Hitachi Announces Eco-friendly Hard Drive

Whether you’re looking for a way to cut costs or you simply want to do what’s right for the environment, going green certainly seems to be a hot topic in today’s society. Not to be left out of the earth-friendly party, Hitachi is the latest hard drive manufacturer to go green.

Hitachi recently announced the fourth-generation of its CinemaStar hard-drive family. The drive features Hitachi's EcoTrac Classification, which means it is halogen-free and has very low power consumption. The new CinemaStar features a 22% reduction in read/write power specification (at 1.4W) compared to previous models and is designed for use in continuous, 24x7 applications. This 2.5-inch, 5,400rpm SATA laptop hard drive also uses more cost-effective power supplies to help lower energy costs for consumers.

The new drive supports Hitachi's SmoothStream technology, which enhances streaming functionality in digital video applications. The CinemaStar also includes technology that will provide time-limited error recovery, improved thermal monitoring capabilities, and silent-seek acoustics for ultra-quiet operation.

Hitachi recommends the new CinemaStar for use in digital video applications that require a compact design and low power usage, such as in slim digital video recorders, set-top boxes, and surveillance systems.  The demand for digital music and photos along with high-definition TV content is driving DVR capacity requirements upwards. As Brendan Collins, vice president, Product Marketing, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies points out, “Home theater systems are becoming increasingly compact, as users seek out space-saving and power-efficient component designs. The new CinemaStar drive will allow DVR manufacturers to deliver compact DVRs with all the capacity and features of larger form factor products.”

The new CinemaStar drive will be available in the second quarter with capacities ranging from 160GB to 500GB. Pricing is still to be determined.