Samsung to launch 1.3-inch hard drive at CES

While you're down on the street corner, sweating, hustling and dancing to Stones tracks from the early 80's, Samsung is hard at work creating the next-greatest thing you'll ever own. Enter the Korean company's latest coup de grace, a 1.3-inch hard drive targeted at "mobile consumer devices." 1.3-inch, folks -- that's real, real small. To put it in perspective, current iPod Classic drives are 1.8-inches, so you can imagine the tiny possibilities. Apparently, the magically delicious devices will be announced at the CES in January (where your faithful Engadget team will be avoiding the sleep-monster and scooping the heck out of stories). In addition to the tiny hard drive, Samsung will also be announcing a 1TB, 3.5-inch RAID Edition drive, and a less exciting 2.5-inch, 320GB disk. Expect to hear more... say, in January.

[Via SlashGear]

[LordFarkward @ Dec 6th 2007 3:21AM]

"Except to hear more... say, in January."

so i can expect to hear more anytime except for jan?

[DDay @ Dec 6th 2007 3:28AM]

Yeah, those spelling errors creep up on you don't they...

[Blackstar @ Dec 6th 2007 8:08AM]

Im in jur tiny Hard Drivez stealenz jur storage!... and da spel checkz!

[paloooz @ Dec 6th 2007 11:13AM]

All I hear is NEDM

[Lifelion @ Dec 6th 2007 3:23AM]

If the size is not above 30GB, it is useless.

[computer.dude.28 @ Dec 6th 2007 6:41PM]

You mean like the 250MB Samsung I have in my closet? :P

[David @ Dec 6th 2007 3:25AM]

I can has hard drive?

[kyle allen @ Dec 6th 2007 3:54AM]

i am in your mobile device, steeling your 1.3" hdd

[shamrock593 @ Dec 6th 2007 4:34AM]

Guys, it really doesn't work unless you add 'z', 'omg', or 'lol' to your words/sentences.

=P

[David @ Dec 6th 2007 5:13AM]

You mean like:
I can has hard drive zomglol

[Magallanes @ Dec 6th 2007 11:09AM]

Ceiling hd is watching you installing pron.

[DDay @ Dec 6th 2007 3:25AM]

What the hell is with the HDD and the cat being on different planes of existence? Obviously, someone needs to work on their photoshop jobs.

[LordFarkward @ Dec 6th 2007 3:29AM]

Or, obviously, someone needs to fix his sarcasm/exaggeration receptors.

[kyle allen @ Dec 6th 2007 4:22AM]

more like, whats the deal with your face being on a different plane of existance than the rest of you!! obviously you need to work on your politeness skills!!..... I guess I do too tho.

[Reader @ Dec 6th 2007 3:40AM]

I lol'd at the pic. Last thing I was expecting when opening an article about hard drives.

[James Ollier @ Dec 6th 2007 4:24AM]

Internet, Hear Me!

Don't lie and say LOL!
Use somthing closer to the truth!


Use LQTM

Laugh Quietly to Myself

[lettcco @ Dec 6th 2007 3:40AM]

WOW, this pussy is giving me a raging hard








drive.

[LordFarkward @ Dec 6th 2007 3:45AM]

sometimes i wish engadget would let me up-vote someone multiple times

and same for down-voting when a troll wakes up

[lettcco @ Dec 6th 2007 3:48AM]

oh come on, the picture was asking for it.

[LordFarkward @ Dec 6th 2007 4:22AM]

oh sorry if u took it the wrong way. i up voted u but wanted to vote a few more times :D i mega lol'ed

[Danger mouse @ Dec 6th 2007 3:44AM]

It's not how big it is, but how you use it that counts.

[Future Technologies @ Dec 6th 2007 5:51AM]

It's not how edible it is, but how you eat it that counts.

[Brandon Shin @ Dec 6th 2007 3:51AM]

This should make iPod Micro, hard drive based 40, 60GB iPod.
Make 1.5inch hard drive and we'll have iPod Milli.

[Tired_ @ Dec 6th 2007 4:08AM]

Maybe they can put one of those 1TB drives into an iPod Deka

[Brandon Shin @ Dec 6th 2007 4:10AM]

Tired_/ What a great idea! Apple should hire you right away!

[James Yopp @ Dec 6th 2007 10:13AM]

The iPod mini was based on a 1" hard drive. 1" hard drives have been around since the turn of the century, when IBM initially released their 170MB and 340MB CompactFlash Hard Drive card (at the time, most Flash-based cards were 64MB or less, just as expensive, and had vastly inferior performance characteristics).

[rumblerjon @ Dec 6th 2007 4:19AM]

Think how many hard drives you could fit in a cat!

[prttymf8 @ Dec 6th 2007 4:32AM]

Samsung is working on creating giant cats?

[Jeff @ Dec 6th 2007 4:41AM]

"I made you a hard drive but I eated it"

[Toink @ Dec 6th 2007 4:42AM]

Seriously, what's a cat got to do with a 1.3-inch hard-on.... este drive >:]

[Toink @ Dec 6th 2007 4:43AM]

you mean, "ate"? Hehe j/k!

[Pretol @ Dec 6th 2007 5:15AM]

Hard drive is DEAD. Instead of investing money into this archaic technology they should hurry up and make the SSD cheaper. Maybe you think a micro record player is a good idea too, like a 1.3" record...

[lol @ Dec 6th 2007 11:20AM]

yeah guy, Hard Drive is dead.

Just like tape is dead...unless you're a corporation.

Hard Drive is not dead, moron. It's still an industry standard by far. Just because a new format exists, doesn't mean the incumbent one is instantly dead. Digital audio still hasn't eclipsed the existence of the CD, and to a lesser extent, vinyl.

As long as there is an industry that needs it, HDD is going to stay in its current position. SSD definitely has potential, but the price/storage ratio needs to seriously come down to match. It's not even close.

Not to say SSD won't eventually cross the threshold, but we're a long way off. Standard flash memory hasn't even come down significantly enough.

[Pretol @ Dec 6th 2007 7:48PM]

Vinyl is LONG dead
CD's are dead
Even the HD DVD vs Blue Disk format war is DEAD.
And hard-drives are on the way OUT.

Small HD like that will hold little data. Will be expensive to make. And SSD prices are already dropping.

Are you living in a cave? Everybody is starting to make 32G FLASH mp3 players (16G is common and expected). Of course corp's will use cheap shit, but 1" hard-drive is still way to exotic for that market, so tell me WHO NEEDS IT? Who exactly needs a 30G EXOTIC microdrive, when you can have a 32G flash memory for ALMOST THE SAME PRICE, and it won't EVER break on you... LIKE EVER (almost).. And HD is already known to be the weak link of any computer.

[bdarma @ Dec 6th 2007 5:18AM]

that pic is soo funny!

[Homeboy @ Dec 6th 2007 6:03AM]

Yawn, next year 32GB flash DAPs for under $300 will be one the market.

[Anonymous @ Dec 6th 2007 6:38AM]

oh /b/tards :)

[Allister @ Dec 6th 2007 6:40AM]

I for one welcome our 1.3in HDD-based feline overlords

[Sebas @ Dec 6th 2007 8:01AM]

Good, but nothing fantastic : 1" HD exist already.
Palm Lifedrive and iPod mini used them !

[John Strickland @ Dec 6th 2007 8:43AM]

Why isn't the 2.5 in sas drive exciting? I can't wait until they are the industry standard.

[carlos @ Dec 6th 2007 9:32AM]

I'm geniunely curious, why is this a good thing, don't we allready have microdrives ? They are smaller than 1.3in...
someone please tell me

[John @ Dec 6th 2007 9:55AM]

as mentioned above, 1" drives were featured inside the Palm LifeDrive, Ipod Mini, and Creative Zen Micro (among many others by iRiver, Cowan, and everyone else). Actually, There was also a .85" drive option out there at some point if i'm not mistaken...unless that was just the actual platter size inside the 1" drive.

[carlos @ Dec 6th 2007 10:00AM]

ok, but
"Samsung is hard at work creating the next-greatest thing you'll ever own"

why is this the next greatest thing i'll ever own...

[kastonie @ Dec 6th 2007 10:05AM]

how exactly do i measure 1.3 inches on my ruler?

[holycow @ Dec 6th 2007 11:17AM]

tiny harddrive sexy samsung mp3 players.. :)

[foxdude0486 @ Dec 6th 2007 12:06PM]

Wonder how much it'll hold. Would be great for compact umpc's

[Kenban @ Dec 6th 2007 12:11PM]

The 1" hard drive is already useless because of flash memory. A 16GB compact flash card which is the same size (but uses less power and is more reliable) then the 1" drive only costs just over $100 (newegg).

Samsung is already shipping nand flash memory in high enough densities to build 32 and 64GB compact flash cards. Its possible to find a 32GB card and if you really look around and are willing to pay close to $1000 a 64GB card is available. But at the rate the prices are dropping 32GB will be $150 or less by the end of next year.

This drive is going to just target the same audience already served by flash memory and 1.8" drives. I just don't see the point because I don't think 1.3" is large enough to justify the space and power requirements over flash memory.

[Mark @ Dec 6th 2007 3:17PM]

It's going to be released in a 33GB capacity ;)

Though it's pointless effort since realistic flash is already at 32GB.

[silvarga @ Dec 6th 2007 5:28PM]

That cat looks like Burl Ives.

[mongoos150 @ Dec 6th 2007 5:43PM]

Shouldn't Sammy be focusing on NAND and flash?