Corsair Announces Shipment of Force Series GT Solid-State Drives

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced the first shipments of the Force Series GT line of solid-state drives.

The new Force Series GT is designed for enthusiasts who demand the fastest performance available. It uses the new SandForce SF-2280 SSD Processor, with native support for SATA 6Gb/s (SATA 3), combined with ONFI synchronous flash memory. Force Series GT SSDs deliver outstanding read/write performance and significantly faster system response, boot times, and application load times than SATA 2 solid-state drives, with out-of-box performance of up to 85K Random Write IOPS, read speeds of up to 555 MB/s, and write speeds of up to 525 MB/s. The use of synchronous flash memory makes the Force GT Series particularly adept at reading and writing non-compressible data, such as video and music files.

Plextor Europe Announced its New SuperSpeed USB 3.0 500GB and 750GB Portable HDDs

Plextor, a leading brand of high-performance storage and digital media solutions, introduces a new portable hard disk drive, equipped with a high-speed USB 3.0 connection. The PX-PH500U3 is a strikingly compact 500GB portable hard disk. Formed of perfect aluminum it incorporates the latest SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface for exceedingly fast connection and data transfer rates. It is the fast new professional standard in portable hard disks from world renowned storage manufacturer Plextor. Power to the hard disk is also provided through the USB connector, eliminating the need to carry an additional power adapter.

Protecting the advanced drive mechanism an elegant casing crafted from aircraft grade aluminum results in a mere 162 grams total weight. The complete package includes a USB 3.0 cable and a stylish leatherette case provides additional protection during transportation. Complementing this well-balanced hardware, a range of powerful software applications comes preinstalled on the hard disk. Users can backup and restore valuable data using FNet PC Clone EX and maximize the read and write speeds with the Turbo HDD utility.

Primer on the SSD Market and Mushkin, Inc.'s Plans in the Segment

The Solid State Drive (SSD) market is one of the most exciting and fastest-growing segments in computer components today, and for good reason. SSDs offer a host of advantages over traditional platter-based Hard Disk Drives, with many of these advantages already known to seasoned computer enthusiasts.

Mushkin, Inc. has been very eager to release SSDs with the best specifications and quality control standards that exist. Our “Io” and “Callisto deluxe” SSD series have been enjoyed and recognized the world over by end users and enthusiasts alike. However, as the SSD segment continues to grow and manufacturers adapt to the latest technologies, some irregularities and performance issues have arisen.

Corsair Announces Transition Plan for Force Series Solid-state Drives

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced its plans for the upcoming transition from 34 nanometer to 25 nanometer flash chips used on its solid-state drives.

“There is a lot of confusion in the market about the impact the move from 34 to 25nm flash will have on both the price and the performance of solid-state drives,” said John Beekley, VP of Technical Marketing at Corsair. “We’ve been working closely with SandForce to ensure the smoothest possible transition and we’re sharing the details today.”

Flash memory manufacturers are transitioning to using 25nm process for fabrication, allowing them to boost capacity and reduce costs, which in turn will allow SSD suppliers to pass those savings to the consumer. The downside is that SSDs built using 25nm flash ICs may require more over-provisioning (a technique used to ensure reliability) which lowers the capacity of the SSD and may also see a reduction in performance.

Toshiba Introduces STOR.E ART 4 External HDDs with USB 3.0

Toshiba Computer system, a division of Toshiba Europe GmbH, today unveiled the new STOR.E ART 4 external hard disk drives featuring SuperSpeed USB technology (USB 3.0) for super-fast data transfers with a transmission rate of up to 5 Gigabit per second. The sleekly designed external hard disk drives will be available during the first quarter of 2011 throughout Europe, Middle East and Africa.

“USB 3.0 will become a standard feature in the computing market of the future. Toshiba anticipated this trend, and launches not only new hard disk drives but also notebooks featuring the SuperSpeed data transmission technology,” said Marco Perino, General manager Digital Products EMEA Toshiba Computer Systems. As users are increasingly storing large files such as videos, music tracks and photos, they demand a fast data connection between the backup medium and the computer. USB 3.0 offers data rates of up to 5 Gigabit per second. Compatibility to the widespread USB 2.0 ensures that computers supporting only USB 2.0 can also be used with STOR.E ART 4. 

Plextor Launch Super-Speedy 12X External Blu-ray Writer

Plextor have expanded their high-performance optical storage portfolio with the addition of the PX-LB950UE – their first external Blu-ray Writer. The PX-LB950UE boasts a combination of an incredibly fast 12x writing speed with USB 3.0 technology, advanced software applications and a stylish external chassis designed to offer reliability, accuracy and low noise.

Every facet of the PX-B950UE has been designed to provide home and business users with a high performance, easy to use and versatile solution for backing-up large quantities of data or enjoying their favourite Blu-ray movies. The PX-LB950UE is available across the UK and Europe from February at an RRP of approximately £179. 

Team Announces the Lightest USB 3.0 Flash Drives in the Industry

As the digital life era arrives, more and more consumer demand for high-resolution multimedia. Limited by the transfer rate specifications, USB2.0 no longer can handle HD media processing. With this year’s kick off of USB3, Team Group Inc. released three mainstream energy-saving USB3.0 flash drives with ultra transfer speed to satisfy the consumer’s need for HD media files process. 

C101: Easy to use, never lose the cap

The surface was designed with link format matte etching; the push-and-pull extending design solves the cap-losing problem once and for all. It is the number one choice for busy workers.

Hitachi GST Raises the ‘Reliability’ Bar for 7,200 RPM, 3.5-Inch Enterprise Drives

Committed to the growing market for cost-effective, capacity-optimized drives, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (Hitachi GST) today introduced its new enterprise-class, 3.5-inch, 3TB Ultrastar 7K3000 drive family – the world’s first and only 7,200 RPM drive family rated at 2.0 million hours MTBF and backed by a five-year limited warranty. The new Ultrastar 7K3000 drive family represents the fifth-generation of Hitachi’s five-platter mechanical design, which has been stringently designed, tested and field proven for quality and reliability by global server and storage OEMs, as well as the most well known Internet giants worldwide. 

With millions of five-platter Ultrastar drives shipped over the last three years, Hitachi’s field reliability data shows an unprecedented AFR below 0.40 percent, exceeding customer and industry AFR quality specifications for a 7,200 RPM drive. By increasing the MTBF specification to 2.0 million hours, with an AFR 40 percent lower than drives rated 1.2 million hours MTBF, Hitachi enables data center managers to expect reduced failures, improved up-time and lowered TCO when using a large population of Ultrastar 7K3000 hard drives over a period of time. 

Mach Xtreme Technology Unveils MX-GX USB 3.0 Flash Drives

Mach Xtreme Technology Inc., a worldwide leader in top performance, high reliability and user-friendly designed PC components, today unveiled GX Series USB3.0 flash drives. The MX-GX is the slimmest quad-channel USB 3.0 flash drive on the market and it will be available in worldwide retail and e-tail starting Monday, February 14th.

As PCs became increasingly powerful and able to process larger amounts of data, users needed to get more and more data into and out of their PCs. Using traditional flash drives to transfer gigabytes of data has become a time consuming process. MX-FX USB 3.0 flash drives address this need by adding a super-high transfer rate. This drive is fast, bidirectional, dynamically attachable that is consistent with the requirements of the PC platforms of today and tomorrow and its compact size makes it easy to carry. MX-GX USB 3.0 flash drive requires no separate power cable and is fully backward compatible with USB 2.0 ports, at USB 2.0 speeds. Its single-chip design and diminutive size makes it easy to carry virtually anywhere. The aluminum housing is also extremely durable, making it an ideal flash drive for users with busy and active lifestyles.

WD Expands Line of SAS Hard Drives for Enterprise Applications

Western Digital, a leader in the desktop, mobile, high-capacity enterprise and consumer markets for hard drives, today announced the availability of its second-generation WD S25 SAS drives (photo) and its latest WD RE SAS 3.5-inch drives for the traditional enterprise market. Shipping now, the 2.5-inch, 10,000 RPM, WD S25 with SAS 6 Gb/s interface hard drives offer IT professionals ultra-reliable and efficient, high-performance storage with new 450 GB and 600 GB capacities. The WD S25 line, including the previously released 147 GB and 300 GB capacities, is designed for mission-critical server and storage systems. 

Also shipping now to OEMs, the new 3.5-inch, 7,200 RPM, WD RE SAS with 6 Gb/s interface hard drives offer 1 TB and 2 TB capacity points, and represent a key addition to WD's expanding enterprise product portfolio. The WD RE SAS drives mark an important commitment to the expansion of WD's SAS portfolio for high-capacity data center storage, storage area networks (SAN), network attached storage (NAS), direct attach storage (DAS), networked surveillance systems and cloud storage. 

WD Announces Scorpio Black 750 GB 2.5-inch SATA Hard Drive

Western Digital today announced it is now shipping its new WD Scorpio Black 750 GB 7200 RPM 2.5-inch SATA hard drives for high-performance notebook computers and portable storage devices. One of the fastest hard drives on the market, WD Scorpio Black drives combine class-leading 7200 RPM spin speed and 16 MB cache to deliver maximum notebook performance. Now available in capacities up to 750 GB, the WD Scorpio Black hard drives provide creative professionals, gamers and PC enthusiasts with additional capacity they need to get their job done. Using Advanced Format (AF) technology, the WD Scorpio Black 750 GB hard drives also incorporate a variety of data-protection features to actively monitor and protect valuable data. 

Transcend Unveils JetFlash 700 USB 3.0 Flash Drive

Transcend Information, Inc., a worldwide leader in storage and multimedia products, today announced the addition of the new JetFlash 700 USB flash drive to its USB 3.0 product portfolio. The new JetFlash 700 has a sturdy, smooth exterior and offers lightning-fast data transfer rates, making it a perfect entry-level USB 3.0 peripheral for users who demand stylish aesthetics with leading technology.

The SuperSpeed USB 3.0 specification boasts optimized interface speeds up to 10X faster than the Hi-Speed USB 2.0 specification. Transcend’s JetFlash 700 USB flash drive takes advantage of this next-generation USB 3.0 and delivers blazing fast data transfer rates of up to 69MB/s—nearly twice the read speed, and provides much quicker and easier access to rich digital content.

Lexar Media Introduces the First 128GB Professional SDXC Memory Card

Lexar Media, a leading global provider of memory products for digital media, today announced new Lexar Professional Secure Digital Extended Capacity (SDXC) memory cards. The new high-capacity Lexar Professional 133x SDXC cards enable the capture, storage, and transfer of extended lengths of 1080p high-definition (HD) video and continuous, rapid-fire image capture in a single, high-performance solution. The Lexar Professional 133x SDXC card is the first available in a 128GB capacity, and is also offered in a 64GB capacity. Both cards are speed rated at 133x, providing a minimum guaranteed transfer speed of 20MB per second, and feature a Class 10 speed designation. For additional information about Lexar Professional SDXC cards, visit www.lexar.com.

"The professional photography industry is at a point where digital photo- and video-capture methods are converging, meaning that professional shooters need a memory solution with the versatility and reliability to safely store both photos and videos," said Pachi Chen-Wong, senior product marketing manager, Lexar Media. "The 64GB and 128GB Lexar Professional 133x SDXC cards combine high-speed performance with large capacities to offer solutions for professionals who shoot large volumes of high-resolution images and HD video."

SuperTalent 2nd Gen DuraDrive SSD now available in SATA 3 Gb/s

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced a SATA version of their new DuraDrive series SSDs.

Right on heels of our resent announcement of ZIF and PATA interfaces, the new DuraDrive AT2 now completes this family line by offering the same industrial grade durability, reliability and performance with the SATA II interface. The DuraDrive was designed for use in environments considered "too harsh" for a standard drive.

SuperTalent Unveils Second Generation DuraDrive SSD

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced their new DuraDrive series SSDs. The new DuraDrive ET2/ZT2 represents the next generation of industrial data storage solutions by offering enhanced durability, reliability and performance. The DuraDrive was designed for use in environments considered "too harsh" for a standard drive.

The DuraDrive series utilized Solid State Disk technology, meaning it performs faster, use less power, offers greater reliability, generate less heat, and require less cooling than their HDD counterparts. By carefully selecting the finest components available, including an advanced industrial controller and premium NAND flash, we are able to further enhance shock, vibration and temperature specifications making the DuraDrive ideal for mission critical markets. The DuraDrive also has optional support for the Secure Erase features required for many Military and Industrial applications. With ECC/EDC support, bad bit management firmware and patented wear leveling technology, this drive offers extreme reliability and endurance; even in the most demanding of environments (-40°C to 85°C ).

Sharkoon Intros New USB 3.0 Flash Drive, Targets Price-Performance Sweetspot

Sharkoon is ready with a new fast flash drive that can read and write data at 130 MB/s. The Flexi-Drive Extreme Duo from Sharkoon makes use of the USB 3.0 interface and SLC NAND flash with its optimized memory management to achieve those speeds. The first model in the series offers 16 GB of storage, in a form-factor that's very compact by USB 3.0 flash drive standards. It measures 68 x 21 x 9 (L x W x H) mm, weighing a little over 12 g. The 16 GB Sharkoon Flexi-Drive Extreme Duo is priced at €50, and is available now..



from : techpowerup.com

Hitachi GST Ships First One Disk, 7 mm Thick 500 GB Hard Drive

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (Hitachi GST) today announced its new 500GB, 5,400 RPM Travelstar Z5K500 drive – the industry’s highest capacity, one-disk, 7 millimeter (mm) z-height hard disk drive (HDD).

According to IDC, 500GB, mobile 2.5-inch drives represent 22 percent of the market today, with this capacity growing 42 percent annually from 2010 to 2013. Offered in a complete family of 500GB, 320GB and 250GB, which satisfies more than 77 percent of today’s capacity needs in the portable PC market, these drives are the industry’s only second-generation family of 5,400 RPM, 7mm z-height drives, which are designed as a direct replacement for standard 2.5-inch, 9.5mm drives in everything from external drives to laptops, netbooks and blade servers. All this combined puts the new Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 drive family in the industry sweet spot of opportunity in the mobile 2.5-inch market.

KINGMAX Unveils Stylish and Sporty-looking PD33/PD30 USB Flash Drives

Following the trend of notebook designed like sports car, now there are also flash drives designed like sports car available on the market. KINGMAX, the global leading manufacturer of memory and flash products, has recently released the PD-33 USB flash drive; the product design concept came from the sports car’s streamlined design and stunning automotive color of the body. Applied automotive refinish coatings along with low-key black surface shows sporty and smart look. With the capless retractable design, it is easy to use and protects the connector and no longer to worry about the loss. PD-33 comes in the capacity of 2GB to 32GB with the color of sparkly orange and eagle gray. In order to wide-ranging colorful choices, pure white series of PD-30 are also available with the color of sparkly orange, lightning green and silver. 

Super Talent Introduces 500 GB USB 3.0 Hard Drive for $99

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced their newest USB 3.0 entrant, the USB 3.0 Storage Pod. With 3x the available power and a theoretical throughput that is 10x faster than its predecessor, USB 3.0 was made for external storage. Super Talent's new USB 3.0 Storage Pod unlocks the true performance of modern hard drives and enables them to reach speeds that were previously only obtainable on the SATA bus, yet remain fully backward compatible to the millions of USB 2.0 enabled products; something that eSATA was never able to do. 

"The USB 3.0 Storage POD is going to change the perception of external storage. No longer should an external USB drive seen simply as second-class storage. Now you can upgrade the storage capabilities of your existing system without opening the case and in a convenient form factor that you can take with you anywhere"., - CH Lee COO of SuperTalent.

Toshiba Introduces Enterprise-Class Solid State Drive Family

Extending its position in the enterprise storage market, Toshiba Storage Device Division announces its new family of enterprise-class solid state drives (SSDs). Developed to meet the market’s demand for higher performance and lower power consumption, the new MKx001GRZB series combines Toshiba hard disk drive (HDD) expertise and its leadership as the inventor of NAND flash technology. The 2.5-inch small form factor drives use the latest 32 nanometer (nm) enterprise grade single-level cell (eSLC) NAND flash memory from Toshiba and 6 Gb/sec Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) interface. Samples will be available for customer qualification in the first quarter of 2011 and volume production will begin in the first half of 2011.

“Toshiba offers the industry’s most comprehensive range of storage technologies and the resulting synergies distinguish us as a world-class total storage provider,” said Joel Hagberg, vice president of enterprise marketing at Toshiba Storage Device Division. “Toshiba stands alone in the market as the only SSD supplier that is vertically integrated for NAND flash and has deep enterprise HDD expertise. We possess one of the world’s largest and most advanced NAND flash fabs, our own controller and firmware design teams, critical interface technologies, and established relationships with every major enterprise server and storage OEM. As a result, Toshiba is uniquely positioned to engineer solid state drives that deliver the performance, endurance, and reliability required for business critical applications.”

Seagate Delivers First One Terabyte 2.5-inch Enterprise HDD

Seagate today introduced Constellation.2, the industry’s first 2.5-inch enterprise-class hard drive to reach a record 1TB capacity. The Constellation.2 drive is designed for server storage applications and offers a solid combination of high capacity, leading 6Gb/s performance, superior data integrity, and best-in-class low power consumption.

The Constellation.2 drive is designed for system builders and OEMs who want to offer competitive, feature-rich, bulk storage solutions for a sustainable future. The Constellation.2 drive is fit for use in a range of applications in Directed Attached Storage (DAS), Network Attached Storage (NAS) and Storage Area Network (SAN) environments, from small-to-midsized businesses to the largest enterprise data centers storing and hosting data to the cloud.

ADATA Introduces S102 Economical USB 3.0 Flash Drive

ADATA Technology, the worldwide leading manufacturer in high-performance DRAM modules and NAND Flash application products, today introduced its new series USB 3.0 flash drives, available immediately.

The new USB 3.0 standard interface is picking up speed among users and manufacturers. ADATA is listening to the requests of early adapters, who are eager to see this new standard incorporated into a wide range of products. This launch of the S102 USB 3.0 flash drive, which uses the native USB 3.0 controller chip, is ADATA’s competitively priced entry into this relatively new market segment. It provides consumers with a compelling reason to upgrade, and will likely cause more people to say an official goodbye to USB 2.0.

Logitec Intros Classy and Efficient External HDDs

Japanese company Logitec introduced a new stylish external hard drive, the LHD-ENx000U2HLW. It comes in two variants based on capacity: 1 TB (LHD-EN1000U2HLW), and 2 TB (LHD-EN2000U2HLW ). Measuring 35×183×120 mm, the drives weigh 850 g, and make use of silent WD Green hard drives inside, which makes complete use of the USB 2.0 bandwidth the drive relies on, and keeps the overall unit's power consumption down to 10W. The unit also features a passive air convection system to cool the insides. The 1 TB model is priced at ¥11,800 (US $140) and the 2 TB one at ¥17,800 ($212).



from : techpowerup.com

Kingston Releases New Data Traveller Mini Fun G2 Flash Drive Series

Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced the release of DataTraveler (DT) Mini Fun Generation 2 (G2) USB Flash drive.

The DT Mini Fun G2 marks the next generation of a Kingston favorite. It features a miniature design in great colors, which makes the drive ideal for home, school and travel. This versatile Flash drive also features a rugged silicon housing and comes with a key loop to attach the drive to a backpack or bag. DT Mini Fun G2 is available in 2GB, 4GB and 8GB with each capacity offering a different color combination.

Patriot Memory Announces Supersonic USB 3.0 Flash Drive Series

Patriot Memory, a global pioneer in high-performance memory, NAND flash, storage and enthusiast computer products, today announces the Supersonic USB 3.0 flash drive series with a native single-chip USB 3.0 controller. The Patriot Supersonic series breaks away from typical USB 3.0 flash drive and delivers blazing-fast performance with its Quad-Channel technology in a miniature ultra-light form factor. 

The Patriot Supersonic series eliminates performance bottlenecks introduced when using a separate USB 3.0 bridge chip by integrating a native USB 3.0 flash memory controller. This results in a smaller footprint and higher performance than bridge based solutions - see chart below.

Sharkoon Announces QuickPort XT Series HDD Docks

Sharkoon redesigns their QuickPort hard drive docking station: The "SATA QuickPort XT" model of the new series is available for the first time in white and features a new design plus an additional Backup function. The application stays the same: With the sturdy table adapter, external SATA hard drives and SSDs can be connected directly to the computer without any prior time-consuming installation. When the disk is inserted into the slot, the system immediately recognizes it as an authorized drive.

For the new series Sharkoon has revised the design: With the housing having a new flattened forward design, the XT model looks slimmer. The measurements: 130 x 100 x 63 mm (W x L x H). Besides the new look, Sharkoon has integrated a One Click Backup Feature for Windows systems (XP, Vista, 7) and provides a CD containing the software for fast and convenient data protection. On the front of the device an LED strip shines during operation and hard drive access, on the back is a 12V power supply and an on/off switch.

Seagate Intros Barracuda Green 5900.3 Series 1.5 TB and 2 TB SATA 6 Gb/s Hard Drives

Seagate introduced new Barracuda Green 5900.3 series high-capacity, energy-efficient hard drive models, in capacities of 1.5 TB and 2 TB. As the name suggests, these drives have spindle speeds of 5900 RPM (which is where the energy efficiency comes from), other specifications include 4K sector size (Advanced Format), 64 MB cache, and SATA 6 Gb/s interface. The Seagate Barracuda Green 5900.3 is priced at US $118.9 for the 1.5 TB model, and $149.99 for the 2 TB model.

from : techpowerup.com

Verbatim Unveils New Portable Hard Drives for Mac Users

For the first time Verbatim is launching an external hard drive which has been specifically created for the Mac community: the Verbatim Store ‘n’ Go Mac Portable Hard Drive. The sleek, minimalistic design in a black or white glossy finish will fit with any MacBook. It comes with a combination of FW800 and USB 3.0 SuperSpeed and HFS+ formatted, while a second version offers USB 3.0 SuperSpeed interface and FAT32 for PC users as well. Both models are available in stores with storage capacities of 500GB. The 1 TB version will be available in Q1 2011.

Active Media Products Ships Mini Red Pop Can USB Flash Drive

Active Media Products, a leading manufacturer of SSDs and USB drives, today announced a new pop can shaped USB 2.0 flash drive. This unique new style of USB drive is shaped exactly like a standard cola can, in miniature. Active Media Products VP of Sales, Jerry Thomson commented, "so do we call it a soda can, a cola can or a pop can? Whatever you call it, this is one cool USB drive that will make an excellent Christmas gift." It measures merely 1.7 inches tall and 0.8 inches in diameter. The volume of the Pop Can drive is less than half an ounce, or about 96% smaller than a real 12-ounce pop can. The Pop Can USB Drive's very small form factor means it won't add bulk to a keychain, and it will easily slide into a pocket. The red finish recalls vintage cola colors.

Silicon Power Announces Ultra-Fast E20 Solid State Drive

Leading flash memory manufacturer, Silicon Power today unleashes their new 2.5” SATA solid state drive (SSD) ~ E20, a new prospect in computer storage! The new E20 challenges SSD limitations with uniquely developed technology to boost read speeds up to 250MB/s and write speeds up to 230MB/s, both data transfer rates surpass the major SSD on the market today. In addition, E20 also supports TRIM Command. It is specifically for Windows 7 users, allowing for swift tens of seconds OS startup time and instant application and software use. For users using other OS, E20 provides Garbage Collection Technology. It enhances SSD’s already strong performances and prevents poor computer responses from long hours of continuous use. It is the ingredient to achieving twice the result with half the effort.

G.Skill Phoenix Pro 40GB & 120GB Solid State Drives Review

In recent years G.Skill has gained quiet an enviable reputation for delivering high quality “enthusiast grade” computer components at extremely reasonable price points. A few months ago we took a look at their 100GB Phoenix SSD and walked away extremely impressed. With that drive G.Skill found a very unique and innovative way to overcome what amounted to crippled firmware: they used better components. 

Today we will be looking at the Phoenix PRO line which takes a much more sensible approach it comes to giving their customers the best performance: G.Skill ponied up the money for a full speed firmware from the getgo. This new and improved model comes in three available capacities: 40, 60 and 120GB and we will be looking at the highest and lowest ends of the spectrum in this review. 

Shortly after we looked at the Phoenix 100GB, G.Skill released an extended version which they dubbed the Phoenix 120GB. Sadly, they were unable to use the same slightly faster NAND modules when they released the Phoenix 120GB “extended” model so while it was from all reports a good drive, it was not as fast as the original 100GB product. With very few options available left, G.Skill stuck with SandForce, used the “unlocked” firmware and the Phoenix Pro line was created. 

A-Data Also Announces S101 Compact and Afforable USB Flash Drive

ADATA Technology, after listening attentively to the voice of the market, ADATA has launched a new product in its Superior series of flash drives, the S101. Produced under advanced COB (Chip On Board) manufacturing processes, the S101 is a compact and delicate technological jewel. High quality black leather exterior with a unique and comfortable toothed texture allows you to manifest your personal sense of elegance, at a price the stays true to your sense of moderation.

Team Group Launches TP-1023 Sporty External HDD with USB 3.0 Interface

The TP-1023 external HDD Team launched in 2010 is integration between the wild speed and luxurious design of a sports car. With the USB3.0 interface, TP-1023 delivers a transfer speed up to 5Gbps, which makes TP1023 runs as fast as a sport car! Under the Ferrari red surface coating, T1023 is fully packaged with functions that make itself stands out from any other external HDD on the market.

In addition to its eye-catching sports car design and coating, TP1023 is equipped with sports car like shock absorbent performance. The suspension design can significantly enhance the shock resistance ability. Passed Team Group’s 130 falling tests (which has exceeded the industrial specification), the suspension on the TP-1023 provides the best protection for both the hard drive and data within.

Buffalo Readies New Compact USB 3.0 Flash Drives

Buffalo Japan introduced a new line of compact flash drives with USB 3.0 interface, under the RUF3-SS series. The drives are available in capacities of 8 GB (RUF3-S8GS-BK), 16 GB (RUF3-S16GS-BK), 32 GB (RUF3-S32GS-BK), and 64 GB (RUF3-S64GS-BK). Measuring 76 x 9 x 19 mm, the drives weigh 12 g. The drive offers transfer speeds of up to 71 MB/s when plugged into USB 3.0, and up to 44 MB/s when plugged into USB 2.0. The 8, 16, 32, and 64 gigabyte models are priced at ¥2,780 ($34), ¥4,980 ($60), ¥9,480 ($113), and ¥17,800 ($213) in Japan, respectively.






from : techpowerup.com

Kingston Unveils HyperX MAX 3.0 External SSDs with USB 3.0 Interface

Kingston unveiled the first line of HyperX branded solid state drives (SSDs), starting with the HyperX MAX 3.0 external SSDs with USB 3.0 interface. HyperX is Kingston's brand of high-performance products, such as memory modules. The HyperX MAX 3.0 comes in three capacities: 64 GB, 128 GB, and 256 GB; and sports a sleek blue aluminum chassis in the distinct shade of blue found on HyperX memory module heatspreaders. Internally, it's a SATA 3 Gb/s SSD connected to a SATA to USB 3.0 bridge card.

Kingston Announces SSDNow S100 Series Lightweight SSDs for Industry Applications

Kingston announced a new line of solid state drives (SSDs) under the SSDNow S100 series, which are meant for non-PC industry uses, such as industrial embedded computer nodes, industrial automation machinery, etc. The drives are available in the 2.5" SATA form-factor, supporting SATA 3 Gb/s interface. Available in capacities of 8 GB and 16 GB, the S100 SSDs offer transfer speeds of 90 MB/s read and 30 MB/s write (8 GB model); 230 MB/s read and 75 MB/s write (16 GB model). An MTBF of 1 million hours is rated. The 8 GB drive is priced at €41, and the 16 GB model at €57.

from : techpowerup.com

Super Talent Shipping Dual-Interface SSD

Thursday Super Talent said that it began shipments of its new dual-interface SSD, the UltraDrive MX. Packed with both an SATA 3Gbps and mini-USB connections, consumers can use the drive's USB connection to create a mirror image of an existing internal hard drive, then swap out the older drive and boot up with the new, faster SSD via the SATA 3Gbps interface.

"Most customers know that solid state disks offer superior performance, reliability and power savings, yet they have been unable to makes the switch," said Super Talent COO, CH Lee. "The dual-interface on the UltraDrive MX enables a convenient bridge solution during this critical transition period."

Arriving in a 2.5-inch form factor, the UltraDrive MX will offer capacities of 60 GB, 120 GB, 240 GB and 480 GB. Other features will include read speeds up to 250 MB/s and write speeds up to 180 MB/s thanks to the JMicron 616 controller, 64 MB internal cache and support for both GC (Garbage Collection) and TRIM.

Hitachi GST is First HDD Supplier to Deliver Enterprise-Class SAS and FC SSDs

Leveraging more than 50 years of design and qualification experience, Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (Hitachi GST) today announced its new Ultrastar solid state drive (SSD) family. The new Ultrastar SSD400S family comes in 100GB, 200GB and 400GB capacities, featuring both 2.5-inch 6Gb/s Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) and 3.5-inch 4Gb/s Fibre Channel (FC) interfaces. As the world’s first jointly developed SAS and FC enterprise-class SSDs, the Ultrastar SSD400S family combines Hitachi’s proven enterprise hard disk drive (HDD) expertise with Intel’s extensive capabilities in developing high-endurance 34-nanometer (nm), single-level cell (SLC) NAND flash memory and advanced SSD technology. This combination provides unique value to customers who are increasingly looking to tiered storage as a method of managing the escalating performance, capacity, endurance and reliability demands of today's data centers.

“Hitachi’s strategic investment and commitment in the enterprise market is evident with the new Ultrastar SSD family. Our new SSD product family not only symbolizes our market opportunity to serve evolving cloud data center infrastructures, but also delivers value to our customers in terms of increasing data center performance and reducing total cost of ownership,” said Mike Cordano, executive vice president of Worldwide Sales and Marketing, Hitachi GST. “We have a strong track record of working with global enterprise customers and are proud to report favorable responses to the Ultrastar SSD400S family. With qualifications now underway, we anticipate volume shipments to commence in the first half of 2011.”

PQI Unveils the USB 3.0 Cool Drive U339V Ultra Light Flash Drive

According to market research, systems which support USB 3.0 and desktop peripherals, thanks to their gradual increases in popularity, are expected to become the new mainstream transfer interface by next year and quickly replace USB 2.0. In light of the growth potential within this market, PQI has followed up the recent release of its highly praised USB 3.0 Traveling Disk—the Cool Drive U368—by unveiling the USB 3.0 Cool Drive U339V Traveling Disk, the lightest drive of its kind available on the market today. In addition to showing off its product development capabilities and design prowess to the marketplace once again, this is also a reflection of PQI’s continuous commitment to meeting user needs. The latest model features a high transfer speed USB 3.0 interface, backward compatibility with USB 2.0, and even more power efficiency. A single chip manufacturing process enables the exterior to be slim and graceful and, at only 13g, it is the lightest device of its kind in the industry.

Toshiba Introduces Hard Disk Drives Engineered for Rugged Operating Environments

Toshiba Storage Device Division (SDD), the pioneer in small form factor hard disk drives (HDDs), today announced two new 2.5-inch HDD models designed for rugged 24-hour continuous operation in computing, industrial, and other extreme environments. The new models – the 100GB1 SATA interface MK1060GSCX and the 80GB1 PATA interface MK8050GACY – offer exceptional reliability and performance across wide temperature, altitude, and vibration ranges, making them excellent choices for use in industrial equipment such as ATMs, digital surveillance, factory automation, and ruggedized PCs.

Designed for extended periods of operation, the MK1060GSCX and MK8050GACY feature a “case temperature” range of -15 to +70 degrees Celsius2 – the widest temperature range for 24/7* power-on operation in the HDD market. Both drives also have an expanded operating altitude range and offer better resistance to vibration when compared to standard HDD models.

Super Talent Introduces USB 3.0 Flash Drive under $ 15

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage and DRAM memory modules, today announced that they are USB 3.0 Express duo have broken the record price is under $ 15, a very cheap price for Flash Drive USB 3.0. Please note that USB 2.0 is limited fastest read speed maximum 32MB / s. Super Talent USB 3.0 can read the new Express Duo with speeds in excess of 67MB / s when connected to a USB 3.0 port, but remains fully compatible with 2.0 and at a cheap price. Before the day is the Super Talent USB 3.0 will offer Express Duo 8GB with $ 14 and 16GB version for only $ 29. Now there is no more reason to buy a USB 2.0 flash drive again.