ssd

New MacBook Air's newness lies within

The latest MacBook Air masks a lot of new electronics under an old skin.

To me, the new MacBook Air (MBA) is truly a second-generation product despite its unchanged appearance. But before I explain why, let me clarify where I am coming from.

I have been using an MBA for the last eight months. Why the over-priced Air? I am a minimalist when it comes to computers (though not necessarily when it comes to spending money on computers). The more spartan the laptop is, the better. In a well-executed design this translates to more portability, which, for me, takes priority … Read more

Intel ships enterprise solid-state drive

Not long after releasing the X-25M solid-state drive for general consumers, Intel announced on Wednesday its highest-performing SSD for servers.

The new drive, dubbed X-25E Extreme, shares a lot of similarities with the X-25M, including the 2.5-inch chassis, SATA interface, and 10-channel NAND architecture with Native Command Queuing. However, it features 50nm single-level cell NAND flash memory technology instead of multicell level NAND found in the X-25M.

The result, according to Intel, is that the new X25-E increases server, workstation, and storage system performance by up to 100 times over traditional hard-disk drives when measured in input/output per … Read more

Micron to cut workforce by 15 percent, slash flash output

After cutting executive pay last week, Micron Technology is now paring staff as it scales back flash memory chip production.

On the heels of reporting a $344 million fourth-quarter loss last week--when Micron said it was cutting executive pay 20 percent--the Boise, Idaho-based memory chip maker said Thursday that it was restructuring its memory operations.

Micron will reduce its global workforce by approximately 15 percent during the next two years. Most of the workforce cuts will occur in Boise.

"The combination of declining customer demand and product oversupply in the marketplace has driven selling prices for NAND flash … Read more

Eying solid-state drives, Seagate tries to quell fears

The largest hard-disk drive maker is going solid-state. Slowly.

Seagate will enter the market for solid-state drives in 2009, as it slowly embraces a technology that will, in some cases, replace its bread and butter: hard disks.

"Our history is based on rotating magnetic media. But as solid-state comes online, we're embracing this new media type," said Rich Vignes, senior manager of market development at the Scotts Valley, Calif.-based company.

Seagate's first target market will be large enterprise customers. Consumer SSDs from Seagate will come later. The challenge is to convince large enterprise customers that … Read more

Memory chipmakers face survival test

Memory chipmakers are fighting for their life.

The memory chip market--and industry--is caught in a particularly brutal downward price spiral that is threatening the viability of even the largest players.

"Memory manufacturers who have already been losing money for several quarters are now looking at another six months to a year of absolutely ominous conditions," said Avi Cohen, managing partner at Avian Securities.

Companies are now in survival mode, according to Cohen. "It is a matter of survival and everyone needs to figure out how to stay in business over the next year or how to scavenge … Read more

Micron cuts executive pay amid chip glut, loss

Micron's earnings pain will pass directly to executives. Micron Technology attributed a $344 million loss in the fourth quarter to a cratering memory market and said it would slash executives salaries as a result.

This was Micron's seventh straight quarterly loss. The largest memory chip manufacturer in the U.S. reported a net loss for the entire 2008 fiscal year of $1.6 billion, or $2.10 per diluted share on net sales of $5.8 billion.

Executives will feel the pain. "We are implementing a 20 percent reduction in salary compensation for Micron senior executives," … Read more

Super Talent to release budget solid-state drives

Two weeks after announcing two new high-speed solid-state drives (SSD), Super Talent Technology on Tuesday announced it will release the MasterDrive LX as a budget solid-state drive later this week.

The MasterDrive LX comes in 64GB and 128GB versions and will cost about $179 and $300, respectively. Both drives are SATA-II and use NAND flash technology. They will be compatible with computers that support the ever-popular 2.5-inch SATA hard drive.

The low prices do come with a shortcoming: the throughput speed. The new MasterDrive LX drives are significantly slower than other SSDs; it's even slower than some regular … Read more

Toshiba, Samsung in race to ship 256GB solid-state drives

Toshiba will begin shipping a 256GB solid-state drive, matching Samsung, its bigger, badder rival.

Another nail in the hard-disk-drive coffin? Well, not quite. But Toshiba's drive rivals magnetic drives in size while delivering better performance.

Solid-state drives are more expensive than hard-disk drives but are also generally more power efficient and faster.

Toshiba is trying to keep pace with the 800-pound SSD gorilla, South Korea-based Samsung. Samsung is the largest flash memory chip supplier in the world and has stated in the past that it would sample a 256GB SSD in September. Toshiba is ranked No. 2.

And the … Read more

Toshiba boosts flash amounts for laptops, Netbooks

This here drive launched by Toshiba Friday is its new high-density 256GB solid-state drive (SSD). Toshiba claims the 2.5-inch drive offers the essential performance needs for modern notebooks: reliability, fast read/write speeds (120MBps/70MBps) via a SATA 3.0Gbps interface, and plenty of space for your ones and zeros.

But, if you're saying to yourself "Forget notebooks; I need a bigger drive for my Netbook!" Well, Toshiba's got you covered there, too, with the launch of small SSD Flash Modules in 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacities. Not quite up to the speeds of the … Read more