained transfer figure make it the faster of the two current 2TB BarraCuda models.
- Choose ST2000DM005 for: Lower power use — 5,400 RPM with lower published operating power can suit ordinary bulk storage where maximum HDD speed is not needed.
- Important limitation: Both are SMR — Neither is the CMR choice for repeated large rewrites, RAID rebuilds or write-heavy NAS duty.

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