World's first 250GB 1.8-inch hard drive arrives

Toshiba HDD
Toshiba's little 1.8-inch drives just got a whole lot bigger

On a busy day for Toshiba, the Japanese firm has announced that it has achieved the world's first quarter-terabyte 1.8-inch mini hard drive.

The new SATA drive, which actually offers 250GB of storage, is joined by 120GB and 160GB models, all of which are likely to find their way into slim laptops, such as the MacBook Air, rather than low-end netbooks.

Drop detector

On top of the storage bump, the drives all spin at 5,400RPM and incorporate an accelerometer that can detect being dropped from as little as five inches.

Low power consumption will also likely make the new models attractive in an increasingly competitive laptop market where battery life can be the deciding factor for many shoppers.

J Mark Lytle was an International Editor for TechRadar, based out of Tokyo, who now works as a Script Editor, Consultant at NHK, the Japan Broadcasting Corporation. Writer, multi-platform journalist, all-round editorial and PR consultant with many years' experience as a professional writer, their bylines include CNN, Snap Media and IDG.