A little misleading, USB 3.0 is only expected to have a throughput of IIRC 400 megabytes/second after protocol overhead. It's entirely possible to get 300 megabytes/second out of a properly configured HDD system. Considering the considerable price difference between a HDD and SSD, 33% faster transfer rate isn't hugely important for the average consumer.<p>SSD might have some advantages, but it also has disadvantages and I'm still not personally impressed with the drives viability over long periods of use.<p>Edit: I also fail to see how USB3 is really relevant, especially considering that eSATA is capable of providing up to 6Gb/s, compared to the 3.2Gb/s estimated by the USB 3.0 specification after protocol overhead. Regardless of HDD or SSD, USB3 still isn't the deciding factor if you're looking for high transfer speeds with external drives.