List of defunct hard disk manufacturers
Encyclopedia
It has been estimated that over 200 companies were hard disk drive manufacturers at one time or another. Besides competing on features such as hard disk
(HDD) data density and latencies, many of those companies started to support new, smaller form factors that enabled the ever-reducing physical sizes of computing devices. Most of that industry has been reduced to five strong vendors through bankruptcy and acquisition. As of 2011, these vendors are (alphabetically): HGST, Samsung
, Seagate
, Toshiba
, and Western Digital
. The first two of these may be acquired later in 2011, which would result in only three manufacturers of hard drives.
The following is a list of notable defunct HDD manufacturers:
Hard disk
A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the...
(HDD) data density and latencies, many of those companies started to support new, smaller form factors that enabled the ever-reducing physical sizes of computing devices. Most of that industry has been reduced to five strong vendors through bankruptcy and acquisition. As of 2011, these vendors are (alphabetically): HGST, Samsung
Samsung
The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
, Seagate
Seagate Technology
Seagate Technology is one of the world's largest manufacturers of hard disk drives. Incorporated in 1978 as Shugart Technology, Seagate is currently incorporated in Dublin, Ireland and has its principal executive offices in Scotts Valley, California, United States.-1970s:On November 1, 1979...
, Toshiba
Toshiba
is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
, and Western Digital
Western Digital
Western Digital Corporation is one of the largest computer hard disk drive manufacturers in the world. It has a long history in the electronics industry as an integrated circuit maker and a storage products company. Western Digital was founded on April 23, 1970 by Alvin B...
. The first two of these may be acquired later in 2011, which would result in only three manufacturers of hard drives.
The following is a list of notable defunct HDD manufacturers:
- Alps Electric – left industry
- Amcodyne
- AmpexAmpexAmpex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff. The name AMPEX is an acronym, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence...
- Apple, Inc. – produced the proprietary LisaApple LisaThe Apple Lisa—also known as the Lisa—is a :personal computer designed by Apple Computer, Inc. during the early 1980s....
20MB Widget drive in house in 1984 for less than two years before leaving the hard drive business. - Atasi Corp. – bankrupt
- Areal Technology – acquired by Tomen Corp in 1993
- Aura Associates
- Avatar Systems
- BASF
- Bryant Computer Products
- Burroughs Corporation – merged with Sperry CorporationSperry CorporationSperry Corporation was a major American equipment and electronics company whose existence spanned more than seven decades of the twentieth century...
to form UnisysUnisysUnisys Corporation , headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, United States, and incorporated in Delaware, is a long established business whose core products now involves computing and networking.-History:...
in 1986 - CalComp
- Calluna Technologies
- Century Data
- Cogito Systems – bankrupt
- Comport
- Computer Memories Inc.Computer Memories Inc.Computer Memories Inc. was a Chatsworth, California manufacturer of hard disks during the early 1980s. CMI made basic stepper motor-based drives, with low cost in mind....
(CMI) – left industry in 1986 - Conner PeripheralsConner PeripheralsConner Peripherals was a company that manufactured hard drives for personal computers. Conner Peripherals was founded in 1985 by Seagate Technology co-founder Finis Conner but it in itself never produced a product. In 1986 Conner Peripherals merged with CoData, started by MiniScribe founders Terry...
– merged with Seagate in 1996 - Conner Technologies – merged with ExcelStor in 2001
- Control Data Corporation / ImprimisControl Data CorporationControl Data Corporation was a supercomputer firm. For most of the 1960s, it built the fastest computers in the world by far, only losing that crown in the 1970s after Seymour Cray left the company to found Cray Research, Inc....
– sold hard disk drive business to Seagate in 1989 - Cornice LLC – bankrupt in 2007
- Data GeneralData GeneralData General was one of the first minicomputer firms from the late 1960s. Three of the four founders were former employees of Digital Equipment Corporation. Their first product, the Data General Nova, was a 16-bit minicomputer...
– left industry - Data Products
- Data Recording Instruments (DRI)
- Data Storage International – bankrupt
- Diablo Systems
- Digital Equipment CorporationDigital Equipment CorporationDigital Equipment Corporation was a major American company in the computer industry and a leading vendor of computer systems, software and peripherals from the 1960s to the 1990s...
– sold hard disk drive business to Quantum in 1994 - DZU (of Bulgaria)
- Epson – left industry
- Evotek
- ExcelStor TechnologyExcelStor TechnologyExcelStor established in 2000 as a small hard disk drive manufacturer has evolved into a contract manufacturer and a system integrator. It has a manufacturing plant in Shenzhen, China, and an R&D center in Longmont, Colorado, USA...
– left industry - Fuji Electric
- FujitsuFujitsuis a Japanese multinational information technology equipment and services company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is the world's third-largest IT services provider measured by revenues....
– HDD division acquired by ToshibaToshibais a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
in July 2009 - General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
– - Gigastorage
- Halo Data – startup making mini disk drives for digital cameras went bankrupt in 2001
- Hewlett-PackardHewlett-PackardHewlett-Packard Company or HP is an American multinational information technology corporation headquartered in Palo Alto, California, USA that provides products, technologies, softwares, solutions and services to consumers, small- and medium-sized businesses and large enterprises, including...
– left industry - Hitachi Global Storage TechnologiesHitachi Global Storage TechnologiesHitachi Global Storage Technologies is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., it is expected to be sold to Western Digital in third calendar quarter 2011. Hitachi GST developed hard disk drives, enterprise-class solid state drives, and external storage solutions and services used to store,...
– expected to be sold to Western DigitalWestern DigitalWestern Digital Corporation is one of the largest computer hard disk drive manufacturers in the world. It has a long history in the electronics industry as an integrated circuit maker and a storage products company. Western Digital was founded on April 23, 1970 by Alvin B...
in 2011 for 4.3 billion US dollars - Hokushin Electric Works
- Honeywell Bull
- IBMIBMInternational Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
– hard disk drive business acquired by Hitachi Global Storage TechnologiesHitachi Global Storage TechnologiesHitachi Global Storage Technologies is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., it is expected to be sold to Western Digital in third calendar quarter 2011. Hitachi GST developed hard disk drives, enterprise-class solid state drives, and external storage solutions and services used to store,...
in 2002 - Information Storage Systems
- Integral Peripherals – first rigid 1.8" drive; bankrupt in 1998
- International Memories (IMI) – spun off by MemorexMemorexMemorex began as a computer tape producer and expanded to become a major IBM plug compatible peripheral supplier. It is now a consumer electronics brand of Imation specializing in disk recordable media for CD and DVD drives, flash memory, computer accessories and other electronics.Established in...
in 1977; left industry in 1985 - IomegaIomegaIomega is an American producer of consumer external, portable and networking storage hardware. Established in the 1980s, Iomega has sold more than 410 million digital storage drives and disks. On April 8, 2008, EMC Corporation announced its plans to acquire Iomega for a consideration of US $213M...
– left industry - Itel
- JT StorageJT StorageJT Storage was a maker of inexpensive IDE hard drives for personal computers based in San Jose, California...
– bankrupt in 1999 - JVCJVC, usually referred to as JVC, is a Japanese international consumer and professional electronics corporation based in Yokohama, Japan which was founded in 1927...
– left industry - KalokKalokKalok was a hard disk drive manufacturer which went bankrupt in 1994.One of their last offerings was a 100 megabyte 3.5" disk drive using a stepper motor head actuator and was very limited in both access speed and reliability...
– bankrupt in 1994 - KyoceraKyocerais a multinational manufacturer based in Kyoto, Japan. It was founded as in 1959 by Kazuo Inamori and renamed in 1982. The company has diversified its founding technology in ceramic materials through internal development as well as strategic mergers and acquisitions...
– left industry - LaPine Technologies
- Marshall Laboratories
- Matsushita
- MaxtorMaxtorMaxtor Corporation, founded in 1982 and acquired by Seagate Technology in 2006, was an American manufacturer of computer hard disk drives, the third largest in the world immediately prior to acquisition...
– acquired by Seagate in 2006 - MemorexMemorexMemorex began as a computer tape producer and expanded to become a major IBM plug compatible peripheral supplier. It is now a consumer electronics brand of Imation specializing in disk recordable media for CD and DVD drives, flash memory, computer accessories and other electronics.Established in...
– acquired by Burroughs 1981 and then merged into Unisys 1986; HDD division shut down in 1988 - Microcomputer Memories – left the industry
- Micropolis Corporation – bankrupt in 1997
- Microscience International – bankrupt in 1992
- MiniScribeMiniScribeMiniScribe was a manufacturer of disk storage products, founded in Longmont, Colorado in 1980. MiniScribe designed and sold stepper motor-based hard disk drives with a large amount of onboard intelligence for the time. They eventually moved into higher-profile voice coil motor designs, at which...
– bankrupt and then acquired by Maxtor in 1990 - Ministor Peripherals – first mobile 1.8" drive; bankrupt in 1998
- MitsubishiMitsubishiThe Mitsubishi Group , Mitsubishi Group of Companies, or Mitsubishi Companies is a Japanese multinational conglomerate company that consists of a range of autonomous businesses which share the Mitsubishi brand, trademark and legacy...
– left industry - NECNEC, a Japanese multinational IT company, has its headquarters in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. NEC, part of the Sumitomo Group, provides information technology and network solutions to business enterprises, communications services providers and government....
– left industry - Nippon Peripherals
- Nomai
- Olivetti
- Phillips
- Plus DevelopmentPlus DevelopmentPlus Development Corporation was a majority-owned subsidiary of Quantum Corporation and invented the Hardcard hard disk drive on a card which started a wave of companies producing similar products in the late 1980s.-History:...
– Subsidiary of Quantum; created Hardcard; absorbed back into Quantum 1992 - Potter Instrument
- PrairieTekPrairieTekPrairieTek was a hard drive manufacturer located in Longmont, Colorado in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It manufactured 5 and 10 megabyte "ruggedized" miniature hard drives for the laptop computer market. Unlike many manufacturers of the time, PrairieTek did not rest the drive heads on the...
– first 2.5" rigid HDD; bankrupt in 1991 - Priam Systems – sold product line to Prima International in 1991
- Quantum Corporation – sold hard disk drive business to MaxtorMaxtorMaxtor Corporation, founded in 1982 and acquired by Seagate Technology in 2006, was an American manufacturer of computer hard disk drives, the third largest in the world immediately prior to acquisition...
in 2000 - Raymond Engineering
- RodimeRodimeRodime was an electronics company specialising in hard disks, based in Glenrothes, Scotland. It was founded in 1979 by several Scottish and American former employees of Burroughs Corporation and listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1986, becoming Rodime PLC....
– first 3.5" rigid HDD; shut down manufacturing in 1991; licensed its patents until the patent business was sold for $1.5M in July 2003. The company was then the subject of a reverse merger and became Sportech PLCSportech PLCSportech is one of the leading suppliers and operators of pools/tote betting in the world, processing over $13 billion in bets and with a presence in 30 countries. Sportech is one of the very few European gaming companies with a license to operate and process bets in the U.S... - Sagem
- SamsungSamsungThe Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
– HDD business expected to be acquired by Seagate for $1.375 billion in 2011 - Seiko Epson
- Sequel
- Siemens
- SonySony, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
- Storage Technology CorporationStorage Technology CorporationStorage Technology Corporation , aka STC until about 1983, is a data storage technology company. Current StorageTek products focus on tape backup equipment and software to manage storage systems. New products include data retention systems, which they call information lifecycle management, or ILM....
(StorageTek or STK) – left industry - Syquest – bankrupt in 1998; some patents acquired by IomegaIomegaIomega is an American producer of consumer external, portable and networking storage hardware. Established in the 1980s, Iomega has sold more than 410 million digital storage drives and disks. On April 8, 2008, EMC Corporation announced its plans to acquire Iomega for a consideration of US $213M...
. Re-emerged selling cartridges for their previously-discontinued products. - Tandon CorporationTandon CorporationTandon Corporation was a disk drive and PC manufacturer founded in the mid-1970s by "Jugi" Tandon. The company's original purpose was to provide magnetic read-write heads for the then-burgeoning floppy-drive market. Due to the labor-intensive nature of the product, production was carried out in...
– acquired by Western Digital in 1988 - Texas InstrumentsTexas InstrumentsTexas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology...
– left industry - Tulin Corporation – bankrupt
- Vertex Peripherals – acquired by Priam in 1985
- Wang LaboratoriesWang LaboratoriesWang Laboratories was a computer company founded in 1951 by Dr. An Wang and Dr. G. Y. Chu. The company was successively headquartered in Cambridge , Tewksbury , and finally in Lowell, Massachusetts . At its peak in the 1980s, Wang Laboratories had annual revenues of $3 billion and employed over...
– left industry