Western Digital unveils 120GB SSD + 1TB HDD dual drive

[Jos]

We’ve heard of hybrid drives before which combine ample storage capacity with limited amounts of NAND flash for caching purposes. The result is a nice speed bump but not quite the same as an actual SSD. Today Western Digital is introducing its own twist on that concept with what they claim is the “world’s first” dual drive solution, fusing individual 120GB solid-state and 1TB 5400rpm mechanical drives into a single 2.5-inch package.

The Black^2 will be seen as two separate drives on your system, even though they share the same SATA 6Gb/s connector -- by default only the SSD portion is usable but WD supplies a USB drive with drivers to make the hard drive portion accessible as well. There’s no caching involved so users can decide what’s stored where.

According to Matt Rutledge, senior vice president of the Storage Technology business unit, they decided to go this route based on feedback from customers asking for more control of where they store their data. The company’s line of solid state hybrid drives will still be available for those who prefer caching, and of course, there’s third party caching software you could use with the Black^2 for your own Fusion Drive style solution.

In terms of performance Western Digital claims up to 350MB/s read speeds and 140MB/s write performance. That’s certainly a step up from a traditional hard drive, but not on par with today’s high end SSDs.

But Western Digital isn’t interested in going after the performance crown with the Black^2. Instead, this is squarely aimed at the laptop market where space for components is getting increasingly cramped and users or OEMs often need to pick between speed or space. Western Digital wants to do away with that for $299.

The Black^2 dual drive will be available online directly from Western Digital and several retail partners. The company is backing these with a 5 year warranty which is quite uncommon for consumer SSDs.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/54799-western-digital-unveils-120gb-ssd-1tb-hdd-dual-drive.html

 

[MrBlkfx1]

It would be nice if the drive was 7200RPM instead of 5400RPM. I like the concept, though. I will need something for my laptop soon.

 

[amstech]

This is nice because most laptops (even ones costing over $1000) only have one drive bay. My L702X has 2 drive bays and when it comes time for a restore I am going to nab a 120GB SSD & setup my current 500GB 7.2K in the second bay as storage.

 

[Vrmithrax]

This is exactly the configuration I have been waiting for since SSDs were first introduced. The hybrid drive had my hopes up until I found out it wasn't truly separate drives, but this one fits exactly what I hoped would come about. Heck, I was originally just hoping for a dual drive in a 3.5" form factor, but they went a step above and got it into a 2.5" for laptops.

 

[9Nails]

This is perfect for laptops who want the speed boost of a solid state disk plus need large amounts of local storage. Put your OS on the 128 SSD drive and any critical applications. And everything else on the 1TB drive.

Those of us who want high performance SDD+7.2K RPM will probably have to wait. But it's a good compromise in one 2.5" disk space for the rest of us.

 

[treeski]

...by default only the SSD portion is usable...

I think I'm missing something here. Why would the HDD be unusable?

 

[OneSpeed]

It would only be useful if the thickness is 7 mm. in today's laptops, there really isn't room for 9.5 mm drives. After saying that, I'd prefer a pure SSD drive in any laptops because most laptops are inherently slow.

 

[Squuiid]

Perfect for the PS4.

 

[Squuiid]

Perfect for the PS4.

Oh, maybe not....

"by default only the SSD portion is usable but WD supplies a USB drive with drivers to make the hard drive portion accessible as well."

 

[OneSpeed]

Perfect for the PS4.

Oh, maybe not....

"by default only the SSD portion is usable but WD supplies a USB drive with drivers to make the hard drive portion accessible as well."

Yea. I think you need 1 partition for the PS4. In the WD, it would be partitioned as OS, and DATA.

 

[Vrmithrax]

I think I'm missing something here. Why would the HDD be unusable?

They have a driver workaround to access the HD portion. It's connected as a SATA drive, which means the system is expecting 1 drive per SATA connection, and this hybrid onboard controller probably has some type of SATA splitter circuitry, almost like a mini hub. Without the driver to let the system know how to talk with that hub/splitter, the system would initially only see the first drive in the line.

 

[GeforcerFX]

...by default only the SSD portion is usable...

I think I'm missing something here. Why would the HDD be unusable?

I think its requiring software for both drives to work over the same sata bus, usually you only have one drive per sata port.

 

[cliffordcooley]

It would be nice if the HDD was physically addressed after the SSD. I'm not a big fan of hybrid drives. Treat the SSD as its own partitioned volume and the HDD as a second partition within the same volume. Or better yet allow the consumer to choose which configuration they desire. Whether it be hybrid mode or independent mode. Wait is that what Western Digital has just done?

 

[treeski]

They have a driver workaround to access the HD portion. It's connected as a SATA drive, which means the system is expecting 1 drive per SATA connection, and this hybrid onboard controller probably has some type of SATA splitter circuitry, almost like a mini hub. Without the driver to let the system know how to talk with that hub/splitter, the system would initially only see the first drive in the line.

Okay, got it. I guess I was thrown off with the "default" keyword, which made me think it was intended to be that way.

 

[GeforcerFX]

It would be nice if the HDD was physically addressed after the SSD. I'm not a big fan of hybrid drives. Treat the SSD as its own partitioned volume and the HDD as a second partition within the same volume. Or better yet allow the consumer to choose which configuration they desire. Whether it be hybrid mode or independent mode.

umm... thats what this does, thats what makes it unique

 

[Darth Shiv]

This is perfect for laptops who want the speed boost of a solid state disk plus need large amounts of local storage. Put your OS on the 128 SSD drive and any critical applications. And everything else on the 1TB drive.

Those of us who want high performance SDD+7.2K RPM will probably have to wait. But it's a good compromise in one 2.5" disk space for the rest of us.

You can get a 1TB SSD for ~$600 (maybe less?) nowadays so they are available but still pricey.

 

[St1ckM4n]

Some nice marketing bollocks again. Where is the quoted speed result coming from? If we assume it's set up 'default', then only the SSD portion is usable, which means those test results are pathetic.

 

[GhostRyder]

You can get a 1TB SSD for ~$600 (maybe less?) nowadays so they are available but still pricey.

Yea, I agree on that.

Though this is a cool concept, the problem right here is that price tag on the end: $300 (Ok 299)

I mean I understand they are trying for mobile and making this essentially two drives in one bay, however I feel that at that point a hybrid would work just as well for less. Or as many laptops where people generally benefit in this day and age from the speed of an SSD with the need of that much extra space, a second bay is available. I mean when 300 bucks will get me a Samsung 840 pro 256gb drive and a 1tb 7200RPM 2.5 drive, that's a better option for most mobile users anyways.

If it really comes down to space, a hybrid drive might be a cheaper and just as good of an option. But this is a great idea if the price drops down a bit.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Or as many laptops where people generally benefit in this day and age from the speed of an SSD with the need of that much extra space, a second bay is available.

The intended use is probably for Netbooks and Tablets, where there is only one drive option available. Some may say just get an external drive for storage and put an SSD in the device. Others may want their storage and speed all in the same device. Like all hybrid drives, they have a place and that place is not where two drives can be used.

 

[GhostRyder]

The intended use is probably for Netbooks and Tablets, where there is only one drive option available. Some may say just get an external drive for storage and put an SSD in the device. Others may want their storage and speed all in the same device. Like all hybrid drives, they have a place and that place is not where two drives can be used.

Well yes I can see that, but on something like a netbook, does anyone really need/want that much space. The point of a netbook for general usage is normally for a traveling companion and having over a tb of space seems like a pointless endeavor at least to me.

The other thing is that on a netbook, generally they don't use even a normal 2.5 drive anyway, its always some micro version drives and such. Even crammed into a 2.5inch drive, this still to me would feel like a waste except on a few exceptions like something along the ultra book lines. So if were shooting for ultra books with this, that's cool, but to me that's the only line up at the moment that would really benefit from something like this.

Just an Opinion.

 

[cliffordcooley]

The point of a netbook for general usage is normally for a traveling companion and having over a tb of space seems like a pointless endeavor at least to me.

And some might prefer having a netbook/tablet instead of a full size PC. In those cases they may want as much space as can be afforded. I personally know people that have switched to these small devices for all their processing needs.

Edit: I do get what you are saying about the 1.8" or smaller drives.

 

[Guest]

It could be good for older notebooks that can only have one 2.5" drive.
Nearly everything I'm seeing lately has mSata SSD's installed.
On gaming notebooks there's upto 3 MSata SSD'd in stripe with an additional 2.5" HDD for storage so it makes this WD Hybrid redundant...

 

[Darth Shiv]

Well yes I can see that, but on something like a netbook, does anyone really need/want that much space. The point of a netbook for general usage is normally for a traveling companion and having over a tb of space seems like a pointless endeavor at least to me.

Yes traveling academics for sure. PCIe based drives like the ones found in MacBook airs are approx 3in x 1in and up to 512GB so that covers the small form factor too.

Let's face it - 320GB drives are what we had been using in laptops years ago. People now have phones with 8+megapixel cameras. They take large photos and videos. It's not intense processing stuff but it takes a lot of space.

 

[nazartp]

The intended use is probably for Netbooks and Tablets, where there is only one drive option available. Some may say just get an external drive for storage and put an SSD in the device. Others may want their storage and speed all in the same device. Like all hybrid drives, they have a place and that place is not where two drives can be used.

Well yes I can see that, but on something like a netbook, does anyone really need/want that much space. The point of a netbook for general usage is normally for a traveling companion and having over a tb of space seems like a pointless endeavor at least to me.

The other thing is that on a netbook, generally they don't use even a normal 2.5 drive anyway, its always some micro version drives and such. Even crammed into a 2.5inch drive, this still to me would feel like a waste except on a few exceptions like something along the ultra book lines. So if were shooting for ultra books with this, that's cool, but to me that's the only line up at the moment that would really benefit from something like this.

Just an Opinion.

Most notebooks also have only one HDD and you need to swap optical drive out to put the second one in. If you are traveling with kids, likely some of the DVDs are traveling with you. From my personal perspective, I shoot a DSLR that creates RAW files anywhere between 25 and 50 MB in size. A good trip brings back anywhere between 2,000 - 4,000 pictures. I like the idea of the drive, but do not like the price. I would grudgingly buy one if it was in a $200 - $250 range.

 

[GhostRyder]

Yes traveling academics for sure. PCIe based drives like the ones found in MacBook airs are approx 3in x 1in and up to 512GB so that covers the small form factor too.

Let's face it - 320GB drives are what we had been using in laptops years ago. People now have phones with 8+megapixel cameras. They take large photos and videos. It's not intense processing stuff but it takes a lot of space.

Yes, thats true, with space becoming an ever amounting concern because of the increase in resolution on pictures, videos, and other forms of media, we burn through space on drives faster than we care to imagine. I still remember feeling like a boss when back in 2005 I had 80gb HDD inside my rig. Now I need a 512gb SSD and a 1tb HDD for data minimum and im more than halfway on both as it is.

And some might prefer having a netbook/tablet instead of a full size PC. In those cases they may want as much space as can be afforded. I personally know people that have switched to these small devices for all their processing needs.

Edit: I do get what you are saying about the 1.8" or smaller drives.

Yea your right on the marker as usual, I get the need for mobile because most of my family and people I meet in this day and age grab a laptop over a desktop. I just feel that at this price when a netbook or ultrabook is already at a 400 dollar price point, a 300+ dollar drive like this feels a bit overpriced especially considering the performance and the fact the mechanical part is 5400RPM. I mean I have a gaming laptop (MSI GT70) that had a 7200RPM drive and it had 750gb of space and was plenty fast. I put an SSD in because I had the bay (120gb Vertex 3) and the speed went up, but mostly in the boot and gaming side. For everyday means I dont see really any difference (When using the SSD I mean). I have a friend using a hybrid drive and its performance is awesome for alot cheaper. Thats just my view point on this.