Chinese peripherals company Orico introduced a trio of external multi-bay 3.5-inch HDD enclosures. These include a gigantic 10-bay stacker (model: 1088USJ3), and its 8-bay (8988USJ3), and 5-bay (5988SUSJ3) siblings. The three use standard ATX PSUs to power the drives. The three feature matte black SECC steel bodies, with brushed metal front. The three internally use SATA 6 Gb/s interface, and lockable caddies. The 10- and 8-bay models only feature USB 3.0, while the 5-bay gives you both USB 3.0 and eSATA host connectivity options. The enclosures lack RAID support, so each disk is visible to the host as an independent mass storage device, with partitions showing up as volumes. The 10-, 8-, and 5-bay enclosures are priced at RMB 2399¥ ($390), 1999¥ ($325), and 1399¥ ($227), respectively.

QNAP Systems, Inc. today announced the release of the Turbo NAS TS-x21 and TS-x20 series for home users and home offices. The new models in the TS-x21 series are equipped with 2.0 GHz CPU, 1GB DDR3 RAM, and the TS-x20 series with 1.6 GHz CPU, 512MB DDR3 RAM. Both series deliver superior performance for daily routines in file storage, sharing, and data backup, and serve as ideal media centers for storing and sharing huge multimedia files.

The TS-x21 and TS-x20 series feature the brand-new Turbo NAS operating system QTS 4.0. The new QTS 4.0 integrates multi-window operations into the web-based user interface, adds cross-device file synchronization, several smart mobile apps, and more. In an era where almost everyone has at lease one mobile phone or tablet device, the QTS 4.0 fulfills people's needs of mobile data access and synchronization, and storage for huge quantities of data. What's more, the QTS 4.0's multi-window user interface introduces users to an unprecedented NAS management experience. In addition, the multimedia applications and multi-tasking designs not only increase management efficiency but also transform home entertainment.

HABEY USA, a leading manufacturer of embedded computer and an Associate member of the Intel Intelligent Systems Alliance, introduces the PRO-6820. This is a fanless barebone system, with a chassis built tough for extended industrial processing indoors or outdoors. The system measures in at 9.45"x9.96"x4.53", not much bigger than our small form factor systems, running off Intel's 3rd Generation Ivy Bridge Quad Core i3/i5/i7 processor, and capable of up to 8GB of memory from 2x 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM slots.

Rich with I/Os, the PRO-6820 offers 6x instal USB slots, 2x front accessible USB 3.0 slots and 4x rear USB 2.0 slots. The system also has 2x PS2 ports, 1x externally accessible 8-bit GPIO port, 4x COM ports, 6x LAN ports, 1x mic-in, 1x audio-out, 1x CF Card Socket & 1x externally accessible 2.5" SATA HDD. The Intel Integrated HD Graphics controller allows 1x VGA port with resolution up to 2048x1536 & 1x DVI-D ports with resolution up to 1920x1200.

Century Japan announced the CSS25U3 line of external drive enclosures. Capable of holding 9.5 mm-thick HDDs and SSDs in the 2.5-inch SATA form-factor, the enclosure supports SATA 6 Gb/s interface internally, and connects to the host over USB 3.0 SuperSpeed. A single cable handles both power and host-connectivity. Measuring 85 x 134 x 12.5 mm (WxDxH), its dry-weight is 60 g. It is available in four color options: black (CSS25U3BK6G), silver (CSS25U3SV6G), green (CSS25U3GR6G), and red (CSS25U3RD6G). To stay in shape, the enclosure avoids using a square type-B receptacle, and instead uses a rectangular type-A one. Slated for the end of this month, it is expected to be priced at 2,480 JPY (US $25.7).

Seagate Technology plc (NASDAQ: STX), a worldwide leader in storage solutions, today announced it is the first hard disk drive manufacturer to ship two billion hard disk drives (HDD)-a staggering number fueled by the explosive demand for storage from mobile applications, cloud infrastructures, social media, business applications and a wide variety of consumer markets. A testament to the pivotal role played by storage in today's digital world, it took Seagate 29 years to reach one billion units shipped and just four years to reach the second billion milestone.

"This is truly an impressive accomplishment and I am proud to lead this company as we celebrate this success," said Steve Luczo, president, CEO and chairman of Seagate. This achievement is a testament to the commitment of our employees whose relentless dedication and personal pride continue to be the fabric of this company."

Building on the momentum of its current line of solid state hybrid drives (SSHD), Seagate Technology plc today announced it will begin shipping its third-generation of SSHD products. Featuring the Seagate Laptop SSHD, 7 mm-high Seagate Laptop Thin SSHD designed for the thinnest and lightest laptops in the industry, and the all-new Seagate Desktop SSHD, the line of drives will deliver blazing-fast performance and high-capacity at an affordable price.

Boasting solid state drive (SSD) like speed and hard disk drive capacity, the new Seagate Laptop and Laptop Thin SSHDs are the most affordable way to increase your laptop performance. With storage performance up to 40 percent faster than previous generations, the Laptop and Laptop Thin SSHDs can add as much as 30 percent to total system performance - regardless of the processor inside the system. These products also enable system builders to build high-performance, high-capacity systems, including new thin and light laptops, at mass-market price points.

Apricorn, a leader in data security products for business, today announced the Aegis Bio 3.0, an innovative 'software free' biometric USB 3.0 drive that safeguards data with secure fingerprint access and military grade 265-bit AES-XTS hardware encryption. The Aegis Bio is cross platform compatible with USB 3.0 performance. Its compact durable design with integrated USB cable is perfect for the office or taking sensitive data on the road. Available with either a hard drive or SSD the Aegis Bio's 1 TB model is priced at $249.

Designed for those that wish to break away from passwords and PINs, and utilize their unique fingerprint for secure access to their data, the Aegis Bio combines powerful hardware based authentication with real-time 256-bit AES-XTS data encryption. The result, a formidable hardware based security solution that requires no admin rights to setup or access data and works independently of the host OS, providing an exceptional level of data protection that is ideal for use in a multi-platform corporate environment.

Icy Dock introduced the Icy RAID Hard drive failure is the reality to prepare for. In the long run, you will have to face the certainty that all hard drives fail no matter how cautious you have been. Imagine what would happen if the drive fails and you lost all of your family photos, critical office data, and your work portfolio? To prevent the data loss from a hard drive failure, our response is the ICYRaid enclosure to make the user experience of creating a physical backup (RAID array) a very pleasant one. The ICYRaid series MB662U3-2S packs the SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface, tray-less drive installation design, easy to setup process, and an advanced cooling system - all these great features in a small, yet elegant enclosure that can be taken where you go as a professional media storage device.

HGST (formerly Hitachi Global Storage Technologies and now a Western Digital company, NASDAQ: WDC) today announced the industry's highest-capacity 10,000 RPM, enterprise-class hard drive - the Ultrastar C10K1200. Providing a capacity extension to HGST's proven Ultrastar C10K900 product line, the new 2.5-inch Ultrastar C10K1200 features a SAS 6Gb/s interface for reliable data throughput, a 64MB cache buffer for optimized read/write response time, and a fast 10K rotational speed for reliable high-performance computing. All this, combined with the drive's low power, high capacity and high performance attributes, results in higher density servers, blades and network storage arrays that helps reduce space requirements, lowers cooling costs and improves total cost of ownership (TCO).

Increasing storage needs, shrinking floor space and budgets, and reducing power and cooling are just a few challenges that datacenter managers face today, making it challenging to scale and sustain business growth. Whether building datacenters for public clouds, private clouds or traditional datacenters, adopting the right tiered storage strategy delivers greater efficiencies in terms of reliability, performance, capacity and power, and can make a vast difference in the ability to lower TCO.

In addition to the DVRP-U8H DVD writer, Japanese company I-O Data also announced the HDPD-AUT line of shock-resistant drive enclosures. In addition to shock-absorbing material, the enclosure also features active shock-resistance. It packs a 3-axis G-sensor that can detect a drop in progress, and quickly park the drive, if it's running. HDD parking minimizes the risk of head contact with the platters, which permanently damages the drive.

Internally, the enclosures feature polyurethane thermoplastic elastomer membranes lining the inner sides, and a polycarbonate body that can dissipate shock. The HDPD-AUT can enclose 2.5-inch SATA 6 Gb/s HDDs and SSDs with 9 mm thickness, connecting them to host machines over USB 3.0, with a single cable handling both power and connectivity. Measuring 84 x 120 x 19 (WxDxH), it weighs about 180 g. The enclosures will be sold dry (no enclosed drive), or with 500 GB and 1 TB HDDs, and in two color options, black and silver.

German peripherals maker Fantec rolled out the MWiD25, a 2.5-inch SATA drive enclosure (strictly speaking, a NAS). The enclosure connects to standalone hosts over USB 3.0, but can also connect to multiple devices (PCs, smartphones, tablets) over 802.11 b/g/n WLAN and 10/100 Ethernet. The enclosure packs a 3,000 mAh battery which can keep it running for hours on a full-charge. It can enclose HDDs and SSDs up to 9 mm-thick. The company posted apps for Android and iOS that speeds up the process of connecting to it, in addition to backup, sync, and a file-manager. Measuring 80 x 128 x 25 mm, the enclosure is sold either empty, or with HDDs pre-installed. Capacities offered are 320 GB, 500 GB, 750 GB, and 1 TB.

HGST (formerly Hitachi Global Storage Technologies and now a Western Digital company) today announced that it's shipping the industry's first 1 TB, 9.5 mm, 2.5-inch, 7,200 RPM hard disk drive (HDD). The new Travelstar HDD is available in the HGST Hard Drive Retail Kit as well as in the award-winning Touro Mobile Pro USB 3.0 external storage solution for simple add-on storage and backup.

HGST Hard Drive Retail Kit
The new Travelstar 1 TB, 2.5-inch 7,200 RPM hard drive is ideally suited for upgrading notebooks, game consoles, and other high-capacity, high-performance personal storage products. This standard 9.5 mm drive leverages Advanced Format, which increases the physical sector size from 512 bytes to 4,096 (4K) bytes to improve drive capacities and error correction capabilities. With 7,200 RPM performance, 32 MB cache buffer and a 6 Gb/SATA interface, the drive delivers the highest 7,200 RPM mobile HDD performance in PCMark Vantage benchmark testing, which results in faster downloads and better application performance than 7,200 and 5,400 RPM 2.5-inch HDDs.

The Storage Products Business Unit of Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc., a committed technology leader, announces new enterprise-grade SATA SSD models supporting cryptographic-erase and self-encrypting drive (SED) models, one an enterprise SAS solid state drive (eSSD) and the other a mobile SATA hard disk drive (HDD). Collectively, these four new 2.5-inch storage device models provide both IT system and PC system administrators with more effective tools to help secure sensitive business information.

For the enterprise, the PX02AMU value line of SATA eSSD models and PX03ANU read-intensive line of SATA SSD models feature cryptographic-erase. In addition, the PX02SMQ/U series offers Trusted Computing Group (TCG) enterprise protocol self-encryption and cryptographic-erase support in high-performance eSSD SAS models.

RAIDMAX today announces the VAMPIRE, a full tower case with all the features a PC building enthusiast could want: tool-free design, convenient top I/O panel, zero-clutter cable management, water cooling support, and SSD hot swap functionality. Supporting motherboard form factors up to XL-ATX, the VAMPIRE is an ideal chassis for those looking for a spacious no hassle-case.

To minimize installation, upgrade and maintenance stress the VAMPIRE has several tool-less features. This case holds up to five 5.25" drives and seven 2.5" SSD/3.5" HDDs that are easily set into place with a tool-less mounting mechanism. The side panels and PCI slot covers use thumbscrews. Also, the fan filter on the bottom of the PSU can be easily pulled out for cleaning. For overclockers who wish to add top case fans or radiators, the metal mesh can be removed without tools.

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of NAND Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, announces its UltraDrive MX2 for those that crave the need for speed in a computing environment.

With sequential read and write speeds up to 240 MB/sec, UltraDrive MX2 allows firms to cover bases from lightning fast transaction speeds for database servers to faster load times in high end gaming rigs. The UltraDrive MX2 also supports the latest garbage collection and TRIM features which are designed to keep this SSD running at peak performance.

Storage and application processor maker Marvell Technology has been ordered by a Federal Jury in the US state of Pennsylvania to pay a local university $1.17 billion in damages for patent-infringement. Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) developed and patented a technology that "increases the accuracy with which hard disk drive circuits read data from high-speed magnetic disks," which Marvell has been found to be infringing. Why $1.17 billion? Because these chips are an indispensable component in modern mechanical hard disk drives, made by both Seagate and WD, among others.

If and when US District Court Judge Nora Barry Fischer agrees with the Jury ruling that Marvell's infringements of CMU's patents are "willful," the fine could triple, according to K&L Gates. The jury found that Marvell sold "billions" of chips carrying the University's technology. What makes this verdict important for the PC industry is that since Marvell's HDD components are widely incorporated in HDDs across various brands, should CMU seek a sales-ban, it could potentially affect HDD production the way last year's unfortunate floods in Thailand did.

QNAP Systems, Inc. announced today a major expansion of the number of compatible peripherals available for its Turbo NAS products. The major additions include ten 3.5-inch internal SATA hard drives and a Kingston 2.5-inch internal SATA hard drive.
The newly compatible 3.5" internal SATA hard drives:

• Seagate - ST2000DM001 (2TB), ST2000NC000 (2TB), ST1000NC000 (1TB), ST3000NM0033 (Constellation ES.3) (3TB), ST2000NM0033 (Constellation ES.3) (2TB), ST1000NM0033 (Constellation ES.3) (1TB), ST500DM002 (500GB)
• Western Digital - WD4000FYYZ (4TB), WD3000FYYZ (3TB), WD2000FYYZ (2TB)
  The newly compatible 2.5" internal SATA hard drive:
• Kingston - SSDNow E100 (100GB)

Japanese peripherals maker Logitec announced the LHR-DS05EU3 line of 3.5-inch external HDD enclosures. Available in four color options - silver, red, black, and purple; the enclosure is sold empty/dry, priced at 4,280¥ (US $50), with a 3 TB WD Green HDD pre-installed for 19,980¥ ($237), and a 2 TB WD Green HDD pre-installed for 13,980¥ ($166); and WD Red HDD pre-installed options priced at 22,980¥ ($273) for 3 TB and 15,980¥ ($190) for 2 TB.

The enclosure features a front-loading caddie that makes it easy to swap out the enclosed HDD, lending it hot-plugging capabilities. Internally, it features a SATA 6 Gb/s interface, which is wired out as both eSATA 6 Gb/s and USB 3.0 SuperSpeed. The enclosure features shock and vibration dampening material to protect the enclosed drive, which is also kept cool by a temperature-controlled 40 mm fan. The body, made of steel and ABS, is designed to be stackable. Measuring 50 x 195 x 134 mm, its dry-weight is about 340 g.

Introducing the FlexCage MB973SP-1B, a 3-in-2 Tray-less SATA Backplane Cage for 3.5" SATA hard drives. This is a commercially designed product in the FlexCage series for use in server environments, such as towers or rackmounts. This FlexCage incorporates the best technologies to meet those demands, with second to none fit, function, and reliability.

The MB973SP-1B has been designed to maximize space use by allowing up to 3 x 3.5" SATA III hard drives, while only consuming two 5.25" device bays. The FlexCage also only requires two 4-pin power ports (or two 15-pin power ports with included 4 pin to 15 pin adapter cables), to power up to three 3.5" hard drives. In order to further the convenience of the FlexCage, our renowned tray-less technology is integrated into the cage -- no screws or tools are required to insert or eject the drives, making hot swapping a completely hassle free experience. However, because of the tray-less technology used, maintenance becomes dramatically reduced to simply ejecting a failed drive, and then reinserting the replacement.

Seagate Technology today announced the Seagate Video 2.5 HDD, a 2.5-inch drive specifically engineered for use in 24/7 video applications like digital video recorders (DVRs), set-top boxes (STBs), and surveillance applications.

The Video 2.5 HDD delivers superior performance and operation in three key areas of importance to manufacturers - high reliability, acoustics, and energy efficiency. Featuring best in class reliability, the drive has an annual failure rate of approximately 0.55, based on current configurations, enabling it to keep product in the field longer while reducing the cost of field deployment and maintaining customer retention. It also boasts 24/7 operation capabilities in extended temperature ranges and enhanced acoustics for near silent operation - features crucial for consumer electronics and video applications.

Toshiba Corporation today announced that samples of two new large capacity nearline hard disk drives (HDDs) are available now. The 3.5-inch 7,200 rpm MG Series includes both SATA and SAS versions, "MG03ACA400" and "MG03SCA400" respectively, that deliver 4TB[1] of storage, the largest capacity yet offered by Toshiba. Samples of lower capacity models in each series are also available.

As business works to keep up with the explosion of unstructured data, large capacity HDDs are crucial tools in IT systems designed to organize and access fast growing reservoirs of valuable information. The massive capacities of the MG Series drives are suited to RAID storage and arrays, tiered virtual infrastructures for public and private cloud deployments, archives and disk-based backup.

Toshiba Electronics Europe (TEE), Storage Products Division has today announced that the SlimFITT HDD is now available to buy from select distributors across the EMEA region. With 900 GB of capacity and a spindle speed of 10,500 RPM, the drive provides enterprises with a dependable, high speed drive for business critical data.

The SlimFITT model of the 2.5-inch (6.4 cm) SAS drive is mounted in a 3.5-inch frame making it ideal for blade and rack mount servers accustomed to larger form factor drives. Its small form factor has the added benefit of lower energy consumption, helping businesses to cut down on energy bills.

Japanese PC maker Mouse Computer announced the LuvMachines Mini (Lm) series VESA-mount compatible nettops. It includes three models, the Lm-mini40B (base), Lm-mini40S (SSD-equipped), and Lm-mini40X (hybrid HDD-equipped, top). The three are based on a common design, which measures 5.2 x 153.6 x 172.6 mm (HxWxD), which can either latch on to your monitor via VESA wall-mount, or sit around on your desk with its stand. The base configuration includes an Intel Celeron 847 processor clocked at 1.10 GHz, 4 GB RAM, 320 GB HDD, Intel NM70 chipset, USB 3.0, 802.11 b/g/n, gigabit Ethernet, and Windows 8. It is priced at 29,820¥. The Lm-mini40S tops that with a 120 GB SSD, and is priced at 34,650¥. The Lm-mini40X leads the pack with 750 GB hybrid HDD, and is priced at 39,900¥.

Toshiba's Storage Products Business Unit of Toshiba America Electronic Components Inc., a committed technology leader, announces four new large capacity nearline hard disk drives (HDDs), including the first self-encrypting models in the company's enterprise capacity-optimized storage lineup. The 3.5-inch 7,200 rpm MG Series includes both SATA models - the MG03ACA400 and the MG03ACA400Y - and SAS models - MG03SCA400 and the MG03SCP400 - and all deliver 4 TB of storage, the company's largest capacity to date.

As businesses work to keep up with the explosion of unstructured data, large capacity HDDs are crucial for IT systems designed to organize and access the growing pools of valuable information. The massive capacity of the MG Series is perfectly suited for RAID storage and arrays, tiered virtual infrastructures for public and private cloud deployments, archives, and disk-based backup and data protection solutions. The robust 24x7 design and massive capacity provide the cost-effectiveness required for business-critical servers and external storage systems, including NAS, SAN and tiered storage deployments for large enterprises, as well as for direct-attached storage in general purpose servers and SMB-oriented systems and applications.

Buffalo has today announced a new external storage solution, the HD-LXV4.0TU3C drive featuring a 4 TB capacity and a USB 3.0 interface. This HDD measures 39 x 123 x 189 mm, it weights 1 kg and has a design enabling both vertical and horizontal use, a built-in fan, internal rubber mounts that lower vibration, AES 256-bit hardware encryption, and an eco mode that reduces power consumption by up to 97% (Buffalo claims a power draw of only 0.15 W when the drive is idle).

The HD-LXV4.0TU3C comes bundled with the Turbo PC EX2 data transfer software and costs about $458.