Quantum revs tape storage offering with Super DLT format Small tape backup drive offers big capacity Related Jobs Search our jobs database for the top jobs involving computers and peripherals. Every new gigabyte of disk space must be matched by at least a gigabyte of backup capacity. And due to low capacity per cartridge and slow data transfer rates, existing tape libraries have a tough time keeping up. When any technology has been around as long as tape, our pride forces us to look for something better. We've taken many stabs at it, but we keep coming back to tape.
Tape is bulky and slow compared to hard drives, and the cartridges are relatively expensive.
But tape is also the only removable media that's dense enough to keep up with the skyrocketing growth in enterprise storage capacity. It may not be perfect, but tape still holds more data per removable unit than any storage technology that seeks to replace it. Of course, that's not to say that tape has not evolved. For starters, magnetic tape is no longer used as a primary storage medium. The big reels are gone, having been replaced with smaller, more convenient cartridges.