I’m not a big fan of Mac computers for myself, but I won’t deny that the machines have a sexy design with the aluminum enclosure and minimalist looks. The Mac world has its own peripherals and accessories to go along with its file system and Western Digital has announced a new external storage solution pre-formatted for Mac users.
The new external storage device is the My Book Studio LX. It sports an all-metal enclosure that matches the finish on the MacBook line of notebooks. Connectivity for the drive is via FireWire 800, it has a customizable e-label on the front, and hardware based encryption.
The e-label is always on, can show project names, and lots more information making it easy to tell what’s on the drive if you are using multiple externals. The encryption is 256-bit and the storage device comes in 1TB or 2TB capacities. The drive is available now with the 1TB selling for $199.99 and the 2TB selling for $269.99.
When it comes to fast storage, Western Digital aren’t willing to accept that the only way forward is a solid state drive. Instead, they’re pushing forward with the VelociRaptor series, a range of traditional platter-based hard-drives spinning at high speed and promising SSD-style transfer rates but HDD-style prices per gigabyte. Is the latest Western Digital VelociRaptor WD6000HLHX top of the food chain or overdue for extinction? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut.
Western Digital slot the VelociRaptor WD6000HLHX into their enterprise range, but they’re also clear that it’s an enthusiasts drive. Among those enthusiasts are speed-freak gamers looking to balance transfer rates against storage capacity, together with home server builders demanding the same sort of performance as their corporate cousins.
The new WD6000HLHX offers 600GB of capacity, paired with 32MB of cache, and uses the latest SATA 6 Gb/s interface. A 2.5-inch drive in a 3.5-inch “IcePack” caddy, it spins at a whopping 10,000 rpm and Western Digital reckon you’ll see 3.6ms read seek times, 4.2ms write seek times, and just 3.0ms latency. The caddy, meanwhile, bristles with cooling fins that work as a huge heatsink and also allow you to mount the drive. It’s worth noting that, while the core HDD is a 2.5-inch unit, it’s too thick to fit into most notebooks.
In a desktop though – and one with a 6 Gb/s SATA interface, of course – the improvement over previous VelociRaptor drives is more than just speed. Read rates averaged out at around 98 Mb/s with burst rates of around 150 Mb/s, while write rates came in at around 92 Mb/s with burst rates of around 147 Mb/s. That added up to apps loading significantly quicker, as you’d expect from a fast drive, but also in-app performance being higher than comparable HDDs; storage-intensive tasks, such as heavy duty video crunching or adding large quantities of media to libraries.
However the WD6000HLHX is also a surprisingly quiet drive; Western Digital quote 30 dBA when idle or 37 dBA when under load, and while that makes for louder storage than an SSD, it’s nonetheless quieter than most slower-spinning drives we’ve used. Assuming whatever workstation you’re using it with has more than a couple of fans, you can pretty much count out hearing the VelociRaptor when it’s idle.
Finally there’s power, and though the VelociRaptor can’t quite match the green-credentials of some of Western Digital’s own “Caviar Green” range, it’s still more frugal than we expected. Although they quote 5W when idle, we found it more in the range of 4.0W to 4.3W; that’ll obviously rise when active. Still, it shouldn’t break the bank in terms of ongoing power costs.
Of course, those ongoing costs are only encountered when you get past the not-inconsiderable sticker price of the WD6000HLHX. The 600GB drive is currently listed for around $279.99, which is a high for platter-based GB/$ but competitive against the SSDs Western Digital are pitting the VelociRaptor line. It’s worth noting that you’ll need a suitably upbeat system to pair the HDD with if you want to see the benefit of its capabilities; that’s not just a SATA 6 Gb/s port, but a decent processor and ample RAM. It’ll also do better with a fresh system install, rather than swapping the drive out from your existing setup, and we’ve a feeling many users – and their wallets – would be content with the SATA 3 Gb/s model from the same range.
Overkill for most home users, then, but if your priority is speed and you’re looking at building a performance RAID array then the VelociRaptor WD6000HLHX makes for a more cost-effective and capacious choice than an SSD. As long as you don’t expect it to be a silver bullet dropped into a mediocre existing system – it can’t work miracles, after all – there’s plenty to like about the WD6000HLHX.
Western Digital have updated their high-performance VelociRaptor hard-drive range with another, even larger SATA 6 Gb/s model. The WD VelociRaptor 600GB 6Gb/s spins at 10,000rpm and has a whopping 32MB cache, and the company reckon it’s up to 15-percent faster than the previous generation of drive. That’s despite not using any more power than its predecessor required.
WD reckon likely applications for the new drive – which also has a 450GB sibling – will include blade servers, workstations and rack servers, but a fair few are also likely to find their way into gaming machines. The Western Digital VelociRaptor 600GB 6 Gb/s SATA HDD should be available later this quarter, priced at $329.
Press Release:
WD(R) Launches Newest WD VelociRaptor(R) – The World’s Fastest SATA Hard Drive Now Has Twice the Capacity
10,000 RPM, 2.5-inch, 600 GB, 6 Gb/s SATA Hard Drive Delivers High Performance and Capacity for Both Enthusiast and Enterprise Customers
LAKE FOREST, Calif., April 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — WD® (NYSE: WDC) announced today that it is now shipping WD VelociRaptor® 450 GB and 600 GB hard drives, the next generation of its 10,000 RPM SATA family of hard drives. The new WD VelociRaptor hard drive is designed for blade servers, high-performance PCs, Mac® computers, professional workstations, as well as 1U and 2U rack servers that require a balance of high performance and capacity. As the only 10,000 RPM SATA hard drive on the market today, and a favorite amongst enthusiast and enterprise groups, the WD VelociRaptor hard drive now comes packed with twice the capacity and up to 15% performance increase over the previous generation.
The most popular hard drive for high-performance enthusiasts who demand the ultimate SATA drive, the WD VelociRaptor hard drive is built with enterprise-class mechanics that provide 24×7 durability under high-performance demands and packs up to 600 GB of capacity into a 2.5-inch enterprise form factor. The WD VelociRaptor drive is also available in the IcePack™ enclosure, a 3.5-inch mounting frame with a built-in heat sink – a factory customization that fits the drive into a standard 3.5-inch system bay and keeps this powerful drive extra cool when installed in a high-performance desktop chassis and 3.5-inch HDD form factor enterprise chassis.
“WD is a leader in the performance and reliability of enterprise SATA hard drives,” said Tom McDorman, vice president and general manager of WD’s enterprise business unit. “Demand for performance combined with an increase in capacity continues to rise and WD is the leader in this category. WD customers can rely on the new WD VelociRaptor to deliver high performance under the harshest conditions, while continuing to keep user data safe.”
Features of the new WD VelociRaptor hard drives include:
Killer speed – SATA 6 Gb/s interface and 32 MB cache enhance the next generation 10,000 RPM WD VelociRaptor making it up to 15% faster than the award-winning previous generation.
Monstrous capacity – WD VelociRaptor SATA drives are available in capacities up to 600 GB, double the capacity of the previous generation.
Rock-solid reliability – Designed and manufactured to mission-critical enterprise-class standards to provide enterprise reliability in high duty cycle environments. With 1.4 million hours MTBF, these drives have the highest available reliability rating on a high capacity SATA drive.
Ultra-cool operation – Consumes no more power than the previous generation WD VelociRaptor while offering double the capacity and higher performance.
IcePack mounting frame – The 2.5-inch WD VelociRaptor is enclosed in a backplane-ready 3.5-inch enterprise-class mounting frame with a built-in heat sink that keeps this powerful little drive extra cool when installed in high-performance desktop chassis.
Rotary Acceleration Feed Forward (RAFF™) –Optimizes operation and performance when the drives are used in vibration-prone, multi-drive chassis.
NoTouch™ ramp load technology – The recording head never touches the disk media ensuring significantly less wear to the recording head and media as well as better drive protection in transit.
Environmentally conscious – In addition to being ROHS compliant, this generation of WD VelociRaptor is also a halogen-free design.
Price and Availability
WD VelociRaptor (model WD4500HLHX and WD6000HLHX – 3.5-inch version with IcePack) hard drives are available now at select distributors and resellers. WD VelociRaptor 2.5-inch hard drives (model WD4500BLHX and WD6000BLHX) are under evaluation with OEM customers and will be available through select commercial distributors within this quarter. Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) for the WD VelociRaptor 450 GB (model WD4500HLHX) is $299 USD and the 600 GB (model WD6000HLHX) is $329 USD. More information about WD VelociRaptor hard drives may be found on the company’s Web site at http://www.wdc.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=821.
Hot on the heels of Toshiba’s double-platter 750GB 2.5-inch hard-drive comes Western Digital’s retort, the WD Scorpio Blue 750GB. Intended for notebooks, the 3Gb/s SATA drive spins at 5,400rpm and has 8MB of cache; Western Digital are also pushing their WhisperDrive technology that, they claim, reduces both noise and power consumption.
There’s also shock-protection and “SecurePark”, which is used to park the heads more frequently thus reducing the likelihood of impact damage against the platters. It’s actually a little quieter than the Toshiba drive, when idle at least: 22dBA versus 25dBA.
Shipments of the new Western Digital 2.5-inch 750GB drive have begun now, priced at $149. We still don’t know how much its Toshiba counterpart will be.
Press Release:
WD® LEADS IN 2.5-INCH AREAL DENSITY WITH NEW 750 GB NOTEBOOK HARD DRIVES
WD Mobile Hard Drives with Advanced Format Technology Offer Highest Capacity For Mainstream Notebook Computers
LAKE FOREST, Calif. – Mar. 30, 2010 – WD® (NYSE: WDC) today announced that it is now shipping 750 GB of storage capacity in a standard-height 2.5-inch notebook hard drive — the industry’s highest capacity to date in this form factor. Designed for mainstream notebook computers, the WD Scorpio® Blue™ 750 GB hard drives utilize WD’s leading 375 GB-per-platter areal density and Advanced Format technology.
An ideal solution for notebook computers and other portable devices whose users require extreme capacities in a small package, extended battery life and cool, reliable operation, the WD Scorpio Blue 750 GB hard drive is also one of the quietest 2.5-inch drives on the market.
“WD continues to lead the market with capacity points that enable consumers and business professionals to store large quantities of data and rich media content,” said Jim Morris, WD’s senior vice president and general manager of Storage Products. “Our leading power efficiency, achieved without compromise to performance, is another example of the added features and value that our customers have come to expect from WD.”
Features of the WD Scorpio Blue include:
Advanced Format technology – Technology being pioneered by WD and adopted by other drive manufacturers to increase media format efficiencies, thus enabling larger drive capacities.
WhisperDrive™ – WD’s exclusive WhisperDrive technology combines state-of-the-art seeking algorithms to yield one of the quietest 2.5-inch hard drives on the market. These algorithms also optimize the way a drive seeks for data, which significantly improves power consumption.
ShockGuard™ – Leading-edge ShockGuard technology protects the drive mechanics and platter surfaces from shocks.
SecurePark™ – WD’s SecurePark technology parks the recording heads off the disk surface during spin up, spin down, and when the drive is off. This ensures the recording head never touches the disk surface resulting in improved long term reliability due to less head wear, and improved non-operational shock tolerance.
Fast and efficient – Ultra-fast 3 gigabits per second (Gb/s) SATA interface speed yields performance fit for demanding mobile applications.
Tested for compatibility – WD performs extensive tests on hundreds of systems and a multitude of platforms in its FIT Lab™ and Mobile Compatibility Lab to give our customers confidence that our drives will work in their systems.
Price and Availability
WD Scorpio Blue 750 GB (model WD7500BPVT) hard drives are shipping now through select distributors and resellers. Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) for the WD Scorpio Blue 750 is $149.00 USD. WD Scorpio Blue hard drives are covered by a three-year limited warranty. More information about WD Scorpio Blue mobile hard drives may be found on the company’s Web site at http://www.wdc.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=815.
About WD
WD, one of the storage industry’s pioneers and long-time leaders, provides products and services for people and organizations that collect, manage and use digital information. The company designs and produces reliable, high-performance hard drives and solid state drives that keep users’ data accessible and secure from loss. Its advanced technologies are configured into applications for client and enterprise computing, embedded systems and consumer electronics, as well as its own consumer storage and media products.
WD was founded in 1970. The company’s storage products are marketed to leading OEMs, systems manufacturers, selected resellers and retailers under the Western Digital® and WD brand names. Visit the Investor section of the company’s Web site (www.westerndigital.com) to access a variety of financial and investor information.
Western Digital is one of the biggest names in storage. The company offers internal hard drives for consumer and enterprise computers along with a full line of external storage solutions for a myriad of uses like the My Passport Studio unveiled earlier this month. WD has now unveiled another new addition to its external line up called the My Passport AV.
The My Passport AV is designed to connect directly to Sony Handicam camcorders supporting the Direct Copy feature along with other devices like TVs and Blu-ray players that have USB ports. The external solution is specifically designed for streaming video content.
The My Passport AV is available right now in a 320GB version for $109.99. The drive will directly connect to the WD TV media player line, Direct Copy Sony camcorders, 2010 Sony Blu-ray players, the PS3, Xbox 360, and some JVC, Samsung, and Philips TVs.
Western Digital have outed a new portable hard-drive, the My Passport Studio, and like the My Book Studio before it they’ve slapped on a super-frugal E Ink panel to show drive status details. Available in 320GB, 500GB and 640GB capacities, the My Passport Studio has both FireWire 800 and USB 2.0 connections and comes ready formatted for use with a Mac.
They’re also compatible with Time Machine, Apple’s backup system, and WD SmartWare, Western Digital’s own backup system. That allows for automatic and continuous backup programs, complete with 256-bit hardware encryption for data security.
Since the display uses E-Ink it’s persistently visible despite the HDD having no internal battery; it’s also user-customizable, and as well as showing capacity status it can show a drive label. The Western Digital My Passport Studio is available now, priced at $149.99 for the 320GB model, $179.99 for the 500GB and $199.99 for the 640GB.
Press Release:
WD® INTRODUCES NEW MY PASSPORT™ STUDIO™ PORTABLE DRIVES, DELIVERING SUPER-FAST, GO-ANYWHERE PERFORMANCE FOR MAC® COMPUTERS
E-Label Smart Display Helps Creative Professionals Organize Their Storage
LAKE FOREST, Calif.- Mar. 1, 2010 – WD® (NYSE: WDC), the world’s leader in external storage solutions, today introduced its new My Passport™ Studio™ portable drives featuring the super-fast FireWire® 800 interface and a customizable e-label that’s always visible, even when the drive is unplugged. Sporting a sleek and stylish design, the new high-performance My Passport Studio drives are formatted for Mac® computers, compatible with Apple® TimeMachine® software, and feature automatic and continuous backup with WD SmartWare™ software, and 256-bit hardware-based encryption. Available now at select retailers and shopwd.com, the new My Passport Studio drives are offered in capacities of 320 GB, 500 GB and 640 GB.
WD’s My Passport Studio drives are designed for creative professionals and Mac enthusiasts. Their production and use of many large files require the fast transfers from computer to My Passport Studio drives that FireWire 800 provides. Professionals such as photographers also benefit from the e-labeling system to effectively organize their work.
The e-label smart display on the front of the My Passport drives can be changed as often as desired using the included WD SmartWare software. Users can easily create a label to personalize their drive or remind themselves of its contents. The e-label also shows available capacity and whether the drive is locked. Utilizing e-paper technology, the information on the display remains clearly visible, even when the drive is unplugged.
According to research firm Parks Associates, the average U.S. broadband household currently has over 120 GB of digital media and files which is projected to grow to over 1 TB of data by 2013.
“Many of our customers store their content on multiple external drives, making it difficult to know what content is on each drive,” said Dale Pistilli, vice president of marketing of WD’s Branded Products group. “The e-label smart display is an elegant and practical solution for organizing and keeping track of one’s digital life and work. WD SmartWare software makes it easy for users to protect their valuable content with automatic and continuous backup and encryption.”
The new My Passport Studio is fully compatible with Apple TimeMachine software for easy backup of your most important files. It also offers the option of the simple and intuitive WD SmartWare software, with automatic continuous backup and real-time visual interface, giving users a reassuring view of their backup as it happens. After the first backup, users’ files are backed up automatically every time they change or add a file.
My Passport Studio drives also feature user-selected password protection combined with 256-bit hardware-based encryption, which scrambles files before they are stored. Typically found only on much more expensive drive systems, the encryption acts as a virtual padlock to keep users’ data safe.
Price and Availability
The new My Passport Studio drives are offered in capacities of 320 GB, 500 GB and 640 GB and have a 3-year limited warranty. My Passport Studio ultra-portable drives are available now at select retailers and online at shopwd.com. MSRP for the My Passport Studio drives ranges from $149.99 USD to $199.99 USD depending on capacity.
My Passport Studio
The new WD My Passport Studio ultra-portable drives feature:
Smart display – a customizable e-label that reminds users of what is stored on the drive and provides available capacity and security status at a glance even when the drive is unplugged;
FireWire 800 – users can save and access data at top speeds with the high-performance FireWire 800 interface;
Plug-and-play, designed for use with Mac computers and compatibility with Apple TimeMachine software;
WD SmartWare software that visually presents consumers’ data in a software control center;
256-bit hardware-based encryption and password protection for peace of mind knowing that data is protected from unauthorized access;
USB 2.0 interface – for convenience and compatibility among multiple computers;
Planet-friendly packaging derived from recycled materials to minimize waste;
HFS+ Journaled formatting and are compatible with Mac OS X Tiger®, Leopard® and Snow Leopard®;
3-year limited warranty.
WD SmartWare Software
WD SmartWare software features:
Visual backup displays that show content in categories and shows the progress of backup;
Automatic, continuous data backup will instantly make a second copy whenever you add or change a file;
Retrieve valuable data to its original location whether it’s lost data or the file has been overwritten; and,
Customizable data backup that allows users to set drive security, run diagnostics, manage the power settings, and more from the WD SmartWare control center.
About WD
WD, one of the storage industry’s pioneers and long-time leaders, provides products and services for people and organizations that collect, manage and use digital information. The company designs and produces reliable, high-performance hard drives and solid state drives that keep users’ data accessible and secure from loss. Its advanced technologies are configured into applications for client and enterprise computing, embedded systems and consumer electronics, as well as its own consumer storage and media products.
WD was founded in 1970. The company’s storage products are marketed to leading OEMs, systems manufacturers, selected resellers and retailers under the Western Digital® and WD brand names. Visit the Investor section of the company’s Web site (www.westerndigital.com) to access a variety of financial and investor information.
Hot on the heels of Toshiba’s 
