Hands On With Seagate’s 14TB IronWolf and Barracuda Pro Drives
Now that 40MP+ cameras and 4K and higher video resolutions are commonplace, the demand for storage at all levels is going through the roof. Fortunately, disk drives are also getting larger. Less than a year after introducing 12TB models, Seagate has just launched several models of 14TB 3.5-inch drives that may be just the thing for your storage needs.
The Barracuda Pro is being marketed to creative professionals and others who need high-capacity desktop storage, while the IronWolf Pro version is aimed at 24 x 7 availability like that needed by business NAS systems or cloud storage applications. There are also IronWolf and Skyhawk versions available, alongside the already announced Exos Enterprise drives.
Performance and Features
Seagate has already been shipping helium-filled 14TB Exos Enterprise drives to some customers, but the new models are the first to be usable in typical consumer and mainstream business applications. I’ve been using both the IronWolf Pro and Barracuda Pro drives for a few weeks now, in a variety of applications, and they’ve been a straightforward plug-in replacement to lower-capacity versions. In the small amount of performance testing I’ve done the IronWolf Pro version performs somewhat better than the smaller ones I compared it with. (I don’t have a smaller Barracuda Pro to test the new one against, but it compares favorably to the other 3.5-inch 7200rpm drives I have around.)
Both drives come with a data recovery and rescue service, although of course most serious users will deploy them in some type of redundant configuration anyway. The IronWolf Pro version uses about 8.5 watts when operating, while the Barracuda Pro draws about 6.9. Both drives use less than a watt in standby mode.
The IronWolf Pro version also features Seagate’s AgileArray technology, which provides for improved RAID-optimization in multi-bay environments, and IronWolf Health Management tools. This model also introduces Rotational Vibration sensors for use in maintaining performance in multi-drive enclosures. The Skyhawk version is slower but designed for cost-effective use in 24×7 applications like surveillance.
Price and Availability
IronWolf, IronWolf Pro, Barracuda Pro, Exos, and SkyHawk 14TB drives are all available immediately. The IronWolf and IronWolf Pro 14TB are priced at an MSRP of $529.99 and $599.99 respectively. The Barracuda Pro 14TB is priced at an MSRP of $579.99. The SkyHawk 14TB is priced at an MSRP of $509.99. The Exos X14 is priced at an MSRP of $614.99.
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