> I don't know if HGST drives are related to the old Hitachi models at all.
FTA:
> Some of the HGST drives listed were manufactured under their previous brand, Hitachi. We’ve been asked to use the HGST name and we have honored that request.
Intriguing - that suggests some sort of advertising deal? Which calls in to question the impartiality of the report.
Who asked them? In what context? Why accede to a third parties interference in the report?
Are Backblaze getting reduced price HGST drives now?
Hitachi (owned by Toshiba) and HGST (owned by WD) are two different companies. You can't say a drive was manufactured by Hitachi/Toshiba when it was actually a HGST drive.
As I understand: WD bought HGST (Hitachi Global Storage Technologies), then sold on the manufacturing of 3.5" drives to Toshiba to comply with EU and FTC requirements (http://www.anandtech.com/show/5635/western-digital-to-sell-h...). WD retained the 2.5" side of the HGST manufacture.
I doubt anyone wants to buy a WD HGST branded drive on the strength of the past manufacture in what are now Toshiba owned factories. WD would want the past drives, sold as Hitachi, to be called HGST as it boosts that brand - but to some extent that would be misinformation.
So back to this:
>Some of the HGST drives listed were manufactured under their previous brand, Hitachi. //
Those Hitachi brand drives were it seems made in facilities that Toshiba own now. HGST is now a WD brand (though they were not quite one company as of Dec 2014) - unless the "Hitachi" drives were made in WD facilities the calling them HGST gives quite the wrong impression.
It's quite convoluted and I don't really follow HDD manufacture news that much; please correct me if I'm wrong.
Which is why I'm sure the HGST label on the graphs is an honest mistake. The hard drive world was severely shaken up as Hitachi got bought out by WD, and then FTC / EU split that company up on monopoly grounds.
There's no need to use a conspiracy theory. Nonetheless, it seems like the super-reliable "Hitachi 7k3000" of old is in fact a Toshiba drive today.
The Hitachi 5K3000 and Hitachi 7K3000 are amongst the most reliable hard drives in the report. Those drives are 3 years or more old and yet have some of the lowest failure rates in the study.
Unfortunately, Hitachi doesn't exist anymore. Hitachi as a company was split and sold in pieces. It is either HGST (owned by WD) or Toshiba.
I want to buy the 7k3000 today. Which hard drive manufacturer is making the modern equivalent? Is it the Toshiba DT01ACA300, or is it the "HGST Deskstar" ??
Despite sharing the same branding, I don't think HGST Deskstar is in fact from the same factory as the Hitachi Deskstars. When you look at the HGST Deskstars, they have WD Technology in them ("Coolspin" RPM).
The Toshiba DT01ACA300 has very similar performance characteristics to the old Hitachi 7k3000 drive.
So its a confusing situation. Which is why I'd like clarification. I bet that the Toshiba DT01ACA300 is actually the super-reliable hard drive that I want, but I admit that I'm a bit ignorant on this front.
If it's important to track this information, I think it's relevant to mention it specifically, and I'd expect an honest review to discuss important changes like this (if they're aware of them), regardless of the brand names mentioned. If HGST requested that the review not mention a change in factory or technology, or refused to answer questions about it, then yes, I'd suspect malice somewhere.
The Serial Number / Model Number information on the other hand should work if enough details are provided.