Sony Electronics has begun shipping to tape library automation OEMs what thecompany claims is the first available tape drive to break the 1 terabytecapacity barrier.
The first-generation SAIT drives and media expand Sony's mid-rangeAdvanced Intelligent Tape technology products. With the ability to storeup to 1.3 terabytes of compressed data (500 gigabytes native) on ahalf-inch tape cartridge, SAIT-1 is 'the industry's highest capacitytape drive and the first available product to break the 1TB capacitybarrier,' Sony said. The enterprise-class drive also features asustained transfer rate of up to 78 MB per second (30 MB/sec native) forefficient data recording and fast data recovery.
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Sony said its internal business units and OEM partners will offerautomated SAIT-1 solutions for sale beginning this spring. Tape librarymanufacturers such as ADIC, Qualstar and Spectra Logic have expressedinterest in supporting the integration of SAIT drives and media intohalf-inch tape automation solutions, the company said. Later this year,Sony is also expected to introduce a SAIT version of its PetaSite tapelibrary system.
'Sony's introduction of its SAIT tape technology provides customers thehighest capacity tape solution commercially available today,' said IDCResearch Manager Robert Amatruda. 'SAIT will enable midrange tapecustomers to have enterprise-class capacity at very competitiveprice-points.'
'The super drive segment is expected to comprise nearly 80 percent ofcompact tape drive revenue by 2007,' said Freeman Reports PresidentRobert Abraham. 'SAIT-1 launches Sony into a leadership position in thehigh-end tape market and offers a compelling blend of capacity andperformance for the automation market.'
SAIT-1 Libraries Available in Several Configurations
SAIT-1 libraries will be available in a number of configurations, with a1,000-cartridge library capable of storing up to 1.3 petabytes of data.With the number of companies managing a petabyte or more of data, whichis expected to multiply in the next two years, an ultra-scalable,cost-effective storage solution is a necessity, Sony said.
Steve Baker, vice president for Tape Storage Solutions at SonyElectronics' Business Systems and Solutions Company, said SAITtechnology gives Sony and its OEM partners the ability to offer storagesolutions not possible with current half-inch tape technologies.
'SAIT represents a new level of high-capacity, high-performance tapebackup with scalability limits that surpass previous industryachievements, which help maintain tape's cost per gigabyte advantageover disk technology,' Baker said. Customers working with largedatabases, video production and broadcast applications, e-commercetransaction processing and storage, and medical imaging 'have eagerlyawaited a product like SAIT, which combines high data throughput withunparalleled capacity and low cost of ownership,' he said.
SAIT drives leverage Sony's AIT architecture in a 5.25-inch extendeddrive footprint, combining the data density advantages of helical-scanrecording with the longer and wider tape usually associated with lineartape drives to achieve a much higher data storage capacity, Sony said.
Ultra-SCSI and Fibre Channel Interface Options
For connectivity with a variety of networks, SAIT-1 drives come equippedwith either an Ultra-SCSI or Fibre Channel interface. The Fibre Channelport supports up to 2Gbps, so SAIT drives can provide high-speed backupfunctions within a storage area network (SAN).
As one of the largest recording media manufacturers in the world, Sonysaid it is also producing SAIT-1 tape cartridges for the industry.SAIT-1 media is based on Advanced Metal Evaporated (AME) tapetechnology. Through the AME process, nearly 100 percent active magneticmaterial is evaporated onto a substrate and then coated for exceptionaldurability and results in exceptional data integrity.
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'The magnetic properties, storage density and durability of AME tapetechnology make it a natural choice for SAIT media,' Baker said. 'We'vebeen able to leverage existing manufacturing capabilities to developSAIT-1 media, and we're confident it will be of the highest quality anddurability.'
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In addition to Sony, Matsushita Kotobuki Electronics Industries andMatsushita Electric Industrial Co., known for Panasonic-brand products,will provide the market with alternative manufacturing sources for SAITdrives and media, respectively.
Sony said that in 2001, it set the record for tape storage density bydemonstrating 11.5 Gbits of data on a square inch of tape. By 2010,Baker said that Sony will be able to scale SAIT technology up to 10 TB(native) on a single half-inch tape cartridge.
Currently, the company'sSAIT roadmap extends to a fourth-generation, with the aim of doublingcapacity and performance from generation to generation. SAIT-4technology is expected to feature up to 4 TB of native capacity in asingle cartridge (10.4 TB compressed). Sony also said it intends tomaintain backward read/write media compatibility with at least theprevious generation of SAIT drives.
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