SSDs
Western Digital expanded its WD Blue NVMe family of budget SSDs this week with the introduction of the the WD Blue SN5000 series, an updated lineup of SSDs that, among other things, adds a 4 TB model. Being budget drives, the SN5000 series is not going to be a performance monster, but their combination of capacity, reliability, and relatively low price could make them popular both among casual buyers and among enthusiasts looking for relatively cheap bulk solid-state storage. Western Digital's WD Blue SN500 NVMe drives come in an M.2-2280 form-factor and are based around an in-house WD controller (the company rarely discloses their codenames these days). WD's controller is a 4 channel, DRAMless design, which is what we typically see for budget and mainstream...
Corsair Introduces Link a Media based Neutron SSDs
This one was unexpected, Corsair just introduced a brand new SSD line based on a new controller by Link a Media Devices (LAMD). The Neutron drives will be available...
16 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 6/4/2012Toshiba Announces THNSNF Series SSDs: 19nm NAND Is Here
Toshiba announced their THNSNF SSD series today. The announcement was long overdue as currently Toshiba's fastest SATA offering is the HG3 series, which was released in January 2010. The...
6 by Kristian Vättö on 6/4/2012OCZ Launches Agility 4 Series: Indilinx Everest 2 on a Budget
OCZ has now released their Agility 4 SSD series. Just like the move to Vertex 4 (our review) from Vertex 3, the Agility 4 uses OCZ's own Indilinx Everest...
10 by Kristian Vättö on 5/30/2012OCZ Releases Low Profile Version of Vertex 3
OCZ has added a low profile version of the Vertex 3 to their SSD portfolio. The drive has a height of 7mm, which is 2.5mm slimmer than most 2.5"...
28 by Kristian Vättö on 5/18/2012Corsair Performance Series Pro (256GB) Review
Shortly after the Plextor M3 review went live, I received numerous emails asking us to review Corsair's Performance Series Pro. Your voice was heard and we went and asked...
41 by Kristian Vättö on 5/14/2012OCZ Announces 64GB Vertex 4
OCZ announced yesterday via their Twitter profile that a 64GB version of their Vertex 4 will soon be available. Vertex 4 is based on a second generation OCZ/Indilinx controller...
27 by Kristian Vättö & Howard Johnston on 5/11/2012OWC Releases Mercury Accelsior PCIe SSD
OWC has released their first PCIe SSD, the Mercury Accelsior. OWC has used SandForce controllers throughout its history in the SSD world and the Accelsior is no exception. It...
33 by Kristian Vättö on 4/18/2012Intel SSD 330 Officially Announced: Affordable SandForce
We reported on Intel's SSD 330 weeks ago, but today is the official announcement of the drive and its availability in the channel. Unlike previous 300 series drives, the...
75 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/16/2012Crucial Releases Firmware Update for m4 SSD
Crucial has released a firmware update for its popular m4 SSD series. The update carries a version code of 000F. The update is said to improve compatibility with certain...
40 by Kristian Vättö on 4/12/2012Intel's SSD 910: Finally a PCIe SSD from Intel
Solid state storage has quickly been able to saturate the SATA interface just as quickly as new standards are introduced. The first generation of well-built MLC SSDs quickly bumped...
71 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/12/2012OCZ Confirms Octane and Vertex 4 use Marvell based Silicon
I received a tip yesterday with proof that OCZ's Everest controller was actually a Marvell 88SS9174 controller (the same controller used in Crucial's m4, Intel's SSD 510, etc...) with...
53 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/11/2012Micron C400 mSATA (128GB) SSD Review
The arrival of affordable, high-performance client SSDs gave us two (closely related) things: 1) a high-speed primary storage option that could work in both a notebook or a desktop...
47 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/10/2012Kingston HyperX 3K (240GB) SSD Review
With OCZ intent on moving as much volume to its in-house Indilinx controllers as possible, SandForce (now LSI) needed to expand to additional partners. OCZ has strong control over...
44 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/10/2012The Plextor M3 (256GB) Review
Plextor as a brand is probably a new acquaintance for most people and I have to admit that I had not heard of Plextor until a couple of months...
114 by Kristian Vättö on 4/5/2012OCZ Vertex 4 Review (256GB, 512GB)
Thirteen months ago OCZ announced its intention to acquire Indilinx, the SSD controller maker that gave Intel its first taste of competition in the consumer market in 2009. Eight...
127 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/4/2012Details on Intel SSD 330 Series
It's been a busy spring for Intel. The Intel SSD 520 series was released in February, and a month later, Sandy Bridge EP was released. Only another month or...
15 by Kristian Vättö on 4/3/2012Intel SSD 313 Series Launched
A bit over a month ago, we reported that Intel's SSD 313 would be launching soon. We don't know when exactly the launch took place but the 313...
30 by Kristian Vättö on 4/3/2012LSI's Nytro MegaRAID Brings SSD Caching to SAS RAID Cards
At the beginning of the year LSI completed the acquisition of SandForce, the SSD controller maker we've been covering extensively since its arrival on the scene in late 2009...
4 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 4/2/2012Marvell's 3rd Generation 88SS9187 SSD Controller
Today Marvell is announcing its third generation SSD controller with the 88SS9187. Its predecessor, the 88SS9174 was used in many drives including Crucial's m4 and Intel's SSD 510. The...
24 by Anand Lal Shimpi on 3/14/2012Micron Announces 2.5" PCIe SSD for Enterprise
Micron has announced the first 2.5" SSD which utilizes PCIe interface instead of the more common SATA interface. The 2.5" form factor allows for easy serviceability because the drives...
12 by Kristian Vättö on 3/7/2012