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160 GB WD Drives Have Own Shock Prevention |
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Written by Adam Gosling
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Tuesday, 19 September 2006 |
Western Digital has begun shipping 160 GB mobile hard drives
for notebooks and portable storage applications. The drives, developed using
the relatively new perpendicular magnetic recording technology, also include lower
power consumption to improve battery life in mobile applications.
Western Digital says the drives have a 5,400 RPM spin speed,
but with the power consumption profile comparable to a 4,200 RPM drive.
The new WD Scorpio hard drives are available in a range of
capacities from 40 GB through 160 GB; up to 8 MB cache; available with EIDE or
SATA interface; and have a three-year warranty.
The use of PMR (Perpendicular Magnetic Recording) technology
means the magnetisation of each data bit is aligned vertically to the spinning
disk, rather than longitudinally as has been the case in hard drive technology
for decades.
This enables more data on a given disk than is possible with
conventional longitudinal recording, and provides a platform for future
expansion of hard drive densities.
Western Digital said production volumes of the 2.5-inch SATA
Scorpio drives include additional features such as quiet operation, high shock
tolerance and low power consumption.
WD's exclusive WhisperDrive technology with SoftSeek
algorithms helps make WD Scorpio the quietest 2.5-inch drive available.
Leading-edge ShockGuard technology combines firmware and hardware advancements
to protect the drive mechanics and delicate platter surface to meet the highest
combined shock tolerance specifications required for mobile and notebook
applications.
Additional shock protection by locking the heads off the
disk is provided with DuraStep Ramp, which uses the most technologically
advanced material available on the market to allow the drive to execute a
minimum of 600,000 load/unload cycles without contamination.
"The new WD Scorpio 160 GB drives deliver the high
capacity that many mobile computing users demand with WD's implementation of
PMR technology, as well as exclusive features that result in meaningful
end-user benefits," said Jody Bradshaw, WD's senior director and general
manager of notebook storage.
All that storage and technology comes at a price, however. The
WD Scorpio 160 GB drive is expected to sell for around A$339.
See info about the Scorpio drives here http://www.westerndigital.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=264 or www.westerndigital.com
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