There are many uses today for hard drives optimized for storing and streaming video files. Uses for this type of drive include DVRs, video work stations, and video surveillance applications. Hitachi has announced its latest video centric drive that is added to its CinemaStar line.

The new drive is called the CinemaStar C5K500 and is a 2.5-inch drive offering a maximum capacity of 500GB. The small drive is designed for silent operation, cool running, and low power usage. The rotational speed of the drive is 5400 rpm and is uses Hitachi SmoothStream technology to enhance digital video streaming applications.

Also featured is time-limited error recovery and thermal monitoring capability. Silent-seek acoustics are used for quiet operation. The drive carries Hitachi’s EcoTrac classification thanks to its light power requirements of 1.4W during read/write operations. The power consumption of the drive is 22% less than previous models. The drive is expected to ship in Q2 2009 at undisclosed pricing.

Hitachi