Having difficulty backing up voluminous data from your computer or laptop? Japanese firm Sony unveiled the super storage tapes that can solve data storage problems during the recent International Magnetic Conference in Dresden, Germany. With the headlines and web flurry going on, there are five interesting things to know about this innovation.

185 TB Data Storage Capacity

According to Daily Mail, the new Sony super storage tape can contain 148 gigabits (GB) per square inch so a single tape can hold 185 Terabits (TB) of data. This super capacity is equivalent to 3,700 Blu-ray discs and has 74 times more capacity than the traditional tapes used decades ago in Walkman.

Low-Cost Data Storage

Instead of the tricky and expensive process of shrinking the size of the magnetic particles to increase data storage capacity, the technology used in the Sony super storage tape is just cost-effective. It uses a technique called sputter deposition wherein the smooth surface on top of the tape has a vacuum thin soft magnetic under layer so the crystals of the tape shrinks to increase the recording capacity but the shape remains the same.

Perfect for Data Archives

According to an article in BBC, it is predicted that each person will require around 5,200 GB of data storage by 2020 which will sum up to around 40 trillion GB of data storage requirement for all the countries all over the globe. The advent of the Sony super storage tape will be able to take care of this requirement so the huge amount of data can be kept safe and secure for a very long time.

However, the tape is best use for backup purposes not for everyday use. Since the storage tape is only capable sequential access, it has to be placed to the right location so data retrieval can be quite tricky and slow.

Best for Businesses

While many companies already turn to cloud computing, CDs or external drive to archive their voluminous data, there are still companies who use the traditional method of saving data. Businesses with large data requirement can take advantage of the Sony super storage tape to cut down the cost on power consumption pertinent to data storage in the data center servers. It is also way much cheaper than the monthly premium in case of cloud data storage so businesses can allot more resources to some more important business requirements.

Sony and IBM Tandem

The Sony super storage tape was developed through the partnership of Sony and IBM which are big names in the industry. In a BBC article, Sony stated: "The rapid recovery of data systems such as databases and data servers following natural disasters, as well as secure management of information has become ever more important, and companies around the world are proceeding to build new data systems."

Hopefully, the return of the tape in the market with the Sony super storage tape soon will indeed bring about user-friendly solution to the ever-growing need of data storage.

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