Seagate released First Fast 7200-RPM 160GB 2.5" Hard Drive

Seagate Technology released world's first 7200-RPM 2.5" hard drive to combine capacity-boosting perpendicular recording technology with free-fall protection for beefed-up laptop durability. Momentus 7200.2 delivers up to 160GB of capacity using perpendicular recording technology and combines a fast Serial ATA 3.0 Gbit/second interface with 7200-RPM spin speed to enable the highest performance laptops ever. The hard drive is also offered with an optional free-fall sensor to help prevent drive damage and data loss upon impact if a laptop is dropped. The sensor works by detecting any changes in acceleration equal to the force of gravity, then parking the head off the disc to prevent contact with the platter in a free fall of as little as 8 inches.

The entire Momentus series is built tough to withstand up to 900 Gs of non-operating shock and 350 Gs of operating shock to protect drive data, making them ideal for systems that are subject to rough handling or high levels of vibration. The hard drives are also lean on power consumption, allowing notebook users to work longer between battery charges, and are virtually inaudible thanks to Seagate's innovative SoftSonic fluid-dynamic bearing motors and QuietStep ramp load technology.

Our 15" MacBook Pro Core 2 Duo has an optional 5400-RPM 160GB hard drive built by Hitachi. Our backup external FireWire 800 drive is a Seagate 5400-RPM 160GB hard drive. Both are slower than the new Seagate Momentus 7200.2 drive. [Bill Fox]