3480 is the 1984 IBM standard specifications for 18 track tape drives.
3490 is the 1989 IBM IDRC standard that allowed for data compression for increased capacity on the same media.
These units came in single and dual drive configurations.
7-10 cartridge autoloaders were available on some units.
The ½ inch tape cartridges were easier to store and handle than the round reels, not to mention the storage capacity differences.
| Media | half inch tape cartridge |
| Capacities | 400 to 1000 MB w/ICRC |
| Interfaces | SCSI, STK, FIPS |
| Data transfer rate | 2.9 – 5.0 MB sec SCSI burst |
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