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Panasonic's 32GB class 6 SDHC card: $699 in April
Granted, there are other 32GB SDHC cards already announced. But those pups dawdle along at Class 4 speeds. Panasonic just announced a Class 6 card, baby, blazing a 20MB/s max transfer rate when it rolls out in April. That's about four hours of 1920 x 1080i, compressed AVCHD video. Surely you have $699 lying around, right? Shirley?
Creative's 32GB Zen now only $299
Digging the 32GB of NAND, but not so hot about the $499 pricetag on Apple's latest iPod touch? Creative would like to remind you that it got there first, for less, with the Zen, and has slashed the price to $299 from the original $349 to keep that margin healthy. Sure, the 2.5-inch screen is a bit smaller, and we've given Creative a bit of a hard time over the years for an occasional failure to innovate, but reviewers seemed to love on the Zen, and it's hard to argue with this deal.[Via DailyTech]
Official: 16GB iPhone available and 32GB iPod touch -- both $499
Out of the rumor mill comes the 16GB iPhone, now official. Ever since the 16GB iPod touch was announced in September, we all knew it was just a matter of time until Apple could bung the same NAND capacity into their chubbier iPhone. The surprise is a new 32GB iPod touch for the same $499. No other changes and certainly not 3G. Both are available immediately.Update: We just spoke with Apple, who told us that by available immediately, that means both US and international customers. They should start making their way to stores over the next couple of days, too, so call ahead to check stock if you're buying offline. Also, Cupertino had no comment on whether there were any other under-the-hood hardware changes in these new models.
SanDisk pushes SDHC to 32GB
The bits, they just keep coming -- now that 16GB SDHC cards are old hat, SanDisk's gone and upped the ante with these new 32GB cards. That matches Toshiba's record, but you won't be able to get your hands on one until April, when they ship for $349. A 16GB version and a new 8GB Ultra II SDHC Plus with flip-out USB connecter will also hit in March for $179 and $99, respectively -- but you know you want the big'un, don't lie.
Creative finally confirms 32GB Zen
Like we needed any more confirmation, but Creative has finally put an end to any remaining incredulity on our part by posting a press release with all the sordid details of its new 32GB Zen. We're not really used to "world firsts" from Creative in the DAP space, but the doubling in capacity over competing flash-based players certainly qualifies as one -- though Sansa seems to be hot on Creative's heels. The Zen is otherwise the same as its 4GB, 8GB and 16GB siblings, including that SD card slot for expansion should 32GB prove limiting for you. The new player will be available mid-December in Singapore for S$549.00 (about $380 US), and there's no word on release dates for Europe or the States. Get ready to import!Update: Friendly tipster Justin R. pointed out that you can indeed pre-order the 32GB Zen from Creative's US store for a mere $329.[Thanks, Rene]
Micron reveals RealSSD lineup of 32GB / 64GB SSDs
Check it -- we've got a new entrant in the ever-expanding solid state disc market, and it goes by the name Micron. The firm's first SSD lineup (dubbed RealSSD) will feature a native SATA II interface, a rugged, lightweight plastic casing, and suck down less than two-watts of power while active. Furthermore, the units will come in both 1.8- and 2.5-inch iterations, with a 32GB and 64GB flavor to be available in each size. The newly launched family is expected to slip into mass production in Q1 of next year, and on a related note, the 1GB to 8GB RealSSD Embedded USB range -- which is slated to ship en masse next month -- was also introduced. We know, you've hung around this long just to get the low down on pricing, but unfortunately, Micron has yet to dole out that oh-so-crucial information.
32GB Zen accidentally leaked?
It's inevitable that we'll see a 32GB Zen sooner or later, but we're not quite ready to call this little nugget on Creative's website anything but a typo -- especially since the available capacities listed a couple other places on the page don't make any mention of a 32GB unit. Still, food for thought if you're one of those who's always waiting for the perfect device.[Via EpiZENter, thanks Ramon]Update: False alarm, looks like the site admins may have pulled one too many late nighters. Maybe Creative and SanDisk should go on a hot date and talk about their faux 32GB ambitions. Thanks, Cody.
EDGE Tech intros $400 32GB DiskGO USB flash drive
32GB USB drives are certainly not new, but considering the astronomical pricetags they tend to sport, they haven't exactly caught fire with budget-conscious gadget lovers. EDGE Tech is apparently hoping to change that by offering up its capacious 32GB DiskGO for "just" $399.95. Granted, it's not like our bargain alerts are going haywire over that figure, but we suppose it's not too unreasonable considering the alternatives. Ah well, at least you won't have to worry over this thing attracting the ever-wandering eyes of gadget thieves -- you know, considering how the unadorned exterior hides its true value and all.[Via MobileMag]
InnoDisk's 32GB Flash Disk ExpressCard also does USB 2.0
Neither 32GB USB keys nor 32GB SSD ExpressCards are anything new, but wedding the two ideas into a swank dual interface drive is a commendable twist. Notably, InnoDisk has done just that, as its 32GB Flash Disk plays nice with both ExpressCard slots and USB 2.0, touts a read speed of around 30M/S, a write speed of 20M/S, and also arrives in a few smaller capacities for those not needing all 32 gigs. Unfortunately, there's no word on price at the moment, but we'll keep our eyes peeled.
Mtron kicks out 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB SSD drives
It's one thing to toot your own horn, but it looks like Mtron has gone a bit overboard with this one. Apparently, the company firmly believes that its new SSD lineup is faster than anything similar on the planet, but in all honestly, it's not. Nevertheless, the firm is hyping up its new 16GB, 32GB and 64GB solid state discs, claiming that the read speed of 120MB/s and write speed of 90MB/s trumps that of "other SSD" drives. 'Course, it must not be counting those SLC NAND flash-based iterations (like the Simpletech ZeusIOPS) as true competitors, and until we see unbiased benchmarks to prove these claims, we're ain't buyin'.[Via DailyTech]
Toshiba announces 32GB, 16GB SDHC cards
Yeah, Toshiba just announced an 8GB microSDHC card and even a massive 16GB full-size SDHC card (launching in October for ¥40,000, about $350), but it's the friggin 32GB card we're eyeballing. Due out January of next year for ¥80,000, soon enough you'll be plunking down seven bills for what's surely the last memory card you'll need for, what, six months?[Via Engadget Japanese]
Transcend joins the party, intros 32GB SSD drive
Shortly after releasing a 16GB SSD for ExpressCard slots, Transcend is joining SanDisk and TDK (among others) in the cost-effective 32GB arena. The company's 32GB 2.5-inch IDE solid state disc sports a "tough outer metal case," anti-shock features, "no moving parts," and the lower power consumption we've come to expect from these guys. The drive clocks in at just 7.4-millimeters thick and even touts built-in ECC (Error Correction Code) functionality that purportedly "ensures highly reliable data transfer and increases your systems energy efficiency." Unfortunately, the firm hasn't divulged details just yet around pricing, but we do know that an 8GB (TS8GSSD25) and 16GB (TS16GSSD25) flavor will be sitting alongside the 32GB TS32GSSD25 right about now.[Via PCLaunches]
Fujitsu gives P1610 Tablet PC the SSD treatment
While a natural evolution of the ultra-portable, it's still noteworthy when a vendor gives in and offers an SSD option to their gear. Once again, it's Fujitsu doing the honors by bringing that Solid State Disk action from Samsung to their 8.9-inch, 2.2-pound P1610 convertible Tablet PC -- something they've been offering on their Q and B series of laptops since October. But come now Fujitsu, you can do better than $700 and $1,200 for the 16GB and 32GB SSD, respectively. Perhaps you should look for a cheaper supplier.[Via Laptop Magazine]Update: It looks like the P1610 isn't the only LifeBook getting an SSD transplant, with Fujitsu's B6210 also getting in on the action, available with the same 16GB or 32GB drives. CNET's also reporting that both tablets are, in fact, available now, though you'll need to get in touch with Fujitsu for a price quote, which usually isn't a good sign.
SanDisk intros 2.5-inch 32GB SSD hard drive
No, SanDisk's latest offering in the ever-populating SSD realm is far from the largest, but just a tick after releasing a 1.8-inch edition, now the firm is unveiling a laptop (and external enclosure) friendly 2.5-inch flavor. The SanDisk SSD SATA 5000 2.5-inch is touted as a "drop-in replacement for the hard disk drive," and also boasts the durability that purportedly comes with being a fifth-generation product. Additionally, the NAND-based drive features a sustained read rate of 67-megabytes per second, reportedly enabling it to boot Windows Vista Enterprise on a lappie in "as little as 30 seconds." Of course, SanDisk didn't mind flaunting the low power consumption on this one either, as it boldly proclaims the 0.9-watts used during "active operation" as being nearly half as conservative as typical drives. While we're not exactly sure just how much these things will run the average consumer just yet, they are supposedly shipping to computer manufacturers now at around $350 a pop.[Thanks, Vinit]
Apple prepping for an all-flash iPod lineup?
Could Apple be getting ready to finally kick those hard drives to the curb and go with flash memory across its iPod lineup? At least one man seems to think so: Prudential Equity Group analyst Jesse Tortora, who compares the swap to Apple's move in 2005 from the 1-inch HDD iPod mini to the NAND flash iPod nano. "Flash memory is clearly more expensive on a $/GB basis than hard disk drives," he says. "However, the late 2005 Nano transition to flash provides a guide as to the point at which the previously mentioned non-cost advantages of flash memory outweigh the cost premium." Apple is in a position to bump its HDD capacities to 120GB thanks to recent advances in perpendicular recording, but while that's great for video capacity, the fact remains you can only get 5.5 hours of video playback out of one of the current models, making additional capacity seemingly a low priority. Tortora sees 32GB as being cost-feasible for later this year, but we'd be surprised to see Apple segment its market with low capacity flash-based video iPods and high capacity HDD-based video iPods, so perhaps they'll manage to swing a 64 gigger by then. Speaking of video iPods, Tortora also claims the next generation of iPods will include an iPhone-esque wide touchscreen, WiFi for Apple TV streaming, and GPS functionality -- something that's been hinted at in certain Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard rumors. Jesse Tortora's track record isn't the greatest, his calls on the iPhone were pretty well off the mark, but the move to flash he details sounds reasonable, and while WiFi and GPS in an iPod seems like a distant dream at the moment, we're sure we could make room in our heart for such functionality.
