Western Digital launches world-first 'drop-in ready' 10TB drive

Western Digital has beaten rival Seagate to launch the world’s first "drop-in ready" 10TB hard drive.

Released under Western Digital’s external drive brand HGST, the helium-filled Ultrastar He10 boasts 56 percent less watt usage per TB compared to traditional air-filled hard drives, according to the vendor.

HGST’s hard drives are used by video streaming giant Netflix for its content delivery network. Netflix director of content delivery architecture David Fullagar said the new 10TB drop-in ready drive would allow for quick integration into its network.

“We’ve been using the HGST HelioSeal drives for a long time and not only do they give us more capacity, they have contributed to a lower overall power envelope and higher storage density, which has allowed us to maximise our data footprint and create a network that is optimised for [total cost of ownership],” said Fullagar.

HGST vice president of product marketing Brendan Collins said: “We were the first to recognise the benefits of Helium and have pushed the boundaries while others are scrambling to catch up. The Ultrastar He10 represents the third generation of our HelioSeal line.”

HGST’s hard drives are distributed in Australia through Altech and Avnet. A HGST spokesperson told CRN that the vendor doesn’t disclose channel pricing.