Hitachi Global Storage Technologies today unveiled its new 2.5” hard disk drive with seriously improved reliability oriented for mobile computers. Although the HDD will not provide capacities beyond 40GB initially, its manufacturers believe that tangibly increased safe operating shock will guarantee market acceptance for the Travelstar 4K40.

The new 2.5” mobile HDDs from Hitachi will be available in 20GB, 30GB and 40GB versions and will have only 1 platter inside with 1 or 2 GMR recording heads to improve reliability. For even higher sturdiness, the Hitachi Travelstar 4K40 series feature such key technical enhancements as redesign of the actuator arm – the arm that carries the read/write element – to significantly reduce the chance for data loss from arm/disk contact; redesigned read/write head resulting in doubled of industry standard specification for load/unload cycles – the number of times the read/write head can move on and off the media without failure – to 600 thousand times; revamped inner mechanisms that allow the company to declare the industry’s highest operating shock of 300G/2ms and non-operating shock of 1000G/1ms in 4200rpm category to withstand rougher handling.

Hitachi customers agree that for the majority of notebook users, 40GB remains a popular capacity point. What customers want, in addition, is a more rugged hard drive in high volume. The Travelstar 4K40 is in direct response to that customer request, the company said.

San Jose, California-based Hitachi Global Storage Division said the Travelstar 4K40 are already available for clients.