Toshiba Adds 80 Gbyte Drive

IRVINE, Calif. -- Toshiba Storage Device Division (SDD), the industry pioneer in small form factor hard disk drives (HDDs), today expanded its automotive-grade HDD line to include a single-platter 80GB1 offering, which provides a significant capacity increase to enable the next generation of advanced navigation, in-car entertainment and vehicle connectivity solutions.

In addition to higher capacity, Toshiba also has improved the new automotive HDD family's altitude specifications to further ruggedize its lineup to meet the operating extremes of the road environment. With the altitude specification now at 5,500 meters, Toshiba's new sixth-generation automotive-grade HDD series includes both an 80GB model (MK8050GAC) and an improved 40GB model (MK4050GAC) featuring these new specifications.

In addition to the new HDD family introduction, Toshiba has passed the industry-leading milestone of more than seven million automotive-grade HDDs shipped into OEM and aftermarket solutions, since the company introduced the industry's first automotive-grade HDD in 2001. Toshiba's experience in working with the automotive industry to develop road-ready storage solutions spans more than 10 years, and the company commands an 85 percent market share in the automotive-class HDD segment, according to Techno Systems Research (TSR) Co., Ltd.2

"Car navigation systems built around fast, high-capacity HDDs are getting more popular in the Japanese and European markets, a trend that is soon expected to come to North America, the world's largest automotive market," said Toshio Magome, senior director, Techno Systems Research Co., Ltd. "Toshiba entered the market in 2001 and soon established leadership by drawing on advanced HDD technologies cultivated over the years. We can expect to see more innovation in navigation systems and new drives developed by Toshiba to play an important role in technology advances."

Toshiba Corp.