Madshrimps Forum Madness - Western Digital NOW SHIPPING NEXT-GEN SATA II HD WITH 300 MB/s transfer rate

New Lightning Fast WD Caviar® SE16 Hard Drives Up to Three Times Faster Than EIDE

LOS ANGELES - May 18, 2005 (E3 Expo Booth No. 6706/Kentia Hall) - Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC) today announced it is now shipping in volume hard drives offering Serial ATA (SATA) interface with 300 MB/s burst data transfer rate. The new WD Caviar® SE16 hard drives feature 16 MB cache - 2 to 8 times the cache size of standard desktop-class hard drives - which, combined with its 300 MB/s transfer rate, deliver a one-two performance punch for customers.

The new desktop-class hard drives are available now from WD-authorized distributors and in OEM PCs. State-of-the-art SATA with 300 MB/s performance that is up to 3 times faster than EIDE make WD Caviar SE16 drives one of the fastest desktop-class hard drives on the market, perfectly suited for use in high-performance computers, multimedia and gaming systems.

WD Caviar SE16 drives feature technologically advanced acoustics and quiet operation to reduce noise and significantly extend long-term reliability in the variety of applications using these drives today. Rotating at 7,200 RPM, the new drives are available with 250 GB capacity and are covered under a 3-year warranty.

Suggested retail pricing is $199 USD for WD Caviar SE16 with 250 GB capacity (model WD2500KS). Customers who order WD Caviar SE16 hard drives from WD's online store (www.westerndigital.com/e3) before May 31, 2005, will receive one free WD SecureConnect™ SATA cable (one cable per drive ordered) and free standard shipping. The industry-leading SecureConnect cable strengthens the drive-to-cable connection by more than 500 percent, helping to overcome connector breakage problems common to first-generation SATA cables.

"WD's ongoing product innovation allows us to better serve our customers by improving upon the features that matter most - advanced Serial ATA with 300 MB/s technology, fast performance, cool running quiet drives with high reliability," said Richard E. Rutledge, vice president and general manager of WD's PC Components Group. "The new WD Caviar SE16 desktop-class hard drives bring end users more options for the growing number of applications using rotating magnetic storage."

Whisper Quiet

The new WD Caviar SE16 drives leverage the same proprietary technologies that compelled leading independent hardware reviewer Tom's Hardware Guide (April 2005, http://www.tomshardware.com/storage/...3200jb-07.html) to conclude that WD Caviar SE desktop hard drives are "very fast and nearly silent." With WhisperDrive™ technology, that employs a highly efficient power-driver design, noise levels are virtually below the threshold of human hearing. SoftSeek™ technology streamlines read/write seeking algorithms, resulting in the drive operating more efficiently when accessing and writing data, thus reducing seek noise.

Cool Drives and Enhanced Reliability

Lower power consumption through its advanced electronics and firmware design means the operating temperature of the new WD Caviar SE16 drives is much cooler resulting in enhanced drive reliability.

All WD Caviar hard drives protect users' data with WD's exclusive Data Lifeguard™ embedded error detection and repair features, which automatically detect, isolate and repair problem areas that may develop over the extended use of the hard drive.

About WD

WD, one of the storage industry's pioneers and long-time leaders, provides products and services for people and organizations that collect, manage and use digital information. The company's core business produces reliable, high-performance hard drives that keep users' data close-at-hand and secure from loss.

WD was founded in 1970. The company's storage products are marketed to leading systems manufacturers and selected resellers under the Western Digital and WD brand names. Visit the Investor section of the company's Web site (www.westerndigital.com) to access a variety of financial and investor information.