Seagate expands Mozaic 3+: Exos M HDDs up to 36TB for data centers

Seagate expands Mozaic 3+: Exos M HDDs up to 36TB for data centers

Seagate is launching its Exos M hard drives with capacities of up to 36 terabytes. These HDDs, based on the Mozaic 3+ platform with heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) technology, target large-scale data center storage.

The first Exos M hard disk drive samples have been shipped to selected Seagate customers. These HDDs are based on the Mozaic 3+ platform, which uses heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) technology. According to Seagate, this allows data centers to achieve 300 percent more storage capacity with the same footprint, 25 percent less cost per terabyte and 60 percent less power consumption per terabyte.

Seagate uses an efficient 10-platter product design to do this. By its own admission, this makes it the only storage company currently able to achieve an area density of 3.6TB per hard disk platter. As we discussed in a previous article on Mozaic 3+, this is a significant improvement over previous generations.

Future innovation

Dave Mosley, CEO of Seagate, emphasizes the need for this innovation: “We’re in the midst of a seismic shift in the way data is stored and managed. Unprecedented levels of data creation – due to continued cloud expansion and early AI adoption – demand long-term data retention and access to ensure trustworthy data-driven outcomes.”

Seagate’s focus on increasing areal density should not be limited to its current 36TB drives. The company has already demonstrated capacities in excess of 6TB per drive in test environments.

Tip: Seagate’s cloud in Europe: how does it put itself among established players?