Western Digital Launch New Products

In keeping up with customer demands and technological advancements, Western Digital recently launched two new WD products: 2.5 and 3 TB SATA Hard Drive and the 6 TB External Hard Drive.

Western Digital Launch

The launch was held at the SM Mall of Asia Director's Club, after which a special screening of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 followed as a treat to the guests, complete with popcorn and soda.

Harry Potter special screening

SM MOA Director's Club: lazyboy seats plus popcorn & drinks

Below are the specifications of the new WD products:

New WD AV-GP 2.5 TB, 3 TB Hard Drives

The 2.5 TB and 3 TB versions of WD AV-GP SATA hard drives were developed to specifically serve the audio-video (AV) market. The 3.5-inch, WD AV-GP hard drives offer 24X7 reliability, low power consumption and unrivalled storage capacity for storage-intensive AV applications such as digital video recorders, video surveillance, single-drive media servers and external multimedia storage.

It is designed to go the distance in high-temperature, always-on streaming digital AV environments, WD AV-GP drives store more hi-def audio and video than ever before. It is a combination of unsurpassed capacity, power-saving WD GreenPower Technology, and performance capabilities to capture up to 12 simultaneous HD video streams with SilkStream™ technology and the drive choice is made clear in optimizing AV applications like PVR/DVR, IPTV and video surveillance.

The WD AV-GP family of drives delivers 24X7 reliability along with power-saving WD GreenPower Technology. The WD AV-GP drives are field tested to have a 1.0 million hour MTBF rating. Drives with capacities in excess of 2.19 TB currently present barriers for certain PC hardware, firmware and software. For example, drives larger than 2.19 TB are not supported by systems running Windows XP; and systems with 32-bit versions of Windows Vista or Windows 7 relegate drives larger than 2.19 TB to be used as secondary drives. Thus, it is important to review existing PC specifications prior to installation of either the 2.5 TB or 3 TB WD AV-GP drives.

My Book Studio Edition II 6 TB External Hard Drive

My Book Studio Edition II is a dual-drive storage system with a massive 6 terabytes (TB) of storage to meet the capacity needs of today's creative pros and Mac enthusiasts who create, store, edit and archive large HD video and photo files. The new capacity provides users 33 percent more storage than the previous capacity, while maintaining the same footprint.

Combining its extended 6 TB storage capacity and compatibility with Apple Time Machine, the new My Book Studio Edition II drive becomes an instant storage solution for a variety of professions including art and design, photography, legal and medical, and a host of other small businesses. It offers a quad interface providing maximum performance and flexibility including eSATA and FireWire 800 when maximum performance is essential; and FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 when system flexibility is most important.

Fast eSATA or FireWire 800 interfaces, combined with RAID-supported configurations will yield the speed and responsiveness users' need for a variety of tasks including fast, smooth video editing; rendering complex 3D objects or special effects, and saving/transferring enormous blocks of data in a fraction of the time it once took.

Formatted for Mac computers, these new storage systems feature:

• Massive 6 TB capacity;
• Extra-fast performance with four interfaces (FireWire 800/400, eSATA, USB 2.0);
• Cool, eco-friendly operation with WD’s drives with WD GreenPower Technology that consume approximately one-third less power than standard dual-drive external storage systems and efficient convection cooling architecture and power-saving mode and designed without a fan to run quietly;
• Automatic and continuous backup software;
• User serviceability, enabling the user to open the enclosure and replace the drive inside;
• Capacity gauge to see at a glance how much space is available on the system; and,
• 5-year limited warranty.

These new hard drives are so covetable, specially for someone like me who stores a lot of digital photographs, videos and graphic artworks that require large capacity storage spaces. Too bad I just bought a 500 GB hard drive a couple of months ago. Will definitely save up for the 3 TB SATA hard drive.

Filed under TECH

Movies Galore

Summer in the United States marks the season to be jolly as much awaited movie productions are making their grand entrance from late May through July. A handful of Hollywood films are expected to dominate the box office as kids and adults alike line up to see Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Kung Fu Panda 2 and X-Men: First Class while in the pipeline are Hangover 2, Super 8, Green Lantern, Transformers 3, and the last installment of Harry Potter 7: The Deathly Hollows, Part 2.

Here are some of the exciting movies and their synopsis:

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides - opened May 20

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and this time directed by Rob Marshall (Chicago), Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides chronicles a new chapter of the adventures of Captain Jack Sparrow. And this time, the team will be transforming all the fun and exhilaration found from the first trilogy into a full 3D experience in Disney Digital. Captain Jack and the wickedly entertaining Barbossa embark on a journey to find the always elusive fountain of youth. But they discover that legendary pirate Blackbeard and Angelica, whom Captain Jack Sparrow shares a mysterious past with, are also after the same thing.

Kung Fu Panda 2 - opened May 26

The sequel to the 2008 smash hit Kung Fu Panda, Kung Fu Panda 2 follows Po the Chosen One as he journeys on his quest to master the art of Kung Fu. Old friends return and new Kung Fu masters will join him in order to defeat an old enemy with a deadly new weapon. Action fans of the 90s will be pleasantly surprised by the film's newest addition, Jean-Claude Van Damme.

X-Men: First Class - opened June 2

Before he was Professor X, he was Charles Xavier. Before he was Magneto, he was Erik Lensherr. Before they were archenemies, they were the closest of friends. X-Men: First Class marks the beginning of the X-Men Saga. Set in the 1960s, the film shows young Xavier and Lensherr discovering their mutant abilities for the first time and would have to work together along with other mutants to prevent a nuclear catastrophe. Sometime in between all of this, a conflict would arise between Xavier and Lensherr, setting the stage for the more familiar relationship dynamics of the two.

The Hangover 2 - opens June 8

In the follow-up to the record-breaking hit comedy “The Hangover,” Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms), Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and Doug (Justin Bartha) travel to exotic Thailand for Stu’s wedding in The Hangover 2. After the unforgettable bachelor party in Las Vegas, Stu is taking no chances and has opted for a safe, subdued pre-wedding brunch. However, things don’t always go as planned. What happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas, but what happens in Bangkok can’t even be imagined.

Super 8 - opens June 10

Director J.J. Abrams and producer Steven Spielberg team up for the first time on a secret film project called Super 8. In the late '70s, and centering on a mysterious train crash in a small Ohio town. Summer, 1979: a group of young friends are filming a Super-8 movie when a pickup truck derails a speeding train. When the locals start to disappear and even the inquisitive deputy can't come up with answers, suspicions emerge that the incident was anything but an accident. As the truth finally begins emerge, no one is prepared to learn what now stalks the unsuspecting citizens of this once quiet community.

Green Lantern - opens June 16

Adapted straight from the pages of the beloved DC Comic, Green Lantern centers around Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds), a gifted but cocky test pilot who have his world turned upside down when he is granted a green ring that bestows him with otherworldly powers. The ring came from an intergalactic squadron, the Green Lantern Corps, that has been in existence for centuries and have sworn to keep intergalactic order.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon - opens July 1

The third installment of the popular franchise, the first one to not feature the popular actress Megan Fox, Transformers: Dark of the Moon follows the protagonist of the previous two installments Sam Witwicky (played by Shia LaBeouf). After the iconic televised event of the landing of the first man on the moon, we learn that there is a more secret nature to the journey other than just landing on the moon. Further chain of events eventually lead to this mysterious past erupting into the present day threatening to bring war on Earth so devastating that relying on the Transformers alone may not be enough.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 - opens July 15

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II is the second part of the final installment of the Harry Potter series. Questions will be answered as the end begins when Harry, Ron, and Hermione search out and try to destroy the remaining horcruxes and finally put a stop to the evil Lord Voldemort and his minions. Is Harry really the chosen one and bring about the fall of Lord Voldemort? Will Dumbledore’s death be avenged? Will everyone see it through alive? To non readers of the series, expect the unexpected; and to those who are, see how the final chapter gets fleshed out in the big screen. Prepare for the biggest battle the world of magic has ever experienced this July.

Captain America: The First Avenger - opens July 22

Captain America: The First Avenger will focus on the early days of the Marvel Universe when Steve Rogers volunteers to participate in an experimental program that turns him into the Super Soldier known as Captain America. As Captain America, Rogers joins forces with Bucky Barnes and Peggy Carter to wage war on the evil HYDRA organization, led by the villainous Red Skull.

Well, there are other movies lined up but the movies mentioned here are just the type of movies that I like to watch. So relax and watch a movie...or two...or all of them.