Western Digital’s WD RED Pro 18TB NAS hard drive is available at Newegg for $700, reduced from $855 with the code BNWF49. The deal takes $155 off the listed price, though it is not described as a historic low.
The 3.5-inch drive, model WD181KFGX, spins at 7,200rpm and has a 512MB cache and a SATA 6Gb/s interface. It is rated for workloads of up to 300TB per year in NAS systems with as many as 24 bays, and comes with a five-year limited warranty.
The Red Pro line is designed for the vibration and continuous activity of multi-bay systems. The 18TB model has not been reviewed, but the 14TB version received four stars in testing. The drive is suited to NAS owners, home lab builders and small businesses seeking high-capacity storage for systems that run around the clock.
The deal listing puts the price at almost four cents per gigabyte. The 18TB capacity is presented as a middle ground between lower-capacity models and WD’s 22TB to 26TB options. Other Red Pro capacities range from 4TB to 26TB.
The source recommends matching a NAS system’s drives by brand and model, as they are designed to work together. It also notes that a 7,200rpm drive can be audible, making this less suitable for quiet setups, while a simple external drive may be a more practical choice for backing up one PC. The discount code is described as available for a limited time.
Sources: TechRadar.