Western Digital quietly releasing new 5400rpm ATA drive?

[CougTek]

I'm talking about the WD1200AB (http://www.wdc.com/products/Products.asp?DriveID=29). If you compare the Buffer to Disk transfer rate of the above to the one of the WD800AB (http://www.wdc.com/products/Products.asp?DriveID=5), you'll see that the WD1200AB probably use higher density platters (60GB/platter?). Am I suffering from amnesia or StorageReview missed that drive? I remember the review about the WD800AB, but not about the WD1200AB.

I notice this drive when I was browsing my price list (again). I thought that Western Digital topped their 5400rpm drives at 80GB and was surprised to see a 120GB 5400rpm from them for sale. It's 22$CDN cheaper than the cheapest 120GB 7200rpm (the IBM Deskstar 120GXP). If it's as good as the WD800AB is, it might be a very good value for people in need of large storage capacities.

Does anyone remember having seen a press release about this drive?

[CougTek]

Searching in my recycling back, I found that same drive on my price list dating from May 8th (the oldest price list I still have, the ones before that have probably been used somewhere to make newspaper or cereal boxes). This means it isn't all that new. Too bad no one cared to report them before as it could be a very interesting product.

[Mercutio]

I saw someone on SR mention a 1200AB a few weeks ago. I started a post to correct him, then did a search on pricewatch.

It's not a cheap drive by any stretch of the imagination; 120GXPs are cheaper, but it is out, and OEMs have been selling it for a few weeks at least.

I thought there had just been a product announcement I had missed. No one else replied to the guy.

[Buck]

The 1000ABs and 1200ABs have been out for a bit. My distributor has had them since March, although the price has come down a little.

[CougTek]

It's not a cheap drive by any stretch of the imagination; 120GXPs are cheaper, but it is out, and OEMs have been selling it for a few weeks at least.

You see, here it is 8% cheaper than the 120GXP. Last week too, although both were 7-12% more expensive.

I'll e-mail Eugene to ask him if he plan to review this drive soon.

[Platform]

Once Serial ATA finally gets here, it seems like we can expect to see a class of 5400 RPM S-ATA hard drives emerge around the year 2004 that have amazing storage capacities, drives with 100 GB or 120 GB platters.

[yeti]

Cougtech,

the WD site indicates that this is a three platter drive, so presumably still a 40 GB/p... we'll still have to wait a little for the 60 GB/p ones.

[CougTek]

You are right Yeti. I should have look at the "Configuration" section before making hypothesis. I always forget to look at this section when I visit Western Digital's web site.