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Western Digital, Seagate and Hitachi square off in 3TB hard drive roundup
We've seen 3TB hard drives trickling onto the market for the better part of a year, but it's only now that we're seeing more UEFI-equipped motherboards that can actually handle all that storage capacity. So, the benchmarking wizards over at HotHardware decided now would be a fine time to pit a few of 'em against each other, rounding up models from the likes of Western Digital, Seagate and Hitachi and subjecting them to a grueling battery of 28 tests. We'll leave it to you to peruse the scores, but suffice to say the Seagate Barracuda XT swept about half the benchmarks, and notched a close second the rest of the time. But is it worth spending an extra $30 over Western Digital's consistently trailing Caviar Green? We'll leave that to you and your wallet.
Seagate ships 7,200RPM 3TB Barracuda XT internal hard drive, we wonder what took so long
We've been hearing about Seagate's plans to offer an unencumbered 3TB hard drive since May of last year, but despite promises of a 2010 launch and the release of similarly large HDDs from companies like Western Digital and Hitachi, we're only now seeing the 3TB Barracuda XT shipping all on its own. We won't claim to have an explanation for the delay, but it's possible that the company's proprietary software -- which breaks the 2.1TB legacy OS barrier and enables this guy to function within Windows XP -- could have something to do with it. It might be tardy to the party, but the new Barracuda can definitely hold its own when stacked against the competition -- it spins at 7,200RPM, touts a 64MB cache, and plays nice with the 6Gbps SATA interface. It ain't the only 3TB fish in the sea, but at $280, it's definitely not dead in the water.
Seagate ships 3.5-inch Barracuda Green internal hard drive, leaves and all
Remember the Barracuda LP? Meet its formal successor. In a bid to generate some interest from upgrading Sierra Club members, Seagate has just introduced the Barracuda Green, described as the world's highest performance eco-friendly desktop hard drive. Essentially, this 3.5-inch internal HDD aims to split the difference between power and performance, with a 5,900RPM spin speed and the company's own SmartAlign technology to enable the benefits of the new 4K sector standard. The company claims that it's whisper quiet in use, and it drains less power than non-Green alternatives. It's hitting the sales channel now in 1TB, 1.5TB and 2TB sizes, with the big guy topping out at around $120. Ma Earth thanks you in advance for your consideration.
Samsung does the 2TB shuffle with EcoGreen F3EG hard drive
Look out, Western Digital -- you've got a little competition up there in the rarefied storage air. Samsung just got official with its newest EcoGreen HDD, the 1.5TB and 2TB F3EG. This here drive is the followup unit to last year's F2EG, and aside from sucking down as little power as possible for a capacious internal drive, it also incorporates a 3.0Gbps SATA interface, native command queuing features and 16MB / 32MB of buffer memory. It should be making its way out onto European and US shelves this month starting at $179.99, thus bringing your ultimate archival dreams that much closer to reality.
Toshiba intros 2.5-inch 5400RPM 640GB hard drive in internal / external flavors
It's no speed demon, but Toshiba's newest 2.5-inch hard drive sure lets you store an awful lot of illicit images precious memories on a single unit. The 640GB MK6465GSX drive spins at 5400RPMs and is said to be the industry's largest in this form factor. The range also includes 500GB, 320GB, 250GB and 160GB models, with the whole lot shipping out to OEMs and distributors later this month. In related news, Tosh is also slapping these bad boys into a few shiny enclosures (Vivid White, Liquid Blue, Komodo Green and Rocket Red if you must know), giving storage junkies an even more capacious offering to slide into their briefcase. Of note, As of now, there's no pricing information available on the bare 640GB unit, but it should be available as we speak for $179.99 in external form.[Via HotHardware]Read - 640GB 2.5-inch hard driveRead - External editions
ioSafe 3.5: industry's first internal HDD with disaster protection
For small and medium sized businesses, data redundancy is more than a novel concept, it's unquestionably critical. Unfortunately, tight budgets don't always allow for pricey off-site storage or fire / waterproof server rooms, which is where ioSafe comes in. Said outfit has just announced the ioSafe 3.5 series, which is hailed as the "industry's first internal hard drive with disaster protection." Put simply, the company has stuffed a 2.5-inch HDD into a 3.5-inch chassis, and it used the extra room to insert matter that protects platters from fire (up to 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit) and flood (full immersion in fresh or salt water). The family will include the Pilot line ($329 to $449) -- which arrives in 80/160/250/320GB sizes with an 8MB buffer, SATA I interface and 5400RPM rotational speed -- and the Squadron line ($359 to $459), which includes 7200RPM 80/160/200GB versions with a SATA II interface. Both lots have already started to ship.[Via TGDaily]
