LaCie looks set to enter the disk drive array business through an OEM deal with Xyratex.

In the storage world Paris-based LaCie is known for stylish external drives for Windows, Linux and Mac users, with minimalist enclosures designed by Neal Poulton. Xyratex makes storage array subsytems which it supplies to storage array companies such as Compellent, Dell (EqualLogic), Data Domain, and IBM.

La Cie will, it appears, sell products built from Xyratex subsystems "to deliver premium storage systems for video professionals."

The Xyratex release summary goes into a little bit more detail, talking about "Enterprise Storage Systems for Corporate IT and HD Video Markets."

A Xyratex SVP for networked storage systems, Todd Gresham, added a little bit more colour: "We look forward to working closely with LaCie to meet their expanded customer requirements and growth within the video and web markets.”

Currently LaCie's highest capacity external drive products include the 5-bay 5bigNetwork as a desktop tower-style box with up to 7.5TB capacity, and the 1U rackmount, 2TB Ethernet Disk. We can surely look forward to larger rackmount enclosures with capacities going way beyond 7.5TB, possibly using 2.5-inch SAS hard drives, and even SSDS, to obtain the I/O rates needed for high-definition video. That will probably mean Ethernet connectivity for iSCSI or NAS access, or possibly SAS.

The fact that the two are announcing their marriage now must surely mean that offspring are in the offing and that, say, within six months we can hope for product announcements. ®