Lexar Media, Inc., world wide known for digital media technologies recently announced it's high-capacity, removable solid state drive (SSD) series. It's currently shipping in 4GB, 8GB and 16GB capacities for the ExpressCard, the successor of the CardBus PC card slot. While the CardBus is widely spread it's drawback is it's connection to the rest of the system using a PCI-bound interface controller. The ExpressCard slots nowadays built into modern notebooks because it is connected utilizing a PCIe x1 or USB 2.0 connection and thus makes it far superior in terms of bandwidth, it's roughly 2.5 times faster. Devices like this SSD card then won't get limited by insufficient bandwidth, Lexar say the maximum speed is around 250MB/s. A disadvantage which I don't want to keep quiet about is the incompatibility of ExpressCard to the CardBus standard.Fremont, CA., May 02, 2007 - Lexar Media, Inc., a world leader in advanced digital media technologies, today announced the introduction of its new ExpressCard SSD with auto-backup software. Roughly half the size of current PC Card solutions, the Lexar ExpressCard SSD is a high-capacity removable solid state drive (SSD) that promises to set a new standard for delivering high-performance, lower-cost storage expansion to notebook computers. The Lexar ExpressCard SSD comes bundled with auto-backup software, an innovative solution for protecting laptop computer files and data that allows for automatic regular (daily, weekly, or monthly) backup without user intervention after the initial setup. During this setup, the user will be able to set the folder and specific file types to be included or excluded from the backup process. In addition, this automatic backup software can also support multiple computers by recognizing the computer name and the appropriate backup setting for each computer.

The Lexar ExpressCard SSD is also ideal for use with Windows Vista as it is enhanced for use with ReadyBoost , a Vista feature that improves your system performance without having to add DRAM to your computer. The ExpressCard SSD serves as an additional memory cache, which is a reserve section of memory that the computer can access faster than if it were accessing data from the hard disk drive. Additionally, the ExpressCard SSD interface supports a direct connection to the chipset, allowing users to enjoy all of its extensive backup and ReadyBoost capabilities without having to unplug the card after every use; users simply keep their ExpressCard SSD in the slot as external storage.

Farshid Tabrizi, General Manager, USB Products noted: "The ExpressCard standard is the ideal form factor for leveraging PC card technology and providing notebook users with a simple, more reliable way to significantly boost system performance. With auto-backup software, the Lexar ExpressCard SSD will be especially appealing for traveling business people, small- and home-office owners, and anyone who wants a secure, hassle-free way to backup important documents and literally add more storage to their laptop. The Lexar ExpressCard SSD also does away with the external cables necessary for external HDDs or the awkwardness of UFDs sticking out of your laptop. We believe ExpressCard technology clearly represents the new generation for plug-in cards and is destined to replace current PC Card technology; in fact, many new laptops are already shipping with dedicated ExpressCard slots, including Dell, Fujitsu, Fujitsu Siemens, HP, Intel, Lenovo, LG Electronics, Microsoft, Sony, Texas Instruments, and Toshiba."

The Lexar ExpressCard SSD is shipping in 4GB, 8GB, and 16GB capacities.