World's first 250GB 1.8-inch hard drive arrives

On a busy day for Toshiba, the Japanese firm has announced that it has achieved the world's first quarter-terabyte 1.8-inch mini hard drive.

The new SATA drive, which actually offers 250GB of storage, is joined by 120GB and 160GB models, all of which are likely to find their way into slim laptops, such as the MacBook Air, rather than low-end netbooks.

Drop detector

On top of the storage bump, the drives all spin at 5,400RPM and incorporate an accelerometer that can detect being dropped from as little as five inches.

Low power consumption will also likely make the new models attractive in an increasingly competitive laptop market where battery life can be the deciding factor for many shoppers.