| Corsair Announces SSD Upgrade Kit for Laptop |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: May 24, 2012 - 9:53 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.corsair.com/blog/the-new-corsair-force-series-3-ssd-noteboo... |
If you’d like to upgrade your laptop with an external SSD, you can purchase the newest upgrade kit from Corsair. The kit includes a Force Series 3 SSD unit, a USB-to-SATA cable and easy-to-use migration software for transferring the existing operating system, applications, and data files from an old hard drive to the new SSD. The kit is available in 120 GB (USD 139.99) and 240 GB (USD 259.99). 
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| Transcend Launches mSATA SSD Drives |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: May 11, 2012 - 8:56 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.transcend-info.com/Press/index.asp?LangNo=0&Func1No=6&a... |
The mSATA form factor is a standard that allows manufacturers to integrate a SSD in a space that is about one-third of the size of a standard business card (3 cm x 5 cm). The newly announced Transcend’s MSA720 drives are compatible with this standard, feature a SandForce SF-2281 controller, and are available in 64 GB and 128 GB with a SATA-600 interface. As for speeds, MSA720 drives provide sequential transfer rates up to 560 MB/s read and 530 MB/s write. The MSA720 mSATA drives are designed to work in thin-and-light portable devices such as ultrabooks, notebooks, tablet PCs, and high-performance SSD-based systems. They can also act as a cache drive in dual drive systems. SSD caching systems have both a hard disk drive and a low-capacity SSD. The large capacity hard drive is used for storing data, while the MSA720 acts as a cache drive to accelerate operating system boot-up time and commonly-used application launch speed. To prevent unauthorized access to data, the MSA720 drives feature hardware-based 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) protection that automatically encrypts all data written to the SSD in real time, with no reduction in performance. Transcend did not provide information on pricing. 
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| OCZ Releases Firmware Enhancement for Vertex 4 SSDs |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: May 7, 2012 - 8:48 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.ocztechnology.com |
OCZ has just released a new firmware (v1.4RC) that improves sequential read and write speeds (random read and write speeds haven’t changed) of its Vertex 4 series of SSD drives. In the tables below, compare the speeds before and after the v1.4RC firmware installation. 128 GB Model v1.4RC Firmware | Before | After | Max Read | 535 MB/s | 550 MB/s | Max Write | 200 MB/s | 420 MB/s |
256 GB Model v1.4RC Firmware | Before | After | Max Read | 535 MB/s | 550 MB/s | Max Write | 380 MB/s | 465 MB/s |
512 GB Model v1.4RC Firmware | Before | After | Max Read | 535 MB/s | 550 MB/s | Max Write | 475 MB/s | 475 MB/s |
Most notably, v1.4RC firmware more than doubles sequential write performance of the 128 GB model and boosts the 256 GB model from 380 MB/s to 465 MB/s. The v1.4RC firmware will be available today via the company's website. OCZ is also expanding its Vertex 4 series with the introduction of the 64 GB model, which will become available over the next few weeks.
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| Intel Announces 330 Series of SSD Drives |
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| WD Unveils New VelociRaptor Hard Drives |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: April 16, 2012 - 8:42 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=20 |
Western Digital has launched a new version of their VelociRaptor hard drives (VR333M), now featuring 333 GB platters, 64 MB of buffer, and support for Advanced Format technology. The previous version (VR200M) featured 200 GB platters, 32 MB of buffer, didn’t provide support for Advanced Format technology, and was available in 600 GB and 450 GB models. The new VelociRaptor drives are available today for USD 319.99 (1 TB model), USD 209.99 (500 GB model) and USD 159.99 (250 GB model). 
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| Micron Announces mSATA SSD for Ultrathin Laptops |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: April 10, 2012 - 9:10 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://investors.micron.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=662933 |
The mSATA form factor is a standard that allows ultrathin notebook manufacturers to integrate a SSD drive in a space that is about one-third of the size of a standard business card (3cm x 5cm). The newly announced Micron’s RealSSD C400 drives are compatible with this standard and are available in capacities ranging from 32 GB to 256 GB with a SATA-600 interface. The C400 mSATA drives are designed to work in ultrathin, high-performance SSD-based systems and can also act as a cache drive in dual drive systems. SSD caching systems have both a hard disk drive and a low-capacity SSD. These systems use software to automatically identify the most frequently used files and programs and then access those files from the SSD, providing greater performance than a hard disk drive, but at a lower price point than a stand-alone SSD. Information on pricing was not provided. 
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| OCZ Intros Vertex 4 Series of SSD Drives |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: April 5, 2012 - 9:25 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.ocztechnology.com/aboutocz/press/2012/490 |
OCZ has launched the fourth generation of their Vertex family of SSD drives, the Vertex 4 series. Available in 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB capacities, Vertex 4 drives have SATA-600 interface, make use of MLC memory chips, feature an Indilinx Everest 2 controller, and up to 1 GB DRAM cache. Speeds vary according to the capacity: 535 MB/s (read) and 200 MB/s (write) for the 128 GB model, 535 MB/s (read) and 380 MB/s (write) for the 256 GB model, and 535 MB/s (read) and 475 MB/s (write) for the 512 GB model. Information on pricing was not provided. 
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| WD Intros Hard Drive with Thunderbolt Technology |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: March 15, 2012 - 10:11 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.wdc.com/en/products/products.aspx?id=630 |
Western Digital has introduced their first external hard drive with Thunderbolt technology, the My Book Thunderbolt Duo. Thunderbolt is a high-speed data connection technology that provides a maximum transfer rate of 10 Gbps. Just to give you an idea, USB 3.0 provides a maximum transfer rate of 5 Gbps. The My Book Thunderbolt Duo is available in 4 TB (USD 599.99) and 6 TB (USD 699.99) capacities, and supports up to two hard drives configurable as either RAID 0 or RAID 1. 
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| Crucial Adrenaline Solid State Cache Solution Now Available |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: March 8, 2012 - 9:39 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.crucial.com/store/ssc.aspx |
Today, Crucial has announced the immediate availability of the Adrenaline, a “solid state cache.” We saw this product during the CES 2012. A solid state cache is an SSD designed to present a hassle-free upgrade for users who want to increase the performance of their computers but don’t want to install an SSD from scratch. That typically involves copying all the contents from a hard drive to the SSD or, if the contents don’t fit, reinstalling the OS and programs on the SSD. Installing a “solid state cache” is very simple, as you only need to install the device on any available SATA port of the computer and install a program that monitors which programs you use the most. The program will automatically copy these programs to the SSD, increasing the computer performance. The Adrenaline Solid State Cache is a 64 GB SSD with about 50 GB of available space. (The other 14 GB are reserved for TRIM and garbage collection, which are maintenance features.) It has a suggested retail price of USD 117.99. 
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| Intel Launches Xeon E5-2600 Series |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: March 7, 2012 - 8:59 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://newsroom.intel.com/community/intel_newsroom/blog/2012/03/06/new... |
Intel has expanded its Xeon product family with the launch of the E5-2600 series (codename Sandy Bridge-EP). In the table below you can see the models launched and their main specs, including prices. Model | Cores | Internal Clock | Turbo Clock | Cache | TDP | Memory Supported | Socket | PCI Express | Price (1,000-unit) | E5-2603 | 4 | 1.8 GHz | - | 10 MB | 80 W | DDR3-800/1066 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 198 - USD 207 | E5-2609 | 4 | 2.4 GHz | - | 10 MB | 80 W | DDR3-800/1066 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 294 - USD 299 | E5-2620 | 6 | 2 GHz | 2.5 GHz | 15 MB | 95 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 406 - USD 410 | E5-2630 | 6 | 2.3 GHz | 2.8 GHz | 15 MB | 95 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 612 - USD 616 | E5-2630L | 6 | 2 GHz | 2.5 GHz | 15 MB | 60 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 662 | E5-2637 | 2 | 3 GHz | 3.5 GHz | 5 MB | 80 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 885 | E5-2640 | 6 | 2.5 GHz | 3 GHz | 15 MB | 95 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 885 - USD 889 | E5-2643 | 4 | 3.3 GHz | 3.5 GHz | 10 MB | 130 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 885 | E5-2650 | 8 | 2 GHz | 2.8 GHz | 20 MB | 95 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1,107 - USD 1,112 | E5-2650L | 8 | 1.8 GHz | 2.3 GHz | 20 MB | 70 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1,107 | E5-2660 | 8 | 2.2 GHz | 3 GHz | 20 MB | 95 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1,329 - USD 1,333 | E5-2665 | 8 | 2.4 GHz | 3.1 GHz | 20 MB | 115 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/160 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1,440 - USD 1,444 | E5-2667 | 6 | 2.9 GHz | 3.5 GHz | 15 MB | 130 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1.552 | E5-2670 | 8 | 2.6 GHz | 3.3 GHz | 20 MB | 115 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1,552 - USD 1,556 | E5-2680 | 8 | 2.7 GHz | 3.5 GHz | 20 MB | 130 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/1600 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 1,723 - USD 1,727 | E5-2690 | 8 | 2.9 GHz | 3.8 GHz | 20 MB | 135 W | DDR3-800/1066/1333/16201100 | 2011 | 3.0 | USD 2,057 - USD 2,061 |
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| Corsair Announces Accelerator Solid State Cache |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: March 6, 2012 - 9:03 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.corsair.com/ssd/accelerator-series-ssd-cache-drive.html |
Corsair has announced the Accelerator series of the “solid state cache.” A solid state cache is an SSD designed to present a hassle-free upgrade for users who want to increase the performance of their computers but don’t want to install an SSD from scratch. That typically involves copying all the contents from a hard drive to the SSD or, if the contents don’t fit, reinstalling the OS and programs on the SSD. Installing a “solid state cache” is very simple, as you only need to install the device on any available SATA port of the computer and install a program that monitors which programs you use the most. The program will automatically copy these programs to the SSD, increasing the computer’s performance. The Accelerator solid state cache is available in 30 GB (USD 69), 45 GB (USD 84) and 60 GB (USD 99) capacities. 
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| Transcend Announces SSD720 SSD Series |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: February 1, 2012 - 9:55 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.transcend-info.com/index.asp |
Today, Transcend announced the SSD720 series of SSD drives, which feature SATA-600 interface and a SandForce controller. Available in 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB capacities, these drives support Native Command Queuing (NCQ) and TRIM, and provide transfer speeds of up to 550 MB/s (read) and 500 MB/s (write). Information on pricing was not provided.
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| OCZ Releases Firmware for Octane Series of SSD Drives |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: January 26, 2012 - 10:14 AM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.ocztechnology.com/ssd_tools/OCZ_Octane_/ |
OCZ has recently released firmware (v1.13) for their Octane series of SSD drives that promise to improve random write 4K IOPS, in some capacities over double that of the previous specifications. See the table below; OCZ’s firmware can be found there. Drive | Old Random Write (Firmware 1.12) | New Random Write (Firmware 1.13) | Octane 128 GB | 7,700 | 18,000 | Octane 256 GB | 12,000 | 25,000 | Octane 512 GB | 16,000 | 26,000 |
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| Kingston Releases SSDNow V+200 SSD Drives |
| Author: Cássio Lima |
Date: January 23, 2012 - 2:30 PM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.kingston.com/us/company/press?pagename=m11a&year=2012&a... |
Kingston has announced their latest addition to its SSDNow family, the SSDNow V+200. The SSDNow V+200 drives feature the SATA-600 SandForce SF-2281 processor, which provides sequential read and write speeds of up to 535 MB/s and 480 MB/s, respectively. These 2.5” drives are available in 60 GB, 90 GB, 120 GB, 240 GB and 480 GB capacities as either a stand-alone drive or as an upgrade kit to make installation easy and quick. Upgrade kits include cables, brackets, cloning software and HDD enclosure. In the table below are the models launched and their prices. Part Number | Capacity and Features | Suggested Price | SVP200S3/60G | 60 GB (stand-alone drive) | USD 140.00 | SVP200S3/90G | 90 GB (stand-alone drive) | USD 196.00 | SVP200S3/120G | 120 GB (stand-alone drive) | USD 245.00 | SVP200S3/240G | 240 GB (stand-alone drive) | USD 479.00 | SVP200S3/480G | 480 GB (stand-alone drive) | USD 970.00 | SVP200S3B/60G | 60 GB (upgrade bundle kit) | USD 156.00 | SVP200S3B/90G | 90 GB (upgrade bundle kit) | USD 211.00 | SVP200S3B/120G | 120 GB (upgrade bundle kit) | USD 260.00 | SVP200S3B/240G | 240 GB (upgrade bundle kit) | USD 494.00 | SVP200S3B/480G | 480 GB (upgrade bundle kit) | USD 985.00 |
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| CES 2012: Mushkin Displays Scorpion PCI-E Modular SSD |
| Author: Gabriel Torres |
Date: January 12, 2012 - 12:01 PM PST |
| Category: Storage |
| More Info: http://www.mushkin.com/ |
Mushkin displayed a modular PCI Express SSD unit, called Scorpion. Instead of having the flash memory chips soldered to the printed circuit board, this device has sockets where you install SSD modules. Each module has its own SandForce 2281 controller and operates independently of each other. A proprietary RAID chip is also available, accessing each module independently, with no multiplexing. Mushkin is still studying if they will sell the product with the modules already installed, or if they will offer the product unpopulated, so users can buy the number of SSD modules they want to have available. The Scorpion uses a PCI Express x4 connection, which the manufacturer expects to have ready for market in late March. 
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