See below. Time to volume is a key QNTM "selling point." The significance of this announcement is also that, with volume shipments, this helps move sales into higher margin new products and away from price-pressure-sensitive older drives.
Monday March 30, 8:39 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Quantum is Early to Volume With 18.2GB, Ultra2 SCSI Hard Drive for High-End Storage
Applications
Now shipping in volume to distributors, new Quantum Atlas(tm) III drive delivers leading maturity and reliability for
enterprise-class storage
MILPITAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 30, 1998-- Quantum Corporation (NMS:QNTM) today announced that the Quantum Atlas(tm) III -- the
company's new enterprise-class, 18.2GB, multimode hard drive featuring support for both the high-speed Ultra2 SCSI Low Voltage Differential (LVD)
interface and the Ultra SCSI interface -- is among the first such products to arrive in volume on the data storage market.
Quantum has begun shipping the new 3.5-inch drive to the company's nationwide network of leading industrial distributors. It also has delivered evaluation
units to OEMs, and has completed broad compatibility testing for the Quantum Atlas III with leading system platforms, operating systems, and host adapters.
Quantum expects volume shipments to major system and server vendors to begin during this calendar year's second quarter.
As a result of the Quantum drive's availability, organizations across a spectrum of industries no longer have to wait for a data storage solution that is precisely
targeted for the capacity-hungry, bandwidth-constrained applications running on today's enterprise systems, high-performance servers and RAID subsystems.
Among these applications are online transaction processing, RAID storage, digital video, data warehousing, Internet/intranet services, and the spectrum of
business-critical systems installed on clustered NT, UNIX, and OS servers.
Optimized for high-end computing
The Quantum Atlas III provides an extensive features set that has been optimized for heavy workload, high-end computing. These features include a
dual-microprocessor architecture with a large 1MB cache buffer, intelligent caching algorithms that minimize command overhead, and advanced multi-initiator
capabilities that speed data access in multithread, multidrive storage environments. The new Quantum drive also delivers all the advantages of the new Ultra2
SCSI interface, including unprecedented Ultra SCSI bus transfer rates of up to 80 MB/second; extended cable lengths, improved drive connectivity, and
enhanced signal quality; and backward compatibility with older SCSI drives.
''What we're delivering in volume ahead of most other vendors is a storage solution that combines superb bandwidth with superior reliability and
cost-effectiveness for the growing number of business systems that process terabyte levels of data,'' said Brendan Collins, Atlas III program marketing
manager for Quantum.
Collins noted that the Quantum Atlas III leverages the field-proven design and manufacturing process of the new drive's popular predecessor, the Quantum
Atlas II, to provide high data availability. ''At the same time, our ability to double Atlas capacities to more than 18GB means users can cut by half the number
of drives they need for data-intensive applications. And of course, our use of the multimode Ultra2 SCSI/Ultra SCSI interface generates additional cost
savings by providing blazing data delivery without requiring users to switch to an alternate interface technology. It all adds up to the ideal storage solution for
enterprise-class computing, and it's available through the distribution channel now.''
According to Josh Napua, senior vice president, computer products, for distributor Wyle Electronics of Irvine, Calif., the Quantum Atlas III is an excellent
choice for OEMs that want to provide their customers with high-capacity, high performance, yet affordable data storage. ''Quantum's implementation of the
Ultra2 SCSI interface meets the need for increased drive connectivity and high I/O throughput for many enterprise applications, but without breaking IT
budgets,'' Napua said. ''We consider the Quantum Atlas III a valuable addition to our storage product portfolio.''
About the Quantum Atlas III
The Quantum Atlas III features leading capacities of 18.2GB and 9.1GB to address the storage requirements of a range of enterprise and departmental
computing environments. Its industry-leading performance includes an average seek time of 7.8 ms, a rotational speed of 7200 RPM, and an internal data
transfer rate of 180 Mb/second.
The new drive's multimode, Ultra2 SCSI/Ultra SCSI capabilities let users take advantage of new Ultra2 SCSI external transfer rates while maintaining
backward compatibility with earlier Quantum drives, so they can continue utilizing their current investments in SCSI storage. In addition, the Quantum Atlas III
supports Level 4 hot pluggability -- a key requirement for obtaining high data availability from RAID subsystems -- in both single-ended SCSI and Ultra2
SCSI LVD modes. Quantum provides these multimode capabilities without charging its customers a price premium for the Quantum Atlas III.
The new Quantum drive also meets the high-end storage market's critical need for round-the-clock, 7x24 data availability through its use of a fourth-generation
PRML digital read channel and advanced Error Correction Code (ECC) on-the-fly technology. The Quantum Atlas III's high reliability derives as well from
the fully-automated manufacturing capabilities of Quantum partner Matsushita-Kotobuki Electronics, Ltd. (MKE) of Japan, which deliver process consistency
across Quantum Atlas series drives.
Suggested retail prices for the Quantum Atlas III are $1,620 and $1,020 for the 18GB and 9.1GB models, respectively.
About Quantum
Founded in 1980, Quantum Corporation (www.quantum.com) has developed leadership positions in both fixed and removable storage products. One of the
highest volume global suppliers of hard disk drives and the leader in the mid-range tape market, Quantum is widely recognized as a quality leader in the
industry. The company sells a broad range of storage products to OEM and distribution customers worldwide. Quantum's sales for the fiscal year ending
March 1997 were $5.3 billion.
Contact:
UpStart Communications
Julie Criscenti-Heck
Public Relations
510/420-7975
jheck@upstart.com |
