Originally published March 23 2007
Hybrid hard drives to offer cleaner, greener and faster data storage
by Christian Evans
A new hybrid hard drive has been developed by Samsung Electronics which promises a power-saving technology revolution. Samsung claims that their hybrid unit will speed up computer boot times and consume 70-90% less power than traditional hard drive units, reducing electricity usage and related CO2 emissions from power plants.
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What you need to know - Conventional View
• The new technology combines a small flash memory chip with a traditional rotating disk drive, allowing the traditional disk to spin less frequently and use less power.
• Incoming data is recorded on the memory chip and transferred to the disk drive only when the flash memory is full.
• Computer makers seem hesitant to adopt the new technology until the Korean company can prove it is reliable.
• Seagate Electronics, the leader in the hard drive market, is developing hybrid technology to be marketed in the near future.
• Intel, a giant in the chip industry, is also developing similar technology, known as Robson, that could prove to be a worthy competitor to Samsung's hybrid hard drive.
• Samsung sold only 10% of the total hard drives shipped in 2006, ranking fourth behind leaders Seagate Technology at 33%, Western Digital at 20%, and Hitachi at 16%.
• iSuppli senior analyst Krishna Chander expects hybrid drives to take off in 2008, when hybrids will account for 15-20% of computer notebook sales.
• Notebook hard drive shipments were set to hit $14.9 billion in 2010, up from $9.2 billion in 2006.
• The desktop hard drive market, which took in $11.6 billion in 2006, is expected to shrink to $11.2 billion in 2010.
• "There is a challenge to prove the reliability of this total drive that has both flash and hard drives integrated into one," said Chander.
What you need to know - Alternative View
Statements and opinions by Mike Adams, executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center
• Computer storage devices collectively use an enormous amount of energy from the national grid, and much of the time, the hard drives are spinning for no good reason. A hybrid hard drive technology would be a welcomed improvement in the energy efficiency of data storage devices.
• Thanks to heightened environmental awareness, many technology companies are now examining ways to make their products greener (more energy efficient). Another huge issue facing the computer components industry is e-waste and the use of hazardous materials in the manufacture of computer hardware.
Bottom line
• Hybrid hard drive technology promises to use less energy than current hard drives.
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