- WD 32TB Ultrastar marks a major step forward in mechanical storage capacity
- With speeds of 269 MB/s, Ultrastar is designed for sustained data workloads
- Its Sanitize Erase feature ensures secure data destruction for high-security organizations.
The world’s first 32TB hard drive has appeared on sale, but in an unlikely market.
The large-capacity enterprise hard drive appeared on a Russian online server hardware store called ServerFlow.
Priced at 156,100 rubles (approximately $1,914), the WD Ultrastar DC HC690 is far from a typical consumer purchase, but its arrival marks an important step in large-scale data storage.
An enterprise-grade storage design
The WD Ultrastar DC HC690 features a 3.5-inch form factor with a SATA 6Gb/s interface and a spindle speed of 7200 RPM.
It uses tiled magnetic recording (SMR) technology to achieve its massive 32TB capacity, maintaining constant transfer speeds of up to 269MB/s for read and write operations.
A 512 MB cache helps handle high-volume data streams, while an average access latency of 4.16 ms indicates that this drive is designed for sustained workloads rather than fast random reads.
These specifications make it ideal for dense server environments, high-performance workstations, or one of the best NAS drives for scalable data centers.
The Ultrastar DC HC690 includes an SE (Sanitize Erase) feature, designed to securely erase data before reusing or disposing of the drive.
This level of data protection is especially critical for organizations that handle sensitive information in regulated industries.
Western Digital markets its Ultrastar series as enterprise-class drives aimed at prioritizing reliability and endurance over cost, and it’s one of the best HDD options available this year.
ServerFlow, the Russian supplier that included this device, sells new and refurbished server components.
The unit comes with a one-year warranty, although customers may pay more for extended protection.
This limited availability suggests that large-scale commercial launch outside of Russia has not yet begun.
This raises questions about Western Digital’s global distribution strategy and whether the current offering represents a localized test market or an unofficial resale.
As solid-state drives continue to dominate high-speed applications, high-capacity hard drives like this one may find their best foothold in file and backup use rather than everyday workstation use.
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