Tandberg Data Launches Higher-Capacity 1.5TB RDX Cartridges

Tandberg Data has added 1.5TB RDX data cartridges to its portfolio of RDX data protection solutions for small and mid-sized businesses. According to Elisabeth Harth, global business unit director for Tandberg Data, the 1.5TB RDX data cartridge can store up to 30TB of compressed data when used in conjunction with AccuGuard, the company’s backup and deduplication software.

For the uninitiated, an RDX cartridge is really a 2.5-inch SATA disk drive in a tough protective shell. The form factor gives it the ruggedness and portability inherent to tape drives, while the random access nature of a hard disk drive (HDD) gives it superior access speed and transfer speed. Of course, RDX cartridges are essentially subject to the availability and maximum capacity of HDDs more often used in laptops.

We wrote at the beginning of last year about the company’s eight-disk RDX QuikStation, a storage appliance that accepts eight RDX cartridges. The 2U appliance was designed to offer SMBs versatile backup storage where it can be deployed as individual iSCSI targets or as an emulated tape drive for use with popular backup applications such as ARCserve, Symantec Backup Exec and, of course, AccuGuard. The QuikStation comes with a Web-based management interface for remote configuration, and is also equipped with dual Gigabit Ethernet ports.

The unveiling of 1.5TB RDX data cartridges from the previous maximum capacity of 1TB will mean that the native storage of an RDX QuikStation is increased from 8TB to 12TB. For SMBs with differing needs, smaller, single-dock systems are also available, as well as RDX cartridges that are based on even faster solid-state drives.

It may be worth noting that the arrival of the 1.5TB RDX cartridges is taking place later than planned; at least one company official has been quoted as saying that 1.5TB cartridges were expected to be available at the end of 2011. While no mention was made of it, the delay is in all likelihood caused by the severe flooding in Thailand last year, which caused massive disruption to HDD makers in the country. This presumably limited the supply of high-capacity 2.5-inch HDDs as manufacturers worked to bring production back to normal.

For now, Tandberg Data says the 1.5TB RDX cartridges will be available from September through the company’s distributors and reseller partners. No pricing information has been mentioned at this point.