Toshiba No. 1 in consumer electronics hard drives

Toshiba, which makes hard drives with platters as small as 0.85 inches across, sold more hard drives into the consumer electronics industry than anyone else in the third quarter, according to a study from IDC.

According to IDC, Toshiba had a global market share of 27.5 percent for all hard drives shipped into the market, and a 43.9 percent share when excluding the 3.5-inch drive category. The 3.5-inch drive, fairly large by contemporary standards, goes into gadgets like digital video recorders.

The achievement is something of a double-edged sword. On one hand, consumer electronics represents one of the strong growth markets for hard drives.

On the other hand, relentless competition means most companies have a difficulty in turning a profit.