Toshiba Looks To Power Users With 8TB HDD

Toshiba has signalled its commitment to traditional hard disk drives (HDDs) after it managed to cram yet more capacity into a 3.5 inch internal unit.

The development comes amid the increasing popularity of flash-based storage, and continual predictions of the decline of traditional hard disk drives.

Spinning Platters

But mechanical HDDs have a couple of advantages over their newer rivals, namely cost and capacity. The Storage Peripherals Division of Toshiba Europe has concentrated on the later with the launch of a 8TB model to its X300 family of premium storage 3.5 inch HDDs.

The word premium here indicates that Toshiba is targetting high-end users, namely graphic designers and gamers, who require huge amounts of storage and solid reliability.

Toshiba describes the new 8TB unit as ideal for desktop workstations, all-in-one PCs, gaming computers and home media computers. It comes with a SATA 6.0 Gbit/s interface and claims to offer improved real-time performance and data protection.

“The High-Performance Hard Drive X300 operates with a high rotational speed of 7200 rpm, features a high-capacity 128MB buffer and incorporates a dual-stage actuator design that improves positional accuracy and decreases head-track alignment effects caused by vibration,” said Toshiba. “The drive offers Advanced Format (AF) storage and supports Native Command Queuing (NVQ).”

The new drive also uses Perpendicular Magnetic Recording (PMR) and Tunnel Magneto-Resistive (TMR) recording technology deliver high-density, high-speed and stability. And data security is catered for with the inclusion of “an internal shock sensor that enhances resistance to shock and vibration and ramp loading technology that protects data while the drive is on the move.”

The High-Performance Hard Drive X300 – 8 TB will be available from June and typically will cost in the region of £262. It comes with a two-year warranty as standard.

Flash Future?

The arrival of the new drive comes at a troubling time for the parent organisation. A financial scandal last year rocked the company in Japan, prompting thousands of job losses and warnings of huge losses.

And Toshiba was not the first to offer a 8TB drive after its rival Seagate first began offering a 8TB HDD back in 2014, but this was focused on the enterprise market.

Despite all the warnings about a Flash-based future, hard disk makers continue to provide cheap storage with ever growing capacitity.

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