LAKE FOREST, Calif. - Jan. 30, 2008 - WD® (NYSE: WDC) today introduced its new My Passport™ Essential™ Portable USB Drives. Redesigned to complement WD's popular My Book family of external drives, the drives introduce a sleek new form that feels good in your hand and fits neatly in a pocket or purse. Available now at select retailers and at WD's online store (www.shopwd.com), the new My Passport Essential USB Drives feature a beautiful glossy black finish and put almost a third of a terabyte of digital storage in the palm of your hand.

Weighing in at less than 5 ounces, My Passport Essential Drives are light and compact to carry and because they are bus powered, they do not need an external power adapter1. Equipped with sync and encryption software (Windows®-compatible only), this lightweight drive with mega-capacity, makes it easy to securely carry thousands of songs, or videos or photos.

WD Sync™ software allows consumers to take desktop content with them by simplifying the synchronization of essential personal files and Microsoft® Outlook® data on a PC. Should owners misplace the drive, they know their data is protected with 128-bit encryption. Google™ software on the drive allows users to quickly locate files with the Google Desktop Search™ search tool, manage photos with Picasa™ photo organizer software and simplify Web searches with the Google Toolbar™ search bar.

"The newly designed My Passport Essential drives are the perfect travel-friendly storage device to hold the rich media content generated by higher resolution photos and HD videos and music," said Jim Welsh, vice president and general manager of WD's branded products group. "The desire to carry and keep their digital files close at hand continues to grow and this new drive offers a sleek and stylish solution with plenty of storage capacity for consumers on the move."

A product specification sheet and photos of WD Passport Portable Drives are available on the company's Web site at http://www.westerndigital.com/en/products/Products.asp?DriveID=391.

Price and Availability
WD's My Passport Essential USB Drives are available now at select retail stores and from WD's online store (www.shopwd.com). MSRP for the WD Passport Essential USB Drive 320 GB is $199.99 USD.