Samsung samples 500GB laptop HDD
'I scoff at your less capacious SSD'
Agentless Backup is Not a Myth
With notebook-oriented SSDs now hitting the 250GB mark, Samsung has introduced a laptop-friendly hard drive offering double that capacity.
The 500GB SpinPoint M7 uses the notebook-standard 2.5in form-factor and incorporates a pair of 250GB platters. They spin at 5400rpm, and data transfers are buffered in an 8MB cache. The drive connects to its host PC across a 3Gb/s Sata bus.
Samsung said the drive's good to take up to 400G of operating shock and consumes 25 per cent less power than other 2.5in drives during seek operations. Apparently, it's very quiet too.
Other than the headline half-a-terabyte capacity, the M7 series will include 250GB, 320GB and 400GB models. They're available in sample quantities for notebook and external hard drive manufacturers now, but are expected to be more widely available in volume later this month. ®
COMMENTS
Its precedessor used one more platter
This 2-platter drive replaces the 3-platter 500GB SpinPoint M6 released in 2008:
http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/06/samsung-intros-spinpoint-m6-500gb-standard-height-laptop-drive/
http://www.engadget.com/2008/06/10/samsung-stops-teasing-brings-spinpoint-m6-500gb-stateside/
It was Hitachi that released a 2.5-inch 500GB hard drive that, at 12.5mm, was too tall to fit a standard laptop, no doubt making life miserable for its public relations folks:
http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/03/hitachis-5k500-e5k500-hit-the-mythical-500gb-mark-for-laptops/
For a given value of 'standard'
Does the 'standard 2.5" form factor' extend to this drive being 9.5mm deep?
Someone (Fujitsu?) announced a 500Gb 2.5" drive a while back, but the deal-breaker was that it was 12.5mm and therefore wouldn't fit in my laptop.
Could be a go-er - I'm certainly a fan of the SpinPoint F1 3.5" drives.
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