Hitachi's New 3.5-In. Hard Drives Deliver Performance, Capacity for Demanding Server, Workstation Applications
Nov 4, 1997 00:00 AM
High-Speed Interfaces and Capacity Up to 18 Gigabytes Positions Hitachi To Compete In Fast Growing Enterprise Storage Market Segment
Hitachi America, Ltd., today announced a family of high-capacity, high-performance 3.5-in. disk drives, with 18.2 or 9.1 Gigabyte (GB) capacity and support for the industry's fastest interface options, including Fast SCSI-2, Ultra SCSI, Ultra2 SCSI, and Fibre Channel. With the new drives, Hitachi is solidly positioned to compete for OEM designs of enterprise storage systems, including servers and disk arrays, and very high-performance workstations.
Hitachi's new drive family is based on two core products. The DK319H-18, delivers 18.2 GB of storage capacity in a half-height, 41.3 mm profile drive. The DK319H-91 is a low-profile, 25.4 mm, drive with 9.1 GB capacity. Both new drives utilize state-of-the-art EPRML read channel electronics, embedded servos, and advanced manufacturing technologies to deliver the performance and reliability required for the industry's most demanding storage applications. Combined with the industry's broadest range of drive-to-computer interface options -- from Fast SCSI-2 data transfer rates of 10 - 20 MB/s, to Fibre Channel's 100 MB/s -- Hitachi can provide OEM customers with storage solutions across a wide range of application environments.
"Hitachi’s new 3.5-in. disk drives are purpose-built to meet the capacity and performance requirements of leading computer and storage system OEMs," said Gary Galusha, vice president of hard disk drive sales for Hitachi America's Computer Division, Storage Products Group. "Hitachi is one of the few companies with the technology and manufacturing skills to consistently deliver industry-leading products, and this new family of drives will allow us to increase share in this demanding market segment."
With an onboard RISC microprocessor to support intelligent caching algorithms and other performance optimization features, the drives provide superb data access and data throughput performance. The 7,200 RPM disc speed drives have average seek times of just 7.5 ms, average latency of 4.1 ms, and internal data transfer rates of 13.5 - 21.8 MB/s. Each of the drives has a standard data buffer of 512 Kilobytes, with an optional 2 Megabyte buffer to support caching intensive applications, such as disk arrays and Internet storage servers.
OEM samples of the DK319H-18 and DK329H-91 drives will be available in December, 1997, with production shipments beginning in the first quarter of 1998. Sample pricing for drives with a Fast SCSI-2 interface is $1,795 for the 18.2 GB drive, and $995 for the 9.1 GB drive.
The Computer Division of Hitachi America, Ltd. sells high-capacity, high-performance hard disk drives, CD-ROM, and DVD drives through its Storage Products Group.
Hitachi America, Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., Japan, markets and manufactures a broad range of electronics, computer systems and semiconductor products, and provides industrial equipment and services throughout the U.S.
Hitachi, Ltd., headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading global electronics company, with fiscal 1996 (ending March 31, 1997) consolidated sales of $68.7 billion. The company manufactures and markets a wide range of products, including computers, semiconductors, consumer products and power and industrial equipment.