GEAR MINI TESTS
SPECIFICATIONS
Capacity: 24TB (also 4, 6, 8, 12, 18, 22 and 26TB options) Drive: 7200rpm enterprise-class Ultrastar 3.5in external HDD Port: USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 Maximum read/write speed: 280MB/s read and write OS compatibility: MacOS, Windows Format: exFAT/APFS Material: Anodised aluminium Dimensions (wxhxd): 133x41x210mm/5.24x1.61x8.27in Weight: 1.32kg/2.91lb
WESTERN DIGITAL G-DRIVE 24TB £695/$700 westerndigital.com
use. Whether you’re offloading multicam 4K footage or editing high- resolution 4K directly from the drive, performance is solid. Using a 10Gbps USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 connection, the G-Drive delivers up to 280MB/s read and write speeds, making it fast enough for day-to-day video editing, Raw photo libraries and file archiving. Our standard test of moving a 50GB folder of video files to and from a Thunderbolt 4-equipped Mac Studio took a little under three minutes. That’s just over double the time taken by the Sandisk Professional Pro-G40 1TB SSD, so while it’s not SSD-fast, for a spinning hard drive it’s among the best in its class. Physically, the G-Drive is built like a tank and includes anchor points on both sides, allowing it to be mounted securely to a DIT cart, workstation or studio rig. Another thoughtful touch is the adjustable LED light on the front, which has three brightness levels or can be fully switched off to reduce distractions in dark editing bays. Out of the box, the G-Drive comes pre-formatted in APFS for MacOS 11 and later, and is fully Time Machine compatible. It’s plug-and-play for Mac users, but can easily be reformatted for Windows 10 or later, making it a flexible option for multi- platform workflows. Sadly, there is
There seems to be some unwritten rule that all desktop hard drives have to be dull, flat-sided, flimsy plastic boxes. But Western Digital doesn’t subscribe to that with its new range of G-Drive hard drives, as they look stylish and are low and flat so you can stack multiples of them. They’re also pretty rugged and weighty. That’s partly because these new Western Digital drives were actually in the high-end Professional range made by sister company Sandisk. Now two separate companies, Sandisk sells SSD flash drives while Western Digital focuses on hard drives that use the mechanical discs. These are often the preference for desktop use, where their affordability and large- capacity options make them a popular choice. But you still get pro-level reliability and build quality with the great value of spinning hard drives inside. The Western Digital G-Drive series is available in sizes from 2TB all the way up 26TB, and we tried the 24TB version. And yes, they still carry Sandisk Professional logos on them. It’s designed for professional filmmakers, featuring a single enterprise-grade drive in a rugged chassis that fits neatly onto a desk. At its heart is a 7200rpm Ultrastar enterprise-class hard drive, built to handle the rigours of high-capacity
only one USB-C jack, so it can’t be daisy-chained to peripherals, and USB-C is slower than Thunderbolt too. The G-Drive is appealing as a media archive, but is also suited to handling large projects in Final Cut Pro, Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve. With its speed and stability, it can even host active project files, though you will want to avoid treating it as your only copy for critical assets. As a single drive, it can’t be used as a RAID itself, but it can be set up with another drive as a mirror in a RAID array. While performance is strong, it might struggle to keep up if you start editing 8K or Raw files from it. We found it best to edit from an SSD and use the G-Drive as a video archive. The fanless design is generally quiet, but the drive’s spinning platters can still produce a low hum or occasional click, especially under load. At £695/$700, the 24TB version is priced reasonably when compared to high-speed SSD alternatives with much lower capacity. It’s good-value, fast, high-capacity and – in our tests – a reliable desktop storage solution. PRO MOVIEMAKER RATING: 8/10 Stylish and compact desktop hard drive with large capacity Pros: Solid build quality, quiet Cons: Single drive means no RAID
GOD GAVE LOCKIN’
ROLE TO YOU The drive’s rear panel has I/O ports and a Kensington security slot, but the front panel is clean and simple
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PRO MOVIEMAKER
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