What do you call a disk drive that is not solid state?

I tried searching for things like opposite of solid-state, but most of what I've found suggest things like liquid-state. I'm pretty sure a drive that is not solid-state contains no liquid to speak of.

Is there a one word antonym for the use of solid-state in this context?

Solution 1:

Solid-state drives are called solid-state because there are no moving parts in them. Drives with moving parts are called hard disk drives, because they contain disks which rotate when the drive is powered on. You could consider this an antonym, but not necessarily. They are simply two different technologies, with many other possible to come.

Solution 2:

The word you are looking for is "magnetic" or "mechanical" (i.e. a mechanical disk drive).

The word "disk drive" has become very ubiquitous and a layman is likely to apply the term to other storage technologies. So, while technically you would be correct in saying that a disk drive is something that is not (technically) "solid-state", the term could easily be confused.

This is an English/communication question; not a technical one. The only way to guarantee understanding is to properly describe the specific technology you are referring to — mechanical disk drive, platter-based disk drive, old-style noisy rotating spinny magnetic planar disks with crashing heads inducing much rage systems — don't get too caught up in the technical accuracy when communication and understanding are important.