DISK/TREND REPORT

Five decades of disk drive industry firsts

First disk drive
1956 IBM 350 RAMAC – 5 Megabytes, fifty
24" disks

First use of zoned recording
1961 Bryant Computer 4240 – 90
Megabytes, twenty four 39" disks

First disk drive with air bearing heads
1962 IBM 1301
"Advanced Disk File" – 28 Megabytes, twenty five 24" disks

First 14" disk drive and first with removable disk pack
1963
IBM 1311 "Low Cost File" – 2.69 Megabytes, six 14" disks

First voice coil actuator, first single disk cartridge
drive
1965 IBM 2310 "Ramkit" – 1.024 Megabytes, one 14" disk

First disk drive with ferrite core heads
1966 IBM 2314 -- 29.17
Megabytes, eleven 14" disks

First track-following servo system
1971 IBM 3330-1 "Merlin" – 100
Megabytes, eleven 14" disks

First flexible disk drive, read-only
1971 IBM 23FD "Minnow" --
.0816 Megabytes, one 8" disk

First flexible disk drive to set industry standard for 8 inch
diskettes
1973 IBM 33FD "Igar" -- .156 Megabytes, one 8" disk

First disk drive with low mass heads, lubricated disks, sealed
assembly
1973 IBM 3340 "Winchester" – 35 or 70 Megabytes, two or four
14 disks

First disk drive with rotary actuator
1975 IBM 62 GV "Gulliver" –
5 or 9 Megabytes, one 14" disk

Re-introduction of disk drive with fixed disk media
1976 IBM 3350
"Madrid" -- 317.5 Megabytes, eight 14" disks

First flexible disk drive with two sided recording
1976 IBM 43FD
"Crystal" -- .568 Megabytes, one 8" disk

First 5.25 inch flexible disk drive
1976 Shugart Associates
SA400 -- .2188 Megabytes, one 5.25" disk

First disk drive with thin film heads, and 2,7 encoding
1979
IBM 3370 "New File Project" – 571.4 Megabytes, seven 14" disks

First 8 inch rigid disk drive
1979 IBM 62PC "Piccolo" – 64.5
Megabytes, six 8" disks

First 10.5 inch rigid disk drive
1981 Fujitsu F6421 "Eagle"
– 446 Megabytes, six 10.5" disks

First 5.25 inch rigid disk drive
1980 Seagate Technology
ST506 – 5 Megabytes, four 5.25" disks

First 3.5 inch flexible disk drive
1981 Sony OA-D3OV --
.4375 Megabytes, one 3.5" disk

First 3.5 inch rigid disk drive
1983 Rodime RO 352 – 10 Megabytes,
two 3.5" disks

First 9 inch rigid disk drive
1982 Control Data 9715-160
"FSD" – 150 Megabytes, six 9" disks

First 8 disk 5.25 inch disk drive, with in-hub motor
1983
Maxtor XT-1140 – 126 Megabytes, eight 5.25" disks

First 8.8 inch rigid disk drive
1984 Hitachi DK815-5 – 460
Megabytes, eight 8.8" disks

First disk drive mounted on card
1985 Quantum Hardcard –
10.5 Megabytes, one 3.5" disk

First voice coil actuator 3.5" disk drive
1986 Conner
Peripherals CP340 – 40 Megabytes, two 3.5" disks

First one inch high 3.5" disk drive
1988 Conner Peripherals
CP3022 – 21 Megabytes, one 3.5" disk

First 2.5 inch disk drive
1988 PrairieTek 220 – 20
Megabytes, two 2.5" disks

First 9.5 inch rigid disk drive
1988 Hitachi DKU-86i – 1,890
Megabytes, eight 9.5" disks

First disk drive with PRML encoding
1990 IBM 0681 "Redwing"
– 857 Megabytes, twelve 5.25" disks

First disk drive using magnetoresistive heads
1991 IBM 0663
"Corsair" – 1,004 Megabytes, eight 3.5" disks

First 1.8 inch disk drive
1991 Integral Peripherals 1820
"Mustang" – 21.4 Megabytes, one 1.8" disk
First 1.8 inch PC Card disk
drives
1992 Integral Peripherals 1841PA "Ranger" – 42.5 Megabytes,
one 1.8" disk

First 1.3 inch disk drive
1992 Hewlett-Packard C3013A
"Kittyhawk" – 21.4 Megabytes, two 1.3" disks

First 7,200 RPM disk drive
1993 Seagate Technology ST12550
"Barracuda" – 2,139 Megabytes, ten 3.5" disks

First 6.5" rigid disk drive
1993 Hitachi H-6588-314 – 2,920
Megabytes, eight 6.5" disks

First 3 inch rigid disk drive
1995 JTS N0640-2AR – 641.7
Megabytes, two 3" disks

First embedded servo flexible disk drive
1995 Iomega Zip 100
– 100 Megabytes, one 3.5" disk

First drive using giant magnetoresistive heads
1997 IBM
Deskstar 16GP "Titan" – 16,800 Megabytes, five 3.5" disks

First 10,000 RPM disk drive
1997 Seagate Technology ST19101
"Cheetah 9" – 9,100 Megabytes, eight 3.5" disks

First 10,000 RPM drive with 3 inch disks
1998 Seagate
Technology ST118202 "Cheetah 18" – 18,200 Megabytes, twelve 3" disks

First 12,000 RPM disk drive
1998 Hitachi DK3E1T-91 – 9,200
Megabytes, nine 2.5" disks

First one inch disk drive
1999 IBM "Microdrive" – 340
Megabytes, one 1" disk

First 15,000 RPM disk drive
2000 Seagate Technology ST318451
"Cheetah X15" – 18,350 Megabytes, three 2.5" disks