Battery life on 5400RPM v. 7200

[Nereo]

Finally updated the 17" MBP and I'm about to purchase, but...

I know the faster spinning HDs require more power = faster battery drain, but what I'm hoping someone can tell me is *how much more*... if untethered would a MBP with a 7200RPM HD have 10 fewer minutes of battery time? an hour? what's a reasonable assumption in how much less time i'll have to work if i opt for the faster HD?

 

[whateverandever]

Finally updated the 17" MBP and I'm about to purchase, but...

I know the faster spinning HDs require more power = faster battery drain, but what I'm hoping someone can tell me is *how much more*... if untethered would a MBP with a 7200RPM HD have 10 fewer minutes of battery time? an hour? what's a reasonable assumption in how much less time i'll have to work if i opt for the faster HD?

It's really not much more at all. At full speed there is really no difference between the two. 7200rpm will take up more power, but it'll finish reading/writing faster. At idle, it uses *slightly* more power, but really not a big difference. Probably knocks 5 minutes off your battery time at most.