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SilverStone HDDBoost gets reviewed, okayed for purchase by most Earthlings
SilverStone's HDDBoost is an interesting, if not completely unique, offering. It's a relatively inexpensive (around $45) option for boosting performance in older machines, but it still requires the purchase of a decidedly not inexpensive SSD. For those with one already on hand (not to mention a traditional HDD), it allows you to have a RAID-type setup that provides peace of mind and a performance boost when it comes time to boot or load an application. Critics over at HardwareCanucks found that this little doohickey actually provided a noticeable increase in speed when coming from an older HDD-based setup, but those already using a WD Black Edition or Raptor probably "won't see much of a difference in terms of load times." They also point out that users should certainly use second-generation SSDs if picking one up, and if you've been searching for the next big breath of life to send to your aging desktop, you owe it to yourself to peek the full writeup.
Raidon announces HyBrid Disk SSD / hard drive combo
Not interested in piecing together your own hybrid SSD hard drive with something like SilverStone's HDDBOOST kit? Then you might want to consider waiting for Raidon's upcoming HyBrid Disk drive, which promises all the same benefits with none of the hassle (apart from actually installing it in your computer, that is). Complete details on this one are still a bit light, but you will apparently be able to remove the SSD and use it on its own if you like, and then have its contents automatically backed up when you put it back in its enclosure. No word on pricing just yet either, but Raidon says the drives will first be available in an internal, 3.5-inch version in April, with an external version following later in the year.
SilverStone HDDBOOST lets you build your own hybrid SSD hard drive
We've already seen Lenovo and others pair an SDD up with a standard hard drive for maximum speed, but SilverStone now has a fairly novel solution to let you build your own hybrid storage device. Dubbed the HDDBOOST, the device itself is just a simple chassis that lets you plug in any SDD drive and any standard hard drive and connect the whole rig to your computer -- you can even apparently daisy chain multiple hard drives and have them all take advantage of the SSD boost. Of course, those drives will be recognized as one by your computer, and the initial setup appears to be minimal, with only a simple mirror backup required to copy all your priority data to the SDD -- which the company says could result in up to a 70% increase in speed. No word on an official release over here, but this one should be available in Europe later this month for €33 (or about $45). [Thanks, Alex]
MSI Wind U115 rated at 15 hours of battery life, torn apart for its trouble
MSI's never been a slouch when it comes to its Wind series, but this new U115 seems to be something else entirely. In tests done by the folks at Eee-PC.de, the laptop ranged from 5.5 hours to 15 hours of battery life, based on level of usage. Even 5.5 hours is good for continuous use, but we could imagine all sorts of happiness with 15 hours of battery -- like camping. The laptop gets some of its battery mojo from its hybrid storage system, which allows the laptop to run entirely off of its 8GB of SSD memory, with the 160GB hard drive spun down to save power. The SSD is user-replaceable, if you don't mind a little warranty voiding, and the folks at nvision have thrown caution to the wind in ripping apart their U115 for our viewing pleasure.[Via liliputing]Read - Eee-PC.deRead - nvision
