Western Digital has consolidated its professional external storage lineup under the G-DRIVE name, retiring the SanDisk Professional branding for its creator-focused hard drive products. The move brings desktop drives, portable units, and multi-bay RAID systems into a single portfolio aimed at content creators working in photography, video production, music, and design.
The transition means that products previously sold as SanDisk Professional HDD-based solutions will now carry the G-DRIVE identity. According to Western Digital, the rebranding is already underway, with newly labeled devices shipping and full warranty support continuing for existing SanDisk Professional products. The consolidation follows Western Digital’s 2025 separation into a standalone HDD-focused company, a structural change that sharpened its emphasis on hard disk storage after spinning off its flash business.
Under the updated portfolio, G-DRIVE serves as the umbrella for a range of high-capacity, high-performance external storage solutions built primarily around enterprise-class Ultrastar HDDs. These drives are positioned for workflows that demand sustained throughput and large storage volumes, such as 4K and 8K video editing, RAW photo archiving, and multi-track audio production.
The G-DRIVE ArmorATD remains the entry point for mobile professionals. It offers capacities up to 6TB and features a ruggedized enclosure with triple-layer shock resistance and IP54-rated dust and water protection. Designed for field use, the ArmorATD is built to handle transport between shoots while maintaining compatibility with common desktop and laptop setups.
For stationary workstations, the standard G-DRIVE desktop model scales up to 26TB using enterprise-grade Ultrastar HDDs. It is intended for sustained transfer speeds during editing sessions and for long-term project storage. Similarly, the G-DRIVE PROJECT offers a single-bay Thunderbolt 3 desktop configuration, also reaching 26TB, targeting users who require higher bandwidth connectivity and streamlined integration into post-production environments.
Multi-bay options extend the lineup further. The G-RAID PROJECT 2 is a compact two-bay Thunderbolt 3 RAID system that ships in RAID 0 by default and supports up to 52TB. Field-swappable Ultrastar drives allow users to replace or expand storage as needed. For larger-scale productions, the G-RAID SHUTTLE 4 and SHUTTLE 8 provide transportable 4-bay and 8-bay arrays with capacities up to 208TB. These systems ship in RAID 5 and are aimed at on-set data management, multi-camera workflows, and collaborative studio environments.
While the branding changes, Western Digital’s broader HDD portfolio remains intact. The company continues to market its WD Gold drives for enterprise environments, WD Purple for surveillance systems, WD Red for NAS deployments, WD Blue for general PC productivity, and WD_BLACK for gaming. The G-DRIVE consolidation sits alongside these color-coded product lines but is specifically tailored to creative professionals who prioritize external storage and RAID configurations.
In practical terms, the rebrand simplifies the external HDD lineup by removing overlapping identities. For buyers, the shift does not significantly alter specifications or performance characteristics; instead, it clarifies how Western Digital intends to segment its professional storage offerings in 2026 and beyond. As data-heavy creative workflows continue to expand, particularly in high-resolution video and large-format photography, high-capacity HDD-based systems remain relevant despite the growing presence of SSD alternatives. The G-DRIVE portfolio reflects that ongoing demand for scalable, high-volume storage solutions designed around reliability and sustained performance rather than peak burst speeds.
