While consumers have largely transitioned to fast and durable solid-state drives (SSD), data centers and sectors requiring massive storage still rely on hard disk drives (HDD). Competitors like Western Digital and Seagate have spent years expanding HDD storage capacities, developing technologies aimed at surpassing the 30TB mark while reducing costs and power consumption.
Recently, Western Digital announced new HDDs for data centers, boosting Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR) capacity to 32TB and Conventional Magnetic Recording (CMR) to 26TB. The company achieved these unprecedented capacities by adding an 11th platter to the standard HDD form factor, ensuring the new products remain compatible with existing infrastructure.
The Ultrastar DC HC690 32TB model represents the next step in implementing Western Digital’s Ultra Shingled Magnetic Recording (UltraSMR) technology, where data tracks are arranged in overlapping layers. Meanwhile, the HD590 26TB model offers a more cost-effective solution for customers who prefer mature CMR technology.
Both products utilize energy-assisted perpendicular magnetic recording (ePMR) technology, which uses an additional current to enhance the bit density on the disk. However, the primary improvement in capacity comes mainly from the addition of an extra platter.
Typically, hard drives can contain a maximum of 10 platters within the industry-standard form factor. While adding more platters is a simple way to increase capacity, it can limit customer adoption due to the requirement to adapt to larger physical dimensions.
Consequently, companies like Western Digital and Seagate have focused heavily on innovations to increase data storage density per platter. This is the primary goal of ePMR; however, Seagate recently introduced a 32TB HDD using Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) technology. Seagate has spent years developing HAMR, a method that temporarily heats small areas on the disk to increase data density without compromising magnetic stability.
In contrast, Western Digital achieved an 11-platter design for both SMR and CMR drives by reducing the spacing between platters and optimizing surrounding mechanical components. The company has improved the suspension system, circuit boards, platter assemblies, and read/write heads to accommodate the additional platter.
These changes have enhanced storage capacity while maintaining compatibility with existing server racks, all without increasing power consumption. Western Digital intends to reach 50TB capacity in the future using similar methods.
Meanwhile, both Seagate and Western Digital are aggressively researching other recording technologies to continuously increase capacity over the coming years. Industry forecasts suggest that 60TB HDDs could debut by 2028. Seagate aims to reach 100TB by 2030, although analysts believe this milestone might not be achieved before 2037.
According to Techspot
