More is less. That spin on the familiar phrase applies to the boom in tiny 1-inch hard disks, which have reached a new level of capacity -- 6GB -- in models from both Hitachi Global Storage Technologies and Seagate. The latter says its 6GB ST1 Series (also available in 5GB and 2.5GB models) can hold up to 150 hours -- 1,500 to 3,000 songs -- of high-quality music, offering maximum value and storage for vendors of handheld music players and PDAs. The drive's RunOn Technology detects unwanted harmonic frequencies caused by vibration from walking or running and automatically keeps the read heads on track, while G-Force Protection parks the heads off the platter when the device is powered off.

Hitachi is offering its new 6GB Microdrive 3K6 in a removable CompactFlash Type II card as well as an embedded configuration; the former will tempt digital photographers and other mobile device owners with a price of $299. (Hitachi's 4GB Microdrive is now $199.) The 3,600-rpm hard disk promises 30 percent faster performance than its predecessor; Hitachi has already promised a 20-percent-smaller "baby Microdrive" with 8GB to 10GB of capacity for later this year.