The RE3 is the nearline cousin of a desktop variant, and features data encryption and vibration-softening mechanisms for improved performance when running in an enclosure that contains many other drives.

Random read and write speeds were very close to the top performer, at 89.7 and 88.6 MBps respectively. Access times stood at an average of11.84ms. Creating and extracting a WinRAR archive took 75 and 192 seconds respectively. Copying a single large file (6.42 GB) onto the drive took 71 seconds, while it managed to transfer multiple small files (totaling up to 2.09 GB) from the first partition to the second in 56 seconds. It completed our server simulation of real world tests, in 840 seconds. The RE3 is rated to consume 7.2 Wand 8W at idle and seek times respectively. WD rates the start-stop cycles for this drive at 300,000 - the same as the E7K.

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