Users of miniature MP3 players and other storage-demanding handheld consumer electronics can rejoice as Hitachi Global Storage Technologies begins shipping its <A HREF="http://www.hitachigst.com/portal/site/hgst/index.jsp?epi-content=GENERIC&folderPath=%252Fhgst%252Faboutus%252Fpress%252Finternal_news%252F&docName=20050223.html&beanID=1018117899&viewID=content">6 gigabyte one-inch hard drive</A> in high volume. As the leader in one-inch hard drives, Hitachi is raising the stakes by making available the new Microdrive 3K6 with a suggested retail price reduction of up to 60 percent.