WD Scorpio 2.5-inch HDDs launched

Western Digital today introduced its next-generation WD Scorpio mobile hard drives. Now shipping in capacities up to 120 GB, the latest model WD Scorpio drives are equipped with either the EIDE or Serial ATA (SATA) interfaces. Offering high performance from 5,400 RPM spin speed, WD Scorpio operates with power requirements comparable to 4,200 RPM drives to yield lower power consumption for longer system battery life and increased long- term drive reliability. Technological advancements made in the company's WD Scorpio line of mobile hard drives also provide customers optimized acoustics for quiet operation.

Featuring 12 ms seek time and up to 8 MB cache for increased performance, WD delivers the industry-leading specifications that provide the greatest benefits to its mobile customers: high reliability and low power.

According to research firm TrendFOCUS, the 2.5-inch hard drive market is growing rapidly with unit shipments forecasted to expand 19.1 percent year over year from 68.6 million units in 2005 to 81.7 million units in 2006, and the compound annual growth rate of 2.5-inch hard drives is estimated to be 19.3 percent from 2006 through 2009. Now offering the WD Scorpio family in capacities of 40, 60, 80, 100 and 120 GBs, WD is in a position to address greater than 95 percent of the notebook PC market in calendar year 2006.

WD Scorpio Exclusive Features
WD's exclusive WhisperDrive technology with SoftSeek algorithms helps make WD Scorpio one of the quietest 2.5-inch drives available on the market regardless of spin speed. Leading-edge ShockGuard technology combines firmware and hardware advancements to protect the drive mechanics and delicate platter surface to meet the highest combined shock tolerance specifications (300 Gs while in operation, 900 Gs non-operating) of any 2.5-inch drive in its class.

WD Scorpio Pricing and Availability
WD Scorpio 120 GB EIDE (model WD1200VE) hard drives are currently shipping in volume and are available on the company's online store (www.westerndigital.com) for $234.99 USD, where customers can currently take advantage of free standard shipping on orders over $200. WD Scorpio 120 GB SATA (model WD1200BEVS) is scheduled to begin shipping next month.