Features - Storage Innovations:

HITACHI EXTENDS DESKTOP LEADERSHIP WITH NEW SATA HARD DRIVE

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies announced a new ATA/Serial ATA desktop hard drive that extends the company's long-standing tradition of performance leadership. The 3.5-inch Hitachi Deskstar 7K250 uses 80+ GB per platter technology to deliver up to one-quarter terabyte (250GB) of storage capacity. Hitachi's newest 7200 RPM hard drive is designed to excel in traditional desktop environments. The hard drive's super-capacity points and fast data access are also well-suited to meet the needs of near-line storage, disk-to-disk backup, gaming and other performance applications.

The new drive maintains its technology edge with industry leading performance in a desktop drive. Hitachi is further addressing customers' need-for-speed with a number of technical improvements, including adoption of the Serial ATA (SATA) interface. Hitachi's optimization of SATA along with the drive's cache management, leading media transfer rate and seek time all combine to give users super fast access to their data.

"Hitachi is committed to growing its share of the 3.5-inch desktop market by consistently delivering high-value products to our customers, generation after generation," said Bob Holleran, general manager, Desktop Business Unit, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies. "The Deskstar 7K250 is the latest example of Hitachi giving customers the competitive advantage they need to build ground-breaking and differentiated systems."

"IBM's customers demand cost-effective yet technologically advanced systems," said Jan Janick, vice president, development, IBM Personal Computer Division, "and based upon on our years of experience using Hitachi Deskstar drives, we expect the newest models will continue to deliver the industry-leading performance that defines IBM desktops, entry servers and workstations."

Performance Leadership

The new Deskstar 7K250 is well-suited for use in ATA RAID and other data-intensive environments, such as network-attached storage, PC gaming and digital video recording and editing. The hard drive's 250GB of storage capacity also provides a simple and cost-effective alternative to tape for disk-to-disk backup and data recovery.

Falcon Northwest, a leading developer of custom-built gaming PCs, uses Hitachi Deskstar hard drives extensively because they combine industry-leading performance, reliability and cost effectiveness.

"Hitachi Deskstar hard drives have been the mainstay of Falcon Northwest's Mach V and Talon computer gaming systems because they have consistently delivered top-notch performance," said Bradd Berdelmann, general manager, Falcon Northwest. "We have won more than a dozen editor's choice awards using Hitachi hard drives and are expecting the new generation of Deskstar drives to help us elevate overall system performance to a whole new level for gamers."

Serial ATA Interface

The Deskstar 7K250 will ship with an optional SATA interface that is designed to address the growing performance requirements of today's desktop systems. SATA is a scalable interface technology that currently delivers a maximum data transfer rate of up to 150 MB per second. SATA also simplifies device configuration, improves data integrity and provides for performance increases in future generations of the interface. The new SATA drives will also use a compact cabling structure and smaller connectors that are designed to enhance air flow and reduce system complexity.

Hitachi first showcased prototype SATA drives at an Intel Developer Forum in February 2002. The company has also been an active member of the SATA II Working Group, which has helped to define and design the industry specification.

"Hitachi has led industry efforts to develop and refine the new interface and will ship SATA products in volume -- consistent with demand from our customers," said Holleran. "We are also pleased with internal test results of the Deskstar 7K250 that demonstrate data transfer rates that outperform competitive drives."

The Deskstar 7K250's durable design protects customer's data with up to 350 G (2ms) of non-operating shock (one and two-disk models) for increased drive reliability and data protection. Fluid dynamic bearing motors are also used to ensure "whisper-quiet" operation.

The Deskstar 7K250's high capacity and performance offerings are backed by Hitachi's renowned compatibility testing labs and worldwide distribution support. The 2MB and 8MB-buffer drives carry one and three-year warranties, respectively.

Hitachi is currently shipping Deskstar 7K250 drives that use a parallel ATA interface and expects to ship SATA-based drives in production by the end of June.

About Hitachi Global Storage Technologies

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies was founded in 2003 as a result of the strategic combination of Hitachi's and IBM's storage technology businesses. The company's vision is to enable users to fully engage in the digital lifestyle by providing access to large amounts of storage capacity in formats suitable for the office, on the road and in the home.

The company offers customers worldwide a comprehensive range of storage products for desktop computers, high-performance servers and mobile devices. For more information on Hitachi Global Storage Technologies, please visit the company's Web site at www.hgst.com.

About Hitachi Ltd

Hitachi Ltd, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company, with approximately 340,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2002 (ended March 31, 2003) consolidated sales totaled 8,191.7 billion yen ($68.3 billion). The company offers a wide range of systems, products and services in market sectors, including information systems, electronic devices, power and industrial systems, consumer products, materials and financial services. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's Web site at global.hitachi.com.