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BRACKNELL, UK –BUSINESS WIRE– Dec 21, `07 — Dell has signed an agreement to acquire privately held The Networked Storage Company (TNWSC), a leading IT consultancy, that specializes in transitioning customers to proven, simplified and cost-efficient IT data storage solutions.

Terms were not disclosed and the purchase will not be final until all closing conditions are met. TNWSC is based in Epsom, United Kingdom.

TNWSC’s unique Point of Proof methodology provides an auditable end-to-end process to evaluate, select and implement proven solutions that deliver robust, simplified and cost-effective IT infrastructures.

The approach, primarily implemented with storage networks, can be extended across the entire IT environment, helping to reduce overall costs and complexity of IT infrastructure maintenance and management. TNWSC has a blue chip customer base including several of Europe’s leading

More at BusinessWire, Dell.com/ics.

SAN JOSE, Calif –BUSINESS WIRE– Dec 19, `07 — Samsung Electronics announced today its high capacity 2.5-inch hard drive, the new Spinpoint M6 featuring 320GB of storage capacity.

The new Spinpoint M6 HM320JI is a SATA hard drive designed for notebook PCs, as well as slim PCs and blade servers. With its ultra-high 320GB capacity, the Spinpoint M6 can store the most content of any 2.5” drive and is ideal for notebook users who need large storage space for videos, photos, music and multiple multimedia applications.

Created to thrive in the toughest environments where notebook PCs are used, the Spinpoint M6 provides superb reliability. It utilizes perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology, and the disk drive design has been optimized to allow ultra-precision adjustment of the head parking ramp position for high-density recording. The Spinpoint M6 features an optional Free-Fall Sensor that protects data from accidental drops and includes an optional Rotary Vibration Controller that minimizes the influence of external vibration.

The Spinpoint M6 has been developed to meet the most stringent environmental demands of notebook PC and portable consumer electronics, where minimal noise and low power consumption is critical. Samsung’s Spinpoint M6 hard drives operate between 2.6Bel and 2.4Bel in idle mode.

The M6 Series features a 5,400rpm spindle speed, 1.5Gbps SATA interface and 8MB cache memory. The M6 Series is currently available with a $249 MSRP (where? only - the Worst (non-existent) On the Planet Samsung-PR - knows ). Can’t find it at Samsung Global Hard Disk Drive page or anywhere at Samsung, except user manual.

SANTA CLARA, Calif — On Tuesday Dec 18, Intel released a software initiator package to drive the development of Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) solutions for the Linux operating system.

FCoE is a proposed specification that will allow Fibre Channel SAN traffic to run over Ethernet. By consolidating LAN and SAN traffic onto a single fabric, FCoE will simplify network infrastructure in the datacenter.

The FCoE software package is now available for download at Open-FCoE.org and can be modified according to the terms of the GPLv2 license. As part of the package, Intel has included a target simulator, so Linux developers can test and modify the FCoE software stack. Open-FCoE.org is open to all FCoE developers for source code download, code contribution and feedback.

Cisco Systems submitted the initial FCoE proposal to the Fibre Channel standards body, T11, in April. As a member of the T11, Intel is committed to working with Cisco and other companies to drive industry enablement of FCoE.

“Fiber Channel over Ethernet will be a key capability for our customers offering seamless server and storage access in the data center,” said Jayshree Ullal, senior vice president of the Data Center, Switching and Services Group at Cisco Systems. “The emergence of 10 Gigabit Ethernet bandwidth combined with Cisco’s proposed extensions to Ethernet, enables a lossless and resilient fabric for Data Center I/O consolidation. Cisco is pleased to see Intel taking a leadership role in FCoE.”

The new FCoE initiator code is based on a specification being developed by the T11 in the FC-BB-5 work group. The FCoE specification is expected to be completed in 2008. More at Intel.

SAN DIEGO & SEOUL, Korea –BUSINESS WIRE– Dec 17, `07 — DivX and LG today announced the launch of two additional models in the DivX Certified Time Machine TV Series specifically targeted for South America.

The two new models of LG’s DivX Certified Time Machine TV Series join millions of DivX Certified devices on the market today that play back high-quality DivX video content.

The two additional models, the 42LB9RT and 32LB9RT, are LCD offerings that deliver high image and audio quality for digital content using much less bandwidth than regular analog devices. These devices boast a simultaneous watch-and-record function and the ability to transfer high-quality DivX content directly to the TV through the USB port.

Maintaining the exceptional standards of the Time Machine TV Series, these models include a built-in 80 gigabyte hard disc drive for Time Shift function and recording as well as a USB 2.0 port, for backing up recorded content and enabling the direct playback of MP3, JPEG and DivX formats. More here.

New S3200 specification delivers higher speed than competing technologies - and much sooner - with no changes to connectors or cables.

Dallas — On Dec 12, The 1394 Trade Association announced a new specification to quadruple the speed of FireWire to reach 3.2 gigabits per second.

The new electrical specification, known as S3200, builds upon the IEEE 1394b standard, preserving all the advantages of FireWire while offering a major and unprecedented boost in performance.

The new speed uses the cables and connectors already deployed for FireWire 800 products, making the transition forward easy and convenient for 1394 product vendors and their customers. Because the 1394 arbitration, data, and service protocols were not modified for S3200, silicon and software vendors can deploy the faster speed FireWire quickly and with confidence that it will deliver its full potential performance.

The S3200 specification is expected to be ratified by early February. More at 1394TradeAssociation.org.

On  Dec 14 Intel announced the Intel Z-P140 PATA Solid State Drive (SSD), an ultra-small - smaller than a penny, weighing less than a drop of water - complete storage solution for mobile digital entertainment, and embedded applications, offering low-power, high performance, and durability, which is also 400x smaller than a 1.8″ hard-drive.

Using the industry standard PATA interface, the Intel Z-P140 PATA SSD offers the capacity and features to accelerate computing trends towards greater mobility.

Right Fit
Using the standard PATA interface, chipscale package-on-package technology, and a form factor significantly smaller than hard disk drives, the Z-P140 PATA SSD enables smaller and easier storage design.

Right Capacity
2, 4, 8, and 16GB capacities are enough to support operating system storage, applications, data, and media storage, meeting mainstream density requirements for most computing markets.

Right Performance
Fast to boot, load, and run applications, with low power and extended durability, solid state technology has no moving parts, allowing for faster system response and longer battery life.

More at Intel here and here (in pdf).

New low-power, rugged 1.8-inch HDDs feature up to 120GB capacity with an 80GB light-weight model for PC applications, along with a series of 60GB drives optimized for CE devices.

IRVINE, Calif — On Dec 12, Toshiba Storage Device Division announced expansion of its 1.8-inch HDD lineup with a series of five new HDDs for PC and consumer electronics (CE) applications.

Highlights include a high-capacity 120GB model for thin and light mobile PCs, as well as slim, single-platter 80GB and 60GB models for ultra-mobile PC and portable handheld CE devices.

Toshiba’s new 1.8-inch HDDs for PC applications include the 120GB MK1214GAH, the 60GB MK6028GAL and the lightweight 80GB MK8025GAL, weighing two grams less than traditional 5-millimeter-high 1.8-inch HDDs. All three models are equipped with a PATA interface, 2MB buffer and 512 byte-per-sector format for tablet, mobile PC, ultra-portable, ultramobile PC (UMPC) and other applications.

For CE applications, Toshiba introduced two single-platter, 60GB 1.8-inch HDDs in the slim, 5-millimeter-high form factor with special attributes for mobile and handheld products.

The MK6014GAL offers a 4,200 RPM spin speed and 2MB buffer for faster data throughput, while the MK6015GAA supports a 3,600 RPM spin speed for quieter operation. Toshiba’s two 60GB CE HDDs demonstrate the company’s lead in the design and manufacture of long data sector technology with 1K byte-per-sector formats optimized for CE.

In addition to spurring miniaturization and mobility for PC and CE devices, 1.8-inch HDDs deliver better power efficiency, improved ruggedness and quieter acoustics for music and video playback over long periods of time, compared to larger form factor HDDs.

More at ToshibaStorage (in pdf).

Applied double tunneling layer to realize 100 gigabit density.

TOKYO, Japan — Toshiba Corporation on Wednesday, Dec 12, announced that it has developed a new double tunneling layer technology applicable to future 10nm generation flash memories. This elemental technology opens the way for memory devices with densities of over 100 gigabits in the 10nm generation, which lies four generations ahead. The technology was today announced at the IEDM (International Electron Devices Meeting) held at Washington DC.

Toshiba developed a tunnel layer, which controls in and out of electron, in the SONOS (Silicon Oxide Nitride Oxide Semiconductor) type device structure, a memory structure that holds electrons in the nitride layer in the gate insulator.

The new structure sandwiches a 1.2 nm silicon nanocrystals layer between the 1nm thickness oxide films, achieving long-time data retention and high speed writing and data deletion at the same time, using the natural characteristic that resistance changes with changes in gate voltage. As the new tunnel layers are thinner than early version SONOS element tunnel layers, it is easier to migrate to advanced devices with finer lithography.

Toshiba also increased the saved electrons amount by changing the nitride film from Si3N4 to Si9N10, a material that contains more silicon, and optimized such aspects of the element structure as channel impurity concentration. The prototype has realized and maintained equivalent to over 10 years performance.

Toshiba is investigating various technologies for future advanced memories, including 3D structures, and believes that realizing operation in the 10nm generation with its new double tunneling layer technology is a step forward to future practical devices. More at Toshiba.

TOKYO, Japan — On Monday, Dec 10, Toshiba announced its entry into the emerging market for NAND-flash-based solid state drive (SSD) with a series of products featuring multilevel-cell NAND flash memories.

Offered in a range of form factors and densities, Toshiba’s solid state drives are designed primarily for notebook PCs. They will be showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, from January 7th to 10th. Samples and mass production will follow from the first quarter (January to March) of next year.

Moving NAND-based storage architecture forward, Toshiba’s first solid state drives offer three densities: 32 gigabytes (GB), 64GB and 128GB. SSD realize low power consumption, a fast boot time, and lightweight, but market penetration has been held back by low densities and high prices.

Toshiba’s new SSD integrate an original MLC controller supporting fast read-write speeds, parallel data transfers and wear leveling, and achieve performance levels comparable to those of single-level NAND flash SSD. By applying MLC technology, Toshiba has realized a 128GB density in a 1.8 inch form factor. Toshiba expects the launch of its SSD line-up to speed up acceptance of solid state memory in laptops and digital consumer products, and to widen the horizons of the NAND flash market.

The new products utilize NAND flash memory fabricated with 56nm process technology, along with controller chips and DRAM, on a 70.6mm (L) x 53.6mm (W) x 3.0mm (H) platform. The maximum read speed is 100MB a second, and the maximum write speed of 40MB a second with the SATA2 interface (transfer rate of 3Gbps), which is compliant with high speed serial interface. The operating life is 1,000,000 hours. More at Toshiba.

Dec 06, ‘07 — LaCie is accepting pre-orders for its user-friendly 320GB External Hard Drive, which is designed by Neil Poulton.

Here’s what LaCie says about its newest addition: LaCie Hard Drive, Design by Neil Poulton adds sophisticated style to your desktop yet its presence is quiet and unobtrusive. It has a unique distinguishing feature - a cool, blue LED strip on its underside that creates an ambient glow.

Its subtle, all-black design blends perfectly into dark home entertainment setups and workstations. Very small for its vast capacity, this lightweight, compact drive has a fashionable, mirror-polished finish. The smartly engineered design allows for heat dissipation and near-silent, fanless operation.

You can pre-order one for $119.99 at LaCie.

Dec 05, ‘07 — A long-running California lawsuit over whether all megabytes and gigabytes are created equal may have reached its end on Friday, reports Declan McCullagh of CNET News.

The article further describes, “the class action lawsuit, against Kodak, Sandisk, Lexar Media, and other memory card makers, says a binary definition is appropriate, meaning that one megabyte equals 1,048,576 bytes and that the memory card sizes were overstated by 4 percent to 5 percent.

When memory capacity was smaller, the difference didn’t mean much. A decimal kilobyte, at 10^3=1,000 wasn’t very different from 2^10=1,024.

But as capacity grows, the differences become more significant (technically, the ratio between the decimal and binary representations increases). This explains why your new terabyte drive isn’t as capacious as you hoped it might be. A 10^12=1,000,000,000,000 decimal terabyte is roughly 10 percent smaller than the binary equivalent of 2^40=1,099,511,627,776.

At this point it’s reasonable to note that there actually are terms that avoid all this confusion, and those include IEEE 1541 terms Gibibyte and Tebibyte.

More at CNET News.

LAKE FOREST, Calif — Dec 03, ‘07 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Just in time to make a perfect holiday gift, Western Digital today announced that its new 320 GB capacity WD Passport Portable Drives are now available for $229.99 at select retailers and this week at WD’s online store ShopWD.com.

At less than five ounces, this lightweight drive fits neatly in a pocket or backpack and is the perfect gadget to back up today’s increasingly large files.

WD Sync software allows consumers to take desktop content with them by simplifying the synchronization of essential personal files and
Microsoft Outlook data on a PC. Should owners misplace the drive, they know their data is protected with 128-bit encryption. Google software on the drive allows users to quickly locate files with the Google Desktop Search search tool, manage photos with Picasa photo organizer software and simplify Web searches with the Google Toolbar search bar.

Tokyo — On Nov 28, Toshiba Corporation announced the latest additions to its market-leading lineup of 2.5-inch hard disk drives (HDD) for automotive applications: an 80GB drive offering the industry’s largest capacity, and a 40GB drive.

The drives will be used in such applications as car navigation systems, and will be released in industrial and retail versions. Sample shipping of the drives has started and mass production will start in March 2008

Toshiba’s line of automotive HDDs enable a variety of applications, such as GPS navigation, digital music and video, and other telematic systems. With an altitude specification of 5,500 meters, the rugged MK8050GAC and MK8050GACE drives meet the operating extremes of a road environment. More at Toshiba here and here.

Nov 28, ‘07 — Brando is offering this USB to SATA / eSATA with 5 USB Ports Combo Hub turns any SATA or eSATA mass storage device into a convenient external USB 2.0 High-Speed drive.

This adapter supports 2.5″ and 3.5″ SATA hard drives, SATA CD/DVD drives and eSATA drive enclosure. It is a great test bench device perfect for technicians or anyone needing to copy or offload files from one hard drive to another. In additions, it contains a 5-Port hub, it is more convenience to use.

Get yours for $33 or $43 with power at Brando.com.hk

Tokyo, Japan — November 27, 2007 — Fujitsu Limited today announced the development of the MHZ2 BH series of 2.5-inch hard disk drives with a maximum capacity of 320 GB. Sales of the new series will begin in February 2008.

Featuring a storage capacity for 2.5″ HDDs that is among the highest in the industry, the MHZ2 BH series delivers transfer speeds of up to 300MB per second. The series is designed primarily for use in compact desktop PCs, notebook PCs, and consumer electronics products, such as HDD recorders.

Supporting Serial ATA3.0Gb/s interface, the MHZ2 BH series delivers transfer speeds of up to 300MB per second. Moreover, the new series achieves the world’s lowest levels of power consumption, operating at only 1.9 watts when reading or writing data. More at Fujitsu.

Nov 27, ‘07 — Google wants to offer consumers a new way to store their files on its hard drives, in a strategy that could accelerate a shift to Web-based computing and intensify the Internet company’s competition with Microsoft. Says  Kevin J Delaney and Vauhini Vara of The Wall Street Journal.

The WSJ further writes, “Google is preparing a service that would let users store on its computers essentially all of the files they might keep on their personal-computer hard drives — such as word-processing documents, digital music, video clips and images, say people familiar with the matter. The service could let users access their files via the Internet from different computers and mobile devices when they sign on with a password, and share them online with friends. It could be released as early as a few months from now, one of the people said.

Google’s push underlines a shift in how businesses and consumers approach computing. They are increasingly using the Web to access applications and files stored in massive computer data centers operated by tech companies such as Salesforce.com, Microsoft and Google. Such arrangements, made possible by high-speed Internet connections between homes, offices and data centers, aim to ease users’ technology headaches and, in some cases, cut their costs.

Other companies offer various Internet-based file storage services, but most have been slow to catch on with businesses and consumers. Some offerings, such as Yahoo’s Briefcase Web-based storage service, require users to go to a Web page and click through a few screens to upload a new file and set various limits.

For its part, Microsoft offers a test version of a service called Windows Live SkyDrive with one gigabyte of free storage.

Google faces hurdles on issues such as data privacy, copyright, the economics of adding storage capacity and the technical challenges of offering service without interruption.

For Google, one advantage of offering a broad data-storage service would be to potentially draw consumers to existing Google services that compete with Microsoft’s Office applications suite, which includes Word, Outlook and Excel.

The company has been tackling technical issues including how to get the storage service to work seamlessly with software on users’ computers so it appears like just another hard drive, say the people familiar with the matter.

A document Google inadvertently released on the Web in March 2006 said it was moving toward being able to “store 100% of user data,” citing “emails, Web history, pictures, bookmarks” as a few examples. The document referred to what appeared to be unannounced Google initiatives, including one dubbed “GDrive” and said they could help compete with Microsoft.” More at WSJ.

Taipei, Taiwan — Nov 26, ‘07 –Jimmy Hsu of DigiTimes reports on Samsung Electronics, in a bid to promote sales of its digital cameras at the annual IT Month fair to take place in Taipei in early December, offering a 4GB SD memory card as a gift along with the sale of Samsung digital cameras, citing retail channels in the Taiwan market.

He further writes, “Price competition that has been ongoing for up to two years in the Taiwan market has reduced sales margins for digital cameras to a low level of $15.5-24.7 (NT$500-800), and vendors have started to opt for offering gifts instead of further price cuts, the sources indicated.

Memory cards are the most common promotional gifts offered alongside digital cameras, usually a 1GB SD card for an entry-level model and a 2GB SD card for a mid-range or high-end model, the sources noted. However, Samsung will take the initiative in offering 4GB SD cards and it is uncertain whether main competitors, including Canon, Sony, Panasonic, Nikon and Casio, will follow suit, the sources pointed out.” More at DigiTimes.

CHARLOTTE, NC –BUSINESS WIRE– On Nov 06, ‘07 Verbatim Corporation announced the world’s first Color-background LightScribe 16x DVD-R and DVD+R media.

The new 4.7GB LightScribe DVDRs are available in vibrant shades of red, orange, yellow, blue and green in addition to the original gold color. Verbatim has begun shipping them in the US market in 25-packs which include five discs of each color.

The richly colored DVDRs are produced using LightScribe Media Version 1.2 coating technology on the label side for enhanced image contrast and faster label printing.

With a rainbow of background colors to choose from, consumers and businesses can burn customized LightScribe labels for their videos and multimedia presentations that will give them a professional look.

Colored LightScribe DVDR discs are label-compatible with all LightScribe-enabled drives.

Verbatim LightScribe Color-background 16X DVD-R and DVD+R media in 25-packs will be available in the US through leading retailers, Internet resellers and distributors in Q4 2007.

Buffalo has surprised everyone this week in becoming the first company to market with a 320GB portable external hard drive, says TrustedReviews.

TR further writes, “Despite its gold medal win, the ‘MiniStation TurboUSB’ (HD-PS320U2) is no slouch either with Buffalo admirably having chosen to go down the quicker 5,400rpm route - a decision which means the drive will boast transfer rates up to 64 per cent faster than the traditional 4,200rpm speeds with which the latest high capacity portable HDDs usually debut.

Furthermore, the PS320U2 has security covered too with the Buffalo’s own ‘Secure Lock Ware (SLW)’ utility which offers drive and file encryption to protect data with up to 256bit AES Encryption. On top of this data can be protected further with the bundled ‘Memeo AutoBackup’ software (Windows only) which offers additional options such as scheduled backup and password protection. The PS320U2 launches in December with the cutting edge premium price tag of $319 (£155).” More at TrustedReviews.

SANTA CLARA, Calif –BUSINESS WIRE– Nov 20, ‘07 — Seagate Recovery Services, a Seagate today announced an agreement with Staples, the world’s largest office products company, to provide data recovery services to Staples’ customers throughout the United States via its in-store EasyTech services staff.

Through this agreement, Staples’ customers can now take any brand or type of digital media requiring data recovery services to one of more than 1,400 Staples stores across the country. In each store, personnel will determine the specific data recovery needs and provide the appropriate services.

Today, the value of data far outweighs the cost of the media and computer systems on which the information is stored. When digital content is lost or inaccessible, customers need reliable, secure and professional recovery services. Staples, working with Seagate Recovery Services through its Security by Staples initiative, now provides a convenient and trusted environment for customers to receive the highest quality data recovery services.

Seagate Recovery Services has nearly 20 years of experience in recovering valuable data from a variety of media, including computer disc drives, RAID arrays, external drives, flash media, tape and optical media including CDs and DVDs.

Data loss can be caused by mechanical failure of a device, contamination, fire or water damage, human error or other factors. In most cases, the data can be recovered by trained technicians by using a combination of software technologies and/or physical reconstruction of the device.

Staples customers who have lost data can take their digital media to Staples EasyTech technicians who are trained to help customers with services such as hardware and software installations, data protection and security, and repair and troubleshooting. All recovered data will be returned to the customer on an external USB hard drive with a two year limited warranty. If no data is recovered, the customer is not charged for the service. Kool!

What’s on your old hard drive? If you think a) There’s nothing interesting on my drive or b) Reformatting/repartitioning a hard drive is good enough or c) Deleting all of the files is good enough, think again.

A lot of information is stored on your hard drive. What you look at on the internet, emails, personal photographs, passwords to online banking, social security numbers, the list is endless. Probably enough for an attacker to know your name, address, location, what you look like, and probably quite a bit more. If nothing else, the people in your email contact list deserve anonymity.

Starting at $100 for a standard version to $200 for a Drive eRazer Versatile bundle, WiebeTech is offering its newest hardware solution to completely erases all your data from a hard drive quickly and easily. Stand-alone operation. No computer required! Faster than software.

Why use hardware? Drive eRazer is faster than software programs, and Drive eRazer doesn’t tie up a computer. What’s more, it’s far easier. Simply connect it to a drive and flip a switch. No computer needed. More info at WiebeTech here and you can get one at here.

Round Rock, Texas — November 15, 2007 – Dell has signed an agreement to acquire privately-held Everdream, a leading provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions for remote-service management.

Terms were not disclosed and the purchase will not be final until all closing conditions are met. Everdream is based in Fremont, Calif., with a second facility in Charlotte, N.C.

The planned acquisition is a key component in Dell’s strategy of enabling customers to Simplify IT. Everdream’s capabilities complement those provided by the recently acquired SilverBack Technologies, further enabling end-to-end remote management of customers’ IT environments. With this acquisition, Dell can now extend remote management of critical IT assets from servers, storage, printers, etc. to desktops, notebooks and other end-user devices globally.

Everdream products will continue to be developed for and offered through channel partners, and will also serve as the foundation for future Dell service offerings. More at Dell.

Taipei, Taiwan — Nov 11, ‘07 — Taipei Times is reporting on Investigation Bureau officials warning of “Focused Attack” of Trojan horse viruses on Large-capacity hard disks, often used by government agencies. 

The newspaper further writes, “Portable hard discs sold locally and produced by US disk-drive manufacturer Seagate Technology have been found to carry Trojan horse viruses that automatically upload to Beijing Web sites anything the computer user saves on the hard disc, the Investigation Bureau said.

Around 1,800 of the portable Maxtor hard discs, produced in Thailand, carried two Trojan horse viruses: autorun.inf and ghost.pif, the bureau under the Ministry of Justice said. The tainted portable hard disc uploads any information saved on the computer automatically and without the owner’s knowledge to www.nice8.org and www.we168.org, the bureau said.

The bureau said that hard discs with such a large capacity are usually used by government agencies to store databases and other information. Sensitive information may have already been intercepted by Beijing through the two Web sites, the bureau said. The bureau said that the method of attack was unusual, adding that it suspected Chinese authorities were involved.

In recent years, the Chinese government has run an aggressive spying program relying on information technology and the Internet, the bureau said. The bureau said this was the first time it had found that Trojan horse viruses had been placed on hard discs before they even reach the market.”

China and Taiwan regularly trade accusations of spying and last month Germany accused China of being behind Internet espionage attacks on its companies and government. China said it opposed such accusation

The Taiwanese newspaper later reported, “VIRUS: Investigators say the tainted Maxtor portable hard disc, made by Seagate, uploads information saved on the computer automatically to Web sites in Beijing.

Further investigations suggested that “contamination” took place when the products were in the hands of Chinese subcontractors during the manufacturing process.

In September, TheRegister said that Kaspersky Labs had found a pre-installed virus named Virus.Win32.AutoRun.ah on Maxtor 3200 external hard drives sold in the Netherlands.” More at TaipeiTimes here and here.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — BUSINESS WIRE — Nov 06, ‘07 — Debuting today, the newest members of Hitachi GST’s CinemaStar cast of hard drives are ready for their close-up. Hitachi is offering multiple form factors to address a wide variety of needs in the growing consumer electronics market. A 3.5-inch drive with capacities up to 500GB provides industry-best power utilization and performance, while the more compact 2.5-inch drive with capacities up to 250GB is well-suited for use in sleek set-top boxes and portable digital video devices.

The abundance of digital video has been fueling consumer demand for digital video recorders (DVRs) with more storage capacity and new slim, space-saving designs. The CinemaStar C5K250 and P7K500 are the latest in a long line of Hitachi drives optimized for use in home entertainment applications.

More at Hitachi, Press Release, CinemaStar 7K500, Cinemastar C5K250.

Nov 06, ‘07 — Tech-On! is reporting on Sony, on the heels of its increased capabilities to record Holographic Disc more densly, recording 7-layer Holographic disc and further aiming to record 500GB of data on 20-layer disc by 2010.

In their words, “Sony Corp wrote and read data on a medium equivalent to a seven-layer disc by using “Micro-Reflector method,” a multilayer recording technology using holographic recording.

The company calculated the error rates of reproduced signals after signal conditioning such as equalizing. Until now, the company wrote and read on discs of up to four layers and announced only the eye patterns of reproduced signals.

This time, the achievement was announced at ISOM’ 07, an international conference on optical memory, which took place Oct 21-25, 2007, in Singapore. At the conference, Sony made speeches about speeding up data transmission speed, improving memory density per layer and increasing the number of recording layers even more.

In the Micro-Reflector method, lights are shed on both sides of a holographic medium. The focus points of the lights meet and interact with each other in a recording layer to form interference fringes. An interference fringe has an information amount of one bit. To read the data, a light is shed on one side of the medium.” More at Tech-On!