WD's innovative hybrid technology pairs MLC NAND flash storage for fast SSD-like data throughput and instant-on responsiveness with magnetic disks for efficient, high-capacity storage.

ENGADGET: Western Digital builds 5mm-thick hybrid hard drive, Ultrabook makers sign on early

Data accessed most frequently (often referred to as 'hot' data) is managed using speedy NAND flash to ensure fast response times, while data accessed less often ('cold' data) resides on the robust magnetic disks.

ENGADGET: Western Digital builds 5mm-thick hybrid hard drive, Ultrabook makers sign on early

Hybrid hard drives combine NAND flash and magnetic disks, simplifying storage-element integration for OEM customers and providing a host of end user benefits: superior performance, responsiveness, lower power consumption, greater operating shock tolerance, and data protection.

ENGADGET: Western Digital builds 5mm-thick hybrid hard drive, Ultrabook makers sign on early

In a report last week tech tracker iSuppli found that rising sales of tablet computers are hurting notebook PC sales, resulting in a decline in sales of traditional hard disk drives which rely on spinning magnetic disks.

FORBES: Apple's iPad Behind $4.3 Billion Disk Drive Deal

Magnetic tapes can degrade within a decade, while hard disks are expensive and need a constant supply of electricity.

WSJ: Scientists Store King Speech, Shakespeare Sonnets in DNA

Among today's data-storage devices, magnetic tapes can degrade within a decade, while hard disks are expensive and need a constant supply of electricity to hold their information, creating huge need for power for the "data farms" behind cloud computing.

WSJ: Scientists Store King Speech, Shakespeare Sonnets in DNA

The digital revolution has stirred up quite a bit of controversy in the music world, where you'll still find passionate devotees of old analog gear, who insist that magnetic tape and ribbon microphones do a better job at capturing voices and violins than sound cards and hard disks.

NPR: The Variax: Many Sounds from One Guitar