Western Digital Introduces 6 TB NAS Hard Drive, Seagate Starts Sampling 8GB Models
WD is expanding its WD Red line of SATA hard drives for home and small office NAS (network attached storage) systems with the release of a 5 TB and 6 TB capacity for NAS-specific storage and the introduction of WD Red Pro hard drives. WD Red 3.5-inch hard drives are now shipping in 1 TB to 6 TB capacities; and the new WD Red Pro 3.5-inch hard drives are available in 2 TB to 4 TB capacities.
With the release of 5 TB and 6 TB models, the WD Red line of hard drives is now further enriched with greater storage capacity and increased performance with NASware 3.0, an enhanced version of WD's original NASware technology, designed to improve reliability and system performance.
WD Red hard drives also feature 3D Active Balance Plus, a balance control technology which improves reliability.
By increasing NASware 3.0 capability, the WD Red 1-6 TB capacity drives are capable of supporting up to eight bay NAS systems.
Designed for medium to large business environments, the new WD Red Pro line of NAS hard drives supports eight to 16 bay NAS systems. The design offers high performance storage powered by NASware 3.0.
The WD Green line of quiet hard drives is also seeing capacity expansion with 5 TB and 6 TB additions.
Available now in the U.S., WD Red and WD Red Pro have three- and five-year limited regional warranties, respectively. Manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) for WD Red 5 TB (model #: WD50EFRX) is $249.00 USD, and $299.00 USD for 6 TB (model #: WD60EFRX). Pricing for WD Red Pro 2 TB (model #: WD2001FFSX) is $159.00 USD, $199.00 USD for 3 TB (model #: WD3001FFSX) and $259.00 USD for 4 TB (model #: WD4001FFSX).
Seperately, Seagate has started sampling its partners their first 8TB HDDs. During Seagate?s earnings call last week, CEO Steve Luczo informed investors and analysts know that his company was one step closer to getting 8TB hard drives on the market. Luczo said that the first hard drive samples are provided for initial testing.
Luczo didn?t say what technology or process Seagate was using for the 8TB drives.
| NAS Storage | Red | Red Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Personal/Small Office/Home Office | Medium to Large Size Business | |
| Designed For | 1-8 bay NAS | 8-16 bay NAS |
| Deployment Type | Table-top; Light workload | Rack-mount; High workload |
| Capacity | 750 GB - 6 TB | 2 TB - 4 TB |
| Interface | SATA 6 Gb/s | SATA 6 Gb/s |
| Form Factor | 3.5-inch 2.5-inch |
3.5-inch |
| Cache | 16 MB and 64 MB | 64 MB |
| Limited Warranty | 3-year | 5-year |
