Wow, I can’t believe there now is a 500GB hard drive in existence. While based on IBM technology, AdStar, bought by Hitachi last year, just the same, this drive is BIG! At a half a terra, this puppy will only work on the SATA II connector since IDE will be way too slow to move the data (can you imagine the length of time for a format?!) I can’t wait for this to get smaller, like the 2.5″ smaller size, so Apple can put this into my next iPod. ;)

Hitachi’s new Deskstar 7K500 drive marks several milestones in the storage industry: It’s the first desktop hard drive to reach 500GB and one of the first to use the speedy new SATA II interface. In terms of how it stores data, though, the Deskstar may be among the last of its kind, as drive manufacturers begin to approach the limits of how densely they can pack data using today’s standard recording technology. [Full Text]