Toshiba has announced an upcoming speed and storage bump to its line of 1.8-inch hard drives typically found in ultraportable and subnotebook PCs. While others have hit similar storage capacities in a 1.8-inch form factor, this is reportedly the first one to reach spindle speeds of 5,400RPM and will be available in both single-platter 80GB and dual-platter 160GB models.
The storage capacities offered by these drives mirror those of larger form factor HDDs, but reduce the storage footprint by nearly 40 percent compared with the 2.5-inch form factor, all while substantially improving the 4,200RPM speed traditionally offered on 1.8-inch drives. Toshiba plans to ramp up production and start shipping the drives in August, for a yet undisclosed price.