WD, a Western Digital company and a world leader in hard drives, today announced the expansion of its award-winning WD Black line of performance hard drives up to 6 TB capacity. Shipping now, the 3.5-inch, 7200 RPM drive is the perfect solution for gamers and professionals in need of high-performance desktop systems and workstations.

WD Black hard drives combine 7200 RPM spin speed, 128 MB cache, dual stage actuator technology, SATA 6 gigabits per second (Gb/s) interface, and an integrated dual processor to deliver ultimate performance in a maximum-capacity drive. The WD Black 6TB is up to 29% faster than the previous WD Black 4TB version in maximum data rate throughput and 10% faster in PCMark Vantage.

“Combining maximum system performance with generous capacity, the expansion of WD Black to 6 TB allows gamers, enthusiasts and creatives to push the boundaries of personalization without compromise,” said Cindi Grace, senior vice president of WD storage technology group. “In choosing WD Black hard drives, WD desktop customers get the best possible mix of capacity, performance and reliability to handle intense desktop computing with ease.”

WD, a Western Digital company, and world leader in storage solutions, today announced the expansion of its award-winning WD Red Pro hard drive line with the release of 5 TB and 6 TB capacities. The WD Red Pro family is ideal for NAS (network attached storage) systems having up to 16 drive bays and serving businesses with more expansive storage needs than the standard WD Red drives.

Shipping now, WD Red Pro 5 and 6 TB drives leverage an enhanced design and 128 MB cache to deliver data transfer rates of 214 megabits per second (Mb/s). WD’s NASware™ 3.0 features technology promoting data protection, high NAS performance and reliable integration.

“WD is providing customers a full portfolio of high capacity NAS storage solutions (WD Red and WD Red Pro) for home, consumer and business NAS solutions,” said Cindi Grace, senior vice president of WD storage technology group. “With the capacity expansion, there is now a path for customers to increase the storage density of their systems while knowing their data is protected with the most trusted and valued brand on the market.”

CDRLabs kicks off the week with a review of Samsung's new EVO PLus microSD card. Available in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB capacities, the EVO Plus is equipped to meet the ever-increasing demands of smartphone, tablet, compact camera and Full HD camcorder users. This UHS-I Class 1 card has 80 MB/s read and 20 MB/s write speeds, making it excellent for video recording and playback in Full HD, quick file transfers, and fast loading of apps. The EVO Plus has also been designed to be waterproof, temperature proof, X-ray proof and magnet proof, allowing it to withstand some of the harshest conditions.

Silicon Power, the world’s leading provider of memory storage solutions, today unveils the latest addition to its Armor Series portable hard drives－Armor A85 and Armor A85M. Inheriting the ultra-rugged specifications of Armor series, the A85/A85M utilizes the special internal structure design and rigid aluminum exterior to strengthen its protections against various kinds of treats including shock, pressure, water and dust.

With rigorous mechanism designs, the A85/A85M passed the U.S. military’s drop test of MIL-STD 810G Method 516.6 Procedure IV (transit drop test) and the IP68 standard that it can resist water and dust invasion. The A85/A85M also proved to be perfectly pressure-resistant for it can withstand up to 500 kg of force. Furthermore, the A85 provides SP HDD Lock Utility, the free-download full disk encryption software, to enhance better data security with limited access by a password. Featuring such all-round protections, the A85/A85M appears to be the best data safeguard for businessmen and outdoor users. With regard to the outer design, the A85/A85M surpasses the ordinary with sophisticated metallic casing and streamline look that show the luxurious and modern style.

Transcend Information, Inc. (Transcend) a leading manufacturer of storage and multimedia products, is proud to introduce the dual-access JetFlash 890S OTG (On-The-Go) Flash Drive. The JetFlash 890S features USB 3.1 Type-A connector on one end and USB 3.1 Type-C on the other for fast and easy transfer between the latest laptops, PCs and handheld devices such as smartphones and tablets. With the rising trend of capturing photos and recording videos on mobile devices, the JetFlash 890S enables users to instantly share and store those images across multiple devices and operating systems.

Type-C standard is expected to be widely adopted to various platforms and devices as major computer manufacturers, such as Apple, Google and Asus, have recently released new laptop models with Type-C USB port. Featuring a reversible plug, the JetFlash 890S with the latest USB Type-C standard on one end prevents any possibility to try several times before actually being plugged into the USB port. On the other side of the JetFlash 890S is a regular Type-A connector backwards compatible with USB 2.0. The JetFlash 890S supports USB 3.1 Gen 1 with ten times the bandwidth faster than USB 2.0.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, today announced that it is adding three TCO-optimized, high-performance SSDs, based on 3-dimensional (3D) Vertical NAND (V-NAND) technology, to its industry-leading portfolio of advanced enterprise and data center SSDs. The drives are available now.

“We are providing high-end capabilities and capacities for all of our latest SSDs, something we believe will elicit a high degree of interest from OEMs and computer enthusiasts throughout the world,” said Jim Elliott, corporate vice president, Samsung Semiconductor, Inc. “We understand the performance needs of our customers in a rapidly expanding SSD universe and are determined to meet those needs.”

Designed for OEMs, Samsung’s new SSDs – the PM1633, PM1725 and PM953 all utilize Samsung’s 3-bit MLC (multi-level-cell) V-NAND flash memory, while providing outstanding performance and reliability, as well as high capacities.

Kingston Digital Europe Co LLP, an affiliate of Kingston Technology Company Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced the addition of a 512GB capacity to its line of Class 10 UHS-I SDHC/SDXC cards. The higher capacity card is ideal for DSLR cameras and HD camcorders as it allows users to record more video and shoot more high-density image files without running out of space.

In addition to storing thousands of photos and hours of video , the card provides speeds of 90MB/s read and 45MB/s write. These high speeds support photography in continuous and burst modes, and reduces stutter to ensure video integrity. Class 10 UHS-I SDHC/SDXC cards also allow users to shoot full 1080p HD video and 3D video as well as transfer files faster. In addition to the new 512GB capacity, this card is also available in 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB.