Douglas,
I agree with most of your points except for #2:
2)"... KM is delayed in acceptance due to numerious technical problems
Disk platter change to MR which is less effective with KM. Need for a new design Read/Write amplifier. Need for a new head design. Need to build manufacturing facilities ($$$ startup) for all of the above..."
First, manufacturing is an option that becomes feasible only later on when KM penetrates more of the market.
Second, it is not all unusual to include new features in heads and the channel electronics. MAXTOR, for example, recently introduced PRML and a DSP-based architecture in its CrystalMax 1080 series. Those ALONE would require a change in the preamplifier design. Now that KM is part of Maxtor's plans, Maxtor's component suppliers would now need to design-in KM in order to qualify for Maxtor's drive programs. As more drive makers adopt KM, more component suppliers will design-in KM in future designs creating a industry standard.
The fact that Maxtor and AXC had to co-fund the design of a new preamp led me to believe that they were relying on a startup to do the job. Here's a link to Marvell Semiconductor [http://www.marvell.com/ ], a startup focused on developing new and PROGRAMMABLE PRML and preamp solutions. The Chairman of Marvell, btw, is also the Chairman of S3, the fabless graphic chips vendor.
"....Pre-Amps: Completing the Solution
Disk drives' high data rates impose increased burdens on pre- amplifiers, which amplify and process the data from the heads. Marvell recognized this need and now offers a family of products which will support these high data rates. The 81Txxx and 81Mxxx are two products families which are targeted for Thin Film Heads and MR Heads, respectively. With their higher bandwidth, fast rise and fall times and signal-to-noise ratios, the 81T2xxx families and 81M3xxx families are uniquely positioned to be the preferred solution for new high speed and high density drives.
The Thin-Film Pre-Amp features no input shot noise, rise and fall times of less than 0.5 nV(FIXME)Hz and very high SNR, resulting in more reliable drives, with a significant reduction in data error rates.
Programmable write currents of up to 32 mA for Thin Film Pre-Amp and 64 mA for MR Pre-Amp, makes the product suitable for data writes for different head characteristics. ..."
Maxtor is also a customer of VTC, [http://www.vtc.com/ ], a privately held $170 million maker of preamps based in Minneapolis that claims to have 60% of the global market for MR head preamplifiers.
Third, No news is NOT equal to bad news.
The 10K coming out within the next few weeks should provide more information.
Gus |
