Hard disk drive (HDD) sales have taken a significant hit this year, according to new figures by Trendfocus. Nearline HDD shipments have fallen considerably from the previous quarter, but the decrease may not necessarily be indicative of a challenging economic landscape. Rather, the drop may signify a return to normalcy from an artificial high, with more companies undergoing digital transformation initiatives than ever before.
The pandemic wreaked havoc across numerous sectors, and HDD sales were no exception. Many businesses reined in their spending, which saw shipments begin to decline. However, HDD shipments, including nearline devices, increased in 2021 as digital transformation initiatives became more common. Now, however, the figures are deflating. Analysts have suggested that the decrease is more likely a move back towards normal ratings than the result of a global belt-tightening.
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That said, other categories of HDD have been hit harder, such as mission-critical, 2.5-inch, and 3.5-inch drives, which have experienced a dip of 20%, 15%, and 10%, respectively, over the last quarter. While HDDs have long been the go-to storage solution for businesses, consumers, and even casual users, SSDs are quickly replacing them for many use cases due to their reliability, speed, and durability.
SSDs offer significantly larger storage capacities when compared to hard disks, and their pricing is becoming more affordable. Fewer moving parts in SSDs means that they’re less prone to failure than HDDs, which makes them an attractive option for consumers and businesses alike. Additionally, more companies such as cloud storage giant Backblaze are adopting SSDs, with the company opting for over 2,900 of them with a combined total storage capacity of around 840 TB.
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During 2022, Backblaze measured an average annualized failure rate of 0.98% for SSDs, compared to 1.37% for HDDs during the same period. To that end, many in the industry believe that it’s just a matter of time before SSDs become the preferred storage option for most use cases. As it stands, Seagate accounts for around 44% of the HDD market, with Western Digital coming in second place. Toshiba is in third place, accounting for just under one in five sales.
In conclusion, while the decrease in HDD shipments is significant for the industry, analysts suggest that it is not indicative of a significant shift in the market economy. Instead, the drop indicates that businesses are heading back toward normal ratings from a high rate seen in 2021. Still, with SSDs becoming more dominant in the market and proving to be more reliable, many industry insiders believe that it’s only a matter of time before SSDs replace HDDs as the most popular option for most use cases.
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