Trans Intl. is now shipping new hard drives for notebook users. The IBM 40 GNX is a 5400 RPM, 2.5 inch hard drive offered in 20 and 40 GB capacities. The IBM 40 GNX offers users accelerated performance packed into a thinner disk drive. According to Trans Intl:
Trans Intl. today announced the online availability of a new IBM 40 GNX [X=Enhanced] 2.5 inch, 5400-RPM hard disk drive offered in 20 GB [Giga-Byte] and 40 GB [Giga-Byte] capacities delivering advanced notebook performance to entry-level and mainstream users.
The new 5400-RPM drive offers users accelerated performance in a thinner (9.5 mm) hard disk drive. In earlier 5400-RPM drives, "spindle speed" was the top-of-the-line feature for mobile power users. It was only offered in the highest capacity drives -- which also required a thicker (12.5 mm) hard drive (mostly supported in the majority of bulky notebooks).
The Enhanced 5400-RPM provides the capability for increased "power-on" hours making 2.5-inch drives suitable for mission critical applications. This offers users the ability to leave the power on around the clock [24x7]. Other performance features of the drive are, high RPM, increased data rate, advanced cache management software, larger cache size and most notable -- 5400 spindle speed in a drive with 9.5 mm thickness. Traditionally, 9.5 mm hard drives offer performance at 4200 RPM and are used in the vast majority of notebooks on the market.
You can find more information about the IBM 40 GNX drives at the Trans Intl. Web site. The IBM 40 GNX drives are available for US$159.00 for 20GB, and US$239.00 for the 40GB version.