Seagate launches the world's first 32 TB HAMR hard drive

Seagate has officially introduced the Exos M 32 TB, the world’s first hard drive utilizing Heat-Assisted Magnetic Recording (HAMR) technology designed for the mass market. Built on the Mozaic 3+ platform, the Exos M hard drive marks a significant milestone in data storage. According to Seagate, this is the highest-capacity hard drive the company has ever created.

Seagate has been researching and developing HAMR technology since 2007. While the company has repeatedly announced plans to release devices using this technology, the launch of HAMR-based hard drives for the market has been delayed. In 2022, Seagate stated that the technology was ready; however, the initial HAMR drives were only made available to a limited number of customers. Now, the Exos M brings this groundbreaking technology to a broader audience.

The Exos M series currently includes two models: a 32 TB version using Shingled Magnetic Recording (SMR) and a 30 TB version using Conventional Magnetic Recording (CMR). However, there is some confusion about the product line’s naming. While the official product page lists it as Exos M, the URL references “Exos M 3+,” and the YouTube promotional video mentions both names. Seagate has yet to provide a clear comment on the product’s final naming convention.

A key highlight of the Exos M series is its compatibility with existing computer systems. This allows users to adopt the new HAMR hard drives without the need for hardware upgrades, facilitating faster technology adoption in the market.

While Seagate is the first to launch a 32 TB HAMR hard drive, Western Digital was the first to commercialize a 32 TB drive. In October last year, Western Digital released a 32 TB hard drive based on ePMR technology. However, Seagate is optimistic that HAMR technology will give users an edge over competitors in the future.

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