The Seagate SkyHawk 4TB (ST4000VX013) uses SMR recording.
Part-number reference: ST4000VX013 — decoded segments, sibling variants and the warranty check. Live rankings this model belongs to: every 4TB hard drive. Product pages for this part number: Seagate SkyHawk 4TB ST4000VX013.
Verified against: Seagate SkyHawk 3.5in data sheet DS1902-16 · Checked
Seagate's own documents disagree about this family. The SkyHawk datasheet and the SkyHawk SATA product manual both state SMR for this part number, while Seagate's summary CMR/SMR list shows no SMR anywhere in the SkyHawk line. The part-number-level documents decide the verdict.
Shingled recording overlaps tracks like roof tiles to raise density. Reading is unaffected, and for sequential work, archives, media libraries, backup targets, files written once and read many times, this drive is genuinely fine and the saving is real. The problem is sustained random writing, because modifying data under an existing track can force the tracks above it to be rewritten too. A RAID rebuild or a ZFS resilver is hours of exactly that pattern with no idle time to recover, so a 4TB ST4000VX013 in an array can extend a rebuild dramatically, and the rebuild window is precisely when the array has no redundancy left. Do not put this drive in a NAS or a parity array.
| Model number | ST4000VX013 |
| Brand | Seagate |
| Family | SkyHawk |
| Capacity | 4TB |
| Form factor | 3.5" |
| Rotational speed | — |
| Cache | 256 MB |
| Recording technology | SMR |
| Workload rate | 180 TB/year |
| Warranty | 3 years |
| Status | Current |
| Replaced by | — |
A dash means we have not found a manufacturer document stating that field for this exact model. We leave it blank rather than filling it from a retailer listing.
If this drive is going into an array, a NAS, or anything that rebuilds, shingled recording is the wrong choice at any price. These are conventionally-recorded drives at this capacity or one step up, in stock right now with live prices.
| Drive | Capacity | Recording | $/TB | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WD Purple 8TB WD84PURZ | 8TB | CMR | $40.00 | $320 | Buy |
| Red Pro 8TB NAS WD8003FFBX | 8TB | CMR | $41.25 | $330 | Buy |
| WD Red Plus 8TB WD80EFPX | 8TB | CMR | $46.31 | $370 | Buy |
Verified CMR model numbers at this size: ST4000VX007, WD40EFPX, WD4003FFBX, WD42PURZ.
It is SMR, per Seagate SkyHawk 3.5in data sheet DS1902-16 - Seagate's documentation for this exact part number - which also rates it at 180TB/year workload; the page's cheapest in-stock conventional pick right now is the WD Purple 8TB WD84PURZ.
We would not: Seagate SkyHawk 3.5in data sheet DS1902-16 states SMR for the ST4000VX013, and shingled recording turns a rebuild into hours of the write pattern it handles worst. The page's own in-stock conventional alternative right now is the WD Purple 8TB WD84PURZ. For sequential and archival use outside an array this drive is fine.
A conventionally-recorded drive at 4TB or one step up - right now the table's top in-stock pick is the WD Purple 8TB WD84PURZ. Every model number linked in the table has its own verified page with the manufacturer source.