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Active Media Products serves up Aviator-2 external USB 3.0 SSD
You know what's better than a new solid state drive? An Olympic gold medal. You know what else? A USB 3.0 SSD, of course! Active Media Products has just dished out details on its latest device, the Aviator-2 external USB 3.0 solid state drive. Available in case-only, 64GB and 128GB flavors, this one promises transfer rates as high as 4.8Gbits/sec (that's ten times the rate of USB 2.0, just so you're well aware), and considering the 3- x 5-inch size, you should have no issues slipping this into the chest pocket of your Members Only jacket. We're in no place to comment on the difficultly of slipping $34.95, $259.95 or $449.95 (in order of mention) out of your wallet, though, which is essentially required in order to take one home. That's the breaks, kid! %Gallery-86021%
OCZ cranks up the performance on Vertex Limited Edition SSD
CeBIT gets going next month, but OCZ Technology's not waiting around for the show to begin. Instead, it's pushing out details on its swankest SSD ever ahead of time, which will hopefully make room for some fancy prototypes to take up space in Germany. The Sandforce-based Vertex Limited Edition (LE) is based around an all-new architecture, and the company claims that this drive is its "fastest, multi-level cell (MLC), performance-based drive yet." How fast, you ask? How's about 270MB/sec on the read side and 250MB/sec on the write side, not to mention 15,000 IOPS. Unfortunately, it's still stuck on the SATA 3Gbps interface, but for those indifferent to that lingering 6Gbps alternative, you can be on the lookout for these to ship in 100GB ($399.99) and 200GB ($829.99) flavors for a limited time. %Gallery-85961%
Compaq Airlife 100 puts Android OS, Snapdragon CPU, and an SSD behind 10.1-inch touchscreen
digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gadgets/Compaq_Airlife_100_puts_Android_OS_Snapdragon_CPU'; HP's mobile computing unit appears to have decided that the term smartbook refers to putting a smartphone's components inside a netbook's body -- which kind of makes sense -- so they've built their Airlife 100 atop an Android OS platform, underpinned by a Snapdragon CPU (unconfirmed, but highly likely), a 16GB SSD, 3G and WiFi connectivity, and a 10.1-inch touchscreen display. We really can find no cause for complaint -- in fact this is the most excitement a Compaq-branded product has caused us... ever. HP touts a rock solid 12-hour battery life for the Airlife, which stretches out to a mighty 10 days of standby, in case you're one of those folks who hate to switch their electronics off. Announced in partnership with Telefonica, this smartbook will be offered as a subsidized part of mobile broadband service plans in Europe and Latin America. It may well find itself renamed under the HP Mini branding when it rolls around to the US, but for now head on over to Engadget Spanish for the full PR.%Gallery-85326%
Keio University and Toshiba ready tiny 1TB SSDs for 2012
Japan's Keio University claims to have developed, in conjunction with Toshiba, the technology to shrink the size of SSDs by a spectacular 90 percent while also cutting energy consumption by 70 percent. If that's not enough mind-boggling numbers for you, the final product of this partnership is expected to yield 1TB drives with 2Gbps throughput. The details of this are still somewhat unclear, but we're told researchers stacked 128 NAND flash chips atop one another, with the breakthrough being in the way they communicate -- using short-range magnetic signals --- which results in less wiring complexity and reduced production costs. We'll take some convincing to believe they can really put these to practical use by 2012 as promised, but if they do make it to any sort of commercial launch, you can bet we'll be queuing up through the night to get one. Note: Nikkei source link requires a paid subscription to access.
Corsair readying Nova and Reactor 2.5-inch SSDs for release
Corsair has kept quiet on the SSD front here recently, but it looks as if it's about to ruffle a few feathers with two new laptop-centric drives. Fudzilla has dug up pricing information on two heretofore unreleased solid state drives from the company, with the 64GB / 128GB Nova and 60GB / 120GB Reactor both featuring the Indilinx Barefoot controller, MLC NAND and at least 64MB of cache. The Nova series is purportedly capable of hitting read speeds of up to 215MB/sec on both the V128 and V64, while write speeds are locked at 130MB/sec for the V64 and 195MB/sec for the V128. As for the Reactor range? Those feature 128MB of cache and a nice boost in transfer speeds, though the €151 ($206) starting tag doesn't do much for bargain shoppers. Hit the source link for more details, but don't get your hopes too high for a near-term release in the US.
Intel swings 25nm factory doors open for a tour de fab
Intel and Micron's recent announcement that their collective superhero body, appropriately named IM Flash, is sampling 25nm flash chips has been accompanied with a whirlwind tour of their Utah production facilities for a few lucky journalists. PC Perspective bring us the atmospheric photo above, along with some videos, as they prance about one of the most hallowed (and cleanest) environments known to gadget lovers. Apart from the die shrink, the lads also discuss Intel's reputed plans for a G3 SSD refresh some time "later this year" with snappier controllers onboard, which apparently was echoed by Micron who also intend to pump out faster processors with their SSD products. While you wait for all that to happen, hit the source link to find out how and where the stuff that gets put inside SSDs is made.
Windows 7 gets a thorough SSD optimization guide
We all know we want an SSD, but do we truly know what to do with one when we get it? Sure, you could plug it into the familiar SATA and power cables and consider your job done, but that's not really the way of the geek. To educate us wistful, hopeful, soon-to-be SSD owners, TweakTown have put together a comprehensive guide on optimizing your solid state storage -- starting from the very first step of picking out the right drive. What lies ahead is a full breakdown of the controllers available on the market today, along with helpful reminders of the importance of Trim command and garbage collection support. After you pick out your perfect life partner, you'll be wanting to ensure it plays along nicely with Windows 7 as well, and they've got you covered on that front too. Just hit the source link and get informed. We did, even though we still can't afford to buy one of these mythical drives.
Seagate teams with LSI to enter PCIe-based SSD game
Seagate didn't bother serving up a gaggle of new wares at CES this year, but judging by its release shot out today, it's hoping to make a serious splash in the SSD market a bit later on. Thanks to collaboration from LSI, the outfit is expected to deliver its own line of PCI Express-based solid state storage solutions. We're guessing these devices will be similar in scope to the PCIe SSDs already outed by Fusion-io and OCZ Technology, but at least initially, they'll be aimed squarely at the enterprise market. We're hoping that's just a beta test (of sorts) and that performance-minded desktop users will be able to snap one up at their local Best Buy in short order -- too bad we've no assurance that these will be priced within the realm of feasibility, though.
Kingston's SSDNow V+ series hits 512GB capacity, adds Trim support
Kingston's upping the ante on its solid state drive series in pretty much all the ways that count. The SSDNow V+ line boasts a 512GB upper limit, twice the previous generation, with iterative options for 256GB, 128GB, and 64GB. Read / write speeds have more than doubled to 230MB/sec and 180MB/sec, respectively. Best of all, these suckers now support TRIM. Prices range from as low as $268 for standalone 64GB an can go as high as $1968 for 512GB, with an extra $15 or so tacked on if you want the bundle instead -- still alluring, still not for the feint of funding, but the good news is, if you don't need Trim or the extra speed, the original SSDNow V series is available for much smaller dents on your wallet.
Super Talent adds SandForce controller to new TeraDrive SSDs
All we ever hear of that SandForce SF-1500 controller seems to be about how wickedly fast it is, so we'd be remiss not to inform you that it's found another home -- this time inside Super Talent's new enterprise-class SSD line. Branded as TeraDrive FT2, these drives will range from 50GB to 400GB on MLC NAND flash, or up to 200GB on the even nicer SLC-based stuff. The only hurdle in all this glory is that the hardware seems destined primarily for non-consumer markets, with OEMs getting samples now and expecting volume deliveries by the end of this quarter. Then again, if you really can't wait for these to filter through in consumer machines, we're sure OCZ and RunCore will be more than happy to sell you some of their own silly fast SandForce-infused gear.
Lenovo RapidDrive brings SSD and HDD together, demoes 66 percent speed boost on video
You know, making that jump from HDD to SSD still costs an arm and a leg, so how about somewhere in between that gap? That's what Lenovo's offering as an option for the IdeaPad Y460 and Y560 coming in March. The idea with this RapidDrive technology is that you can have a 32GB or 64GB PCI-Express SSD installed alongside your regular HDD (up to 500GB option), and the two drives will effectively be combined into one. Sounds like a tribute to the hybrid hard drives that seem to have quietly disappeared. The guys at Lenovo Blogs claim that "this is not Intel TurboMemory" as RapidDrive implements a "more automatic" algorithm to dynamically pool and manage the hybrid drive, thus giving up to 66 percent increase in Windows 7 boot speed as well as everyday performance. Regardless of this jab at Intel, we've seen this demoed at CES and it looked as good as the video demo after the break. Just don't let us down with the SSD prices, Lenovo.
Intel's 40GB SSD quietly starts shipping
Smaller sized / smaller priced SSD boot drives are a pretty attractive proposition for someone wanting to boost performance on a budget. Kingston's 40GB SSDnow, for instance, was particularly well received at Engadget HQ recently, and now Intel's on the scene with its new X25-V Value line. With a 35MB/s write speed (as reported by Listed First) and a 65 / 110 microsecond read / write latency this isn't the fastest solid state drive out there -- in fact, at $130 (New Egg) it's a couple bucks more expensive than Kingston's faster alternative. But who knows? Maybe they'll slash prices, or one will fall off a truck in front of you. Stranger things have happened.
Kingston SSDNow V dips to 30GB size, lower price
We've already made our fond feelings toward Kingston's SSDNow V line quite clear, so you'll understand our joy at the news that it's about to add a new member to the fold. Cutting storage down to 30GB should mean Kingston is about to offer its cheapest drive yet, though all the info we have is that it'll be "under 90GBP" (or $145). That doesn't immediately strike us as better value than the 40GB SSDNow V -- which reached an $85 price point not too long ago -- but European prices aren't directly comparable at the best of times. In exchange for your cashola, you'll get a speedy little boot drive, backed by a three-year warranty, 24/7 tech support, and the knowledge that it can withstand a baseball bat should the need ever arise. Full PR after the break.
RunCore's 100GB Pro V solid state drive gets benchmarked, loved
RunCore's had a thing for delivering high-speed, enthusiast-level SSDs, and if you managed to pass right over the Pro IV, you may find the urge linked to the Pro V a bit too much to resist. TweakTown was able to spend some quality time with the device, which includes a SandForce 1500 controller and low(er)-cost MLC flash. Without getting into the dirty-dirty (trust us, you'll find plenty of charts in the source below), we'll pass along the following note: "we feel comfortable saying that the Pro V will be the enthusiast SSD to which all others will be compared to for the first half of 2010." Of course, with the speed worries behind us, the only question remaining is cost -- which always seems to best the case with SSDs. We're told that it'll cost more than the Barefoot-powered Pro IV, but with competition in the market heating up, hopefully the MSRP won't sting too badly.
OCZ unveils ultraslim USB 3.0 external SSD, Vertex 2 and new PCI-e SSDs
OCZ has a thing for pumping out some pretty swank concepts at trade shows, and sure enough, the company's storming onto the CES floor with a number of drool-worthy introductions. Up first (and dearest to our hearts) is the ultrathin USB 3.0 external solid state drive, which offers up a 5Gb/sec transfer rate and should ship in 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities. Someday, for some price. The outfit is also dishing out the Vertex 2 line of MLC-based internal SSDs as well as a second-generation PCI-Express design that's aimed for the enterprise crowd. Specifics are few and far between, but we're hoping to get a little hands-on time (with as many details as we can gather) soon. Really soon. %Gallery-81615%
ioSafe's Solo SSD ditches platters, isn't worried about buildings collapsing on it
Remember when ioSafe unveiled its original Solo right around this time last year? Man, that thing's looking mighty sluggish now. This year, the company is introducing the Solo SSD, which is hailed as the planet's first solid state external drive built to protect data from a building collapsing on it. Yeah, a building collapsing on it. It'll be available with capacities as large as 256GB and will get connected via eSATA or USB, and if you care to know, the ruggedness is due to the firm's own proprietary ArmorPlate steel outer casing. As for specifics, said tech helps the drive survive 5,000 pound crush forces, 20 foot drops onto rubble and blazing infernos to boot. It'll be available next month in the US for $499 (64GB), $749 (128GB) or $1,250 (256GB), with the full details / press release hosted up after the break. As soon as we catch some benchmarks on this thing, we'll be sure to pass 'em along.
OCZ Vertex 2 Pro SSD previewed: awesome, and could do with some 6Gbps SATA love
Speedy SSDs might still be a pipe dream for most of us, but at least picking a top brand isn't a challenge. OCZ would no doubt be a popular choice, and SandForce has just made it easier with its debut SSD controller, SF-1500, to be featured on the forthcoming Vertex 2 Pro SSD. Our friends at AnandTech managed to harvest some jaw-dropping results out of their 100GB prototype -- most notably, the drive topped the charts with 2MB sequential performances at around 260MB/s (which is "virtually bound by 3Gbps SATA"), as well as a 50.9MB/s 4KB random write rate. SandForce dubs the magic behind these results DuraWrite, which is likened to real-time compression on the drive thus saving a significant number of write cycles. No prices announced yet, but hey, do we even care any more?
Prototype SATA 6Gbps SSD gets benchmarked: yessir, it's hasty
We've already seen Seagate tout the speed advantages of its SATA 6Gbps hard drive, but it's the 6Gbps SSD that we're really curious about. PC Perspective managed to snag itself a Marvell prototype drive, and even though they could only test the read capabilities of it, the results are nothing short of titillating. Reviewers pitted the Marvell drive against Intel's well-respected X25-M G2, and their (admittedly limited) testing led them to discover a 33 percent increase in burst performance over one of the quickest SSDs on the market today. In case you're still not impressed, you should know that they also saw a 27 percent uptick in sustained read performance (compared to the X25-M G2) and a 175 percent increase over the aforementioned SATA 6Gbps Seagate HDD. Obviously it's still too early to tell whether the 6Gbps SSD really is the best thing since the vacuum tube, but if these ultra-early results are any indication of what's to come, we suggest you start packing those pennies away right now to finance your next storage upgrade.
Micron RealSSD C300 becomes first SSD to leverage SATA 6Gbps interface
Seagate may have claimed the rights to the planet's first SATA 6Gbps hard drive, but it's Micron claiming the same feat in the SSD realm. The outfit's new RealSSD C300 is the first of its kind to natively comply with the wicked fast new specification, which will (at least in theory) provide read speeds of up to 355MB/sec and write speeds of up to 215MB/sec. It's also the first solid state drive to use ONFI 2.1 high-speed synchronous NAND, and while we're obviously eager to see what real-world benchmarks show, the demonstration vids after the break already have our mouths watering. As for availability? Tthe drive is currently sampling in 1.8- and 2.5-inch sizes, though consumers shouldn't expect to pick one up (in 128GB or 256GB sizes) until Q1 of next year. Best start saving, bud. %Gallery-79352%
Kingston 40GB SSDNow review
From the moment that we heard of the new 40GB Kingston SSD, we couldn't help but get our hopes up. Who knows if (or more likely, when) SSD drives will ever completely replace spinning platters with all the digital media people collect today, so rather than stretching your budget and compressing your media in order to stuff everything onto a 256GB solid state drive, we dug the idea of snagging a small (and affordable) SSD for boot / application operations and utilizing a spacious HDD for archival. Not to mention -- regardless of how fast a disk is -- two are almost always better than one. If you're interested in rigging up a similar setup, hop on past the break to have a look at our impressions.
