14 DAY TRIAL // The computer industry is all about going that extra mile to be the first in every domain, that is why processor manufacturers are creating processors for mobile phones, hard drive manufacturers have shifted towards SSD-based storage devices, and so on. One big idea, even before the SSD era, was to integrate a large NAND flash memory onto a hard drive, and that memory would store the most often used information for quick access, and large amounts of information would still get recorded on the hard drive.
This hybrid drive, would help decrease the hard drive's platter usage, and thus reducing power consumption and heat dissipation. One of the, obvious, uses for this hybrid drive is the mobile segment, where there is much need for reduced power consumption in a notebook's components. That and the fact that a SSD drive is still very expensive, making the hybrid hard drive a worthy candidate.
One of the manufacturers which has taken into account the possibilities given by a hybrid hard drive is Samsung, which has integrated into its Q3 series of notebooks an 80GB hard drive, with a 256MB NAND memory. From that series, the Q30 model is a 15.4-inch notebook with an Intel Core 2 Duo T5600 1.83GHz processor, NVIDIA GeForce 7400 graphics card, 256MB or RAM and a Super-multi dual-layer DVD writer.
"The hard drive industry is continuously looking for ways to bring greater value to the systems in which our technology resides and to those who use them," said Joni Clark, chairperson for the Hybrid Storage Alliance in January. "Adding non-volatile memory to the hard drive brings about a host of mobility benefits that increases the value users want in notebook PCs -- longer battery life, faster response, greater system durability."