The storage device is made for 24/7 operation and supports 12 video streams at once

Dec 13, 2012 19:11 GMT  ·  By

Hard disk drives used to be a storage solution exclusive to personal computers and servers, but they have been used in other things over the past years, like network-attached storage devices, set-top boxes, even TVs.

Seagate has launched an HDD made specifically for these types of applications. As such, it has given it the name Video 2.5 HDD.

Obviously, it is a 2.5-inch HDD. Media players and STBs are small, so the storage device needs to be as thin as possible.

The company didn't go into details about performance parameters, but it did say that the newcomer was designed in a way that let it work all the time (24/7) without owners having to worry about wear.

"Reliability, acoustics, and energy efficiency" are dubbed the three key areas of importance here. The annual failure rate is of 0.55.

"We pioneered the HDD video market more than a decade ago and as such are leveraging our vast knowledge of this technology to bring consumers the most reliable video drive in the world," said Scott Horn, Seagate vice president of marketing.

"The CE industry has extremely specific criteria and needs when it comes to storage and the Video 2.5 HDD is built to meet and exceed their rigorous demands."

Seagate designed its HDD for recording video, like TV broadcasts and such (sports games, TV series, etc.).

Also, it is very good at streaming recorder video, or any other video files copied onto it. Seagate mentions that 12 simultaneous HD streams can be maintained at any one time, which is good for surveillance and DVR too.

The power savings compared to 3.5-inch HDDs are supposed to be of 55%, while the packaging materials are reduced by 53%.

On a related note, the drive is PVC-free and it is made without harmful chemicals like fire retardant bromide.