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THIN-FILM MEDIA TO BE USED WITH HITACHI DESKSTAR HARD DRIVE

Komag Inc, a leading independent supplier of thin-film media for disk drives, announced it is shipping media in volume for the Hitachi Deskstar 7K250 hard drive. Hitachi has qualified Komag as a second-source provider of advanced synthetic anti-ferromagnetic (SAF) media for use with its 3.5-inch Hitachi Deskstar 7K250. The new desktop drive uses 80 GB platters to deliver up to one-quarter terabyte (250 GB) of storage capacity in a single disk drive for use with desktops, workstations and servers.

"Komag has proven to be a key partner in the development of this product. Their R&D team worked closely with Hitachi to transition our cutting-edge technology into mass production," said Rubik Babakanian, vice president of procurement at Hitachi Global Storage Technologies.

Komag continues to lead the media market by bringing the most advanced technology to its disk drive customers through co-development projects. Komag led the industry in supplying the first production samples of SAF coupled media in December of 2001. The Company has worked closely with Hitachi to extend this leading-edge technology into mass production.

"Komag is pleased to be working with Hitachi's team on their high-end desktop drive product," said T.H. Tan, Komag's chief executive officer. "Our collaboration with their engineering and manufacturing teams is another example of our commitment to delivering customized media that meets our customers' demanding technology needs."