File Copy Test
File Copy Test is a pseudo-real-world benchmark that times how long it takes to create, read, and copy files in various test patterns. File copying is tested twice: once with the source and target on the same partition, and once with the target on a separate partition. Scores are presented in MB/s.

To make things easier to read, we've busted out our FC-Test results into individual graphs for each test pattern. We'll tackle file creation performance first.

With the highest areal density of the lot and a beefy 32MB cache, the Deskstar should have the edge here. Except it doesn't. At best, the drive manages a third-place performance behind the 750GB Caviar SE16 with the Install test pattern, but it lags farther behind with other test patterns. At least the 7K1000 is consistently faster than the Barracuda ES and 7200.10.

Now that we've created the files dictated by all these test patterns, let's see how fast the drives can read them.

Finally, the 7K1000 starts to flex its muscles. The drive manages to top the field with the Windows and Programs test patterns, which feature a large number of small files, and it's not far off the lead with the others. To be fair, though, the Deskstar's wins come by the slimmest of margins; the 750GB Caviar SE16 is the fastest high-capacity drive overall.