Got this press release two days back - they seem to be claiming that these HDDs have been designed to be more media friendly. Wondering if it's more hype than anything else - checked them out on Digital Planet, and they're not cheap. I can still get the 'old' 2TB WD Caviar Green for just under R1000 at Prophecy, while the 'new' 2TB is selling for close on R2000.
Comments?
Press Release: DCC launches WD's largest capacity 3 TB SATA hard drives for
AV
New WD AV-GP 2.5 TB, 3 TB Hard Drives Offer Cool-Running, Unrivalled Storage
Capacity for Reliable 24/7 Video Streaming in IPTV, DVR, Media Centre PC and
Surveillance Systems
25 May 2011
Distributor Drive Control Corporation (DCC) has launched Western Digital's
(WD) addition of the 2.5 TB and 3 TB versions to its family of WD AV-GP SATA
hard drives, serving the audio-video (AV) market. Shipping immediately, the
2.5 TB and 3 TB capacity, 3.5-inch, WD AV-GP hard drives offer 24X7
reliability, low power consumption and unrivalled storage capacity for
storage-intensive AV applications such as digital video recorders, video
surveillance, single-drive media servers and external multimedia storage.
"Designed to go the distance in high-temperature, always-on streaming
digital AV environments, WD AV-GP drives store more hi-def audio and video
than ever before with our new 2.5 TB and 3 TB versions," says Jim Welsh,
executive vice president and general manager of WD's branded products and CE
business units. "Combine unsurpassed capacity, power-saving WD GreenPower
Technology, and performance capabilities to capture up to 12 simultaneous HD
video streams with SilkStream technology and the drive choice is made clear
in optimising AV applications like PVR/DVR, IPTV and video surveillance."
Says Linsay Narayanan, WD Product Specialist at DCC, "This latest addition
to the WD range of products will allow our resellers to meet the demands of
AV environments such as casino's and corporates that employ security
cameras. In addition, these products are energy efficient which also meets
the requirement to reduce energy consumption which is high on the agenda of
most businesses today."
The WD AV-GP family of drives delivers 24X7 reliability along with
power-saving WD GreenPower Technology. The WD AV-GP drives are field tested
to have a 1.0 million hour MTBF rating. Drives with capacities in excess of
2.19 TB currently present barriers for certain PC hardware, firmware and
software. For example, drives larger than 2.19 TB are not supported by
systems running Windows XP; and systems with 32-bit versions of Windows
Vista or Windows 7 relegate drives larger than 2.19 TB to be used as
secondary drives. Thus, it is important to review existing PC specifications
prior to installation of either the 2.5 TB or 3 TB WD AV-GP drives.
Comments?
Press Release: DCC launches WD's largest capacity 3 TB SATA hard drives for
AV
New WD AV-GP 2.5 TB, 3 TB Hard Drives Offer Cool-Running, Unrivalled Storage
Capacity for Reliable 24/7 Video Streaming in IPTV, DVR, Media Centre PC and
Surveillance Systems
25 May 2011
Distributor Drive Control Corporation (DCC) has launched Western Digital's
(WD) addition of the 2.5 TB and 3 TB versions to its family of WD AV-GP SATA
hard drives, serving the audio-video (AV) market. Shipping immediately, the
2.5 TB and 3 TB capacity, 3.5-inch, WD AV-GP hard drives offer 24X7
reliability, low power consumption and unrivalled storage capacity for
storage-intensive AV applications such as digital video recorders, video
surveillance, single-drive media servers and external multimedia storage.
"Designed to go the distance in high-temperature, always-on streaming
digital AV environments, WD AV-GP drives store more hi-def audio and video
than ever before with our new 2.5 TB and 3 TB versions," says Jim Welsh,
executive vice president and general manager of WD's branded products and CE
business units. "Combine unsurpassed capacity, power-saving WD GreenPower
Technology, and performance capabilities to capture up to 12 simultaneous HD
video streams with SilkStream technology and the drive choice is made clear
in optimising AV applications like PVR/DVR, IPTV and video surveillance."
Says Linsay Narayanan, WD Product Specialist at DCC, "This latest addition
to the WD range of products will allow our resellers to meet the demands of
AV environments such as casino's and corporates that employ security
cameras. In addition, these products are energy efficient which also meets
the requirement to reduce energy consumption which is high on the agenda of
most businesses today."
The WD AV-GP family of drives delivers 24X7 reliability along with
power-saving WD GreenPower Technology. The WD AV-GP drives are field tested
to have a 1.0 million hour MTBF rating. Drives with capacities in excess of
2.19 TB currently present barriers for certain PC hardware, firmware and
software. For example, drives larger than 2.19 TB are not supported by
systems running Windows XP; and systems with 32-bit versions of Windows
Vista or Windows 7 relegate drives larger than 2.19 TB to be used as
secondary drives. Thus, it is important to review existing PC specifications
prior to installation of either the 2.5 TB or 3 TB WD AV-GP drives.