ASUS will address the socket LGA2011-3 motherboard market with three of its brands, the gamer and overclocker-centric ROG (Republic of Gamers), the durable TUF (The Ultimate Force) brand, and its mainline brand, which features a balanced feature-set between the two. Its flagship motherboard will be the X99-Deluxe. Pictured below, this ATX motherboard is one of the most feature-rich ever built by ASUS. It draws power from 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors. The CPU is powered by an 8-phase VRM, and the memory by a 4-phase one. The socket is flanked by eight DDR4 DIMM slots. Expansion slots include four PCI-Express 3.0 x16, one PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x4), and an additional PCI-Express 2.0 x4.

Storage connectivity on the ASUS X99-Deluxe includes twelve SATA 6 Gb/s ports, one SATA-Express 10 Gb/s port, and a "standing" M.2 slot with PCI-Express 2.0 x4 physical layer. There are 14 USB 3.0 ports in all (ten on the rear panel, four by headers). Network connectivity includes two gigabit Ethernet interfaces (both driven by Intel-made controllers), 802.11 ac WLAN, and Bluetooth 4.0. The 8-channel onboard audio, dubbed Crystal Sound 2, features a high SNR DAC, audio-grade electrolytic capacitors, a headphones amp circuit, and ground-layer isolation.

Here are the first pictures of ASRock X99 OC Formula, the Nick Shih-designed socket LGA2011-3 motherboard for professional overclockers. Designed for CPU and memory overclocking, apart from running up to four graphics cards in multi-GPU configs, the board can supply a claimed "1300W" of maximum CPU power, using its 12-phase CPU VRM. Memory is care of a 4-phase VRM. The board draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX, 8-pin EPS, 4-pin ATX, and 4-pin Molex power connectors, to stabilize the various power domains.

The LGA2011-3 socket is wired to eight DDR4 DIMM slots, which can support up to 64 GB of quad-channel DDR4 memory. The board features BIOS options that can let you crank DRAM frequencies over 4000 MHz. Expansion slots include four PCI-Express 3.0 x16 (x16/x8/x16/x8), an mPCIe 2.0 x1 (for WLAN cards), and one PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (physical x4). Storage connectivity includes two M.2 slots, from which one is an "Ultra M.2" slot, which is wired to the CPU, and features physical-layer PCI-Express 3.0 x4; and ten SATA 6 Gb/s ports. The board offers ten USB 3.0 ports (six on the rear panel, four by headers). 8-channel HD audio with audio-grade capacitors and ground-layer isolation; two gigabit Ethernet interfaces, at least one of which is Intel-made, make for the rest of it.

Today ASRock decided to show off yet another (last week it revealed the X99X Killer, X99M Killer and X99 WS) motherboard based on the Intel X99 chipset, the X99 Extreme6. This board, like the X99 WS, has a black and blue color theme and it features support for Haswell-E processors, eight DDR4 memory slots (for up to 128 GB of RAM), ten SATA 6.0 Gbps ports and one Ultra (PCIe 3.0 x4) M.2 connector, plus three PCI-Express x16 slots allowing SLI or CrossFire multi-GPU setups.

ASRock's creation also has 7.1 channel Purity Sound 2 audio, dual Gigabit Ethernet (includes one Intel NIC), two USB 2.0 and six USB 3.0 ports on the back panel plus another connector on the PCB near the DDR4 slots, one eSATA connector, and a debug LED. The X99 Extreme6 is expected to be officially launched next week.

Still in a sharing mood, ASRock has now given us a peek at yet another X99-based motherboard it plans to release at the end of this month, the X99M Killer aka the X99X Killer's little brother. As its name suggests, the X99M Killer has a micro ATX form factor but it's still quite feature-packed - three PCIe x16 slots, ten SATA 6.0 Gbps ports, one Ultra M.2 (PCIe 3.0 x4) connector, dual Gigabit Ethernet (Intel and Killer E2200), and Purity Sound 2 7.1-channel audio.

ASRock's X99 board also offers two Fatal1ty mouse ports, four USB 3.0 ports, a debug LED, and even an eSATA connector, but it has to settle for four DDR4 memory slots. No price tag was announced but that should be revealed in the next couple of weeks.

With two more weeks left to the official launch of Haswell-E and the X99 chipset, ASRock decided to reveal another one of its X99-based boards, the 'workstation level' X99 WS. Seen below, the upcoming LGA2011 motherboard makes use of the Super Alloy technology (extra large aluminum alloy heatsinks, premium alloy chokes, dual-stack MOSFET, 12K platinum capacitors) and features eight DDR4 slots allowing up to 128 GB of RAM, ten SATA 6.0 Gbps ports, one Ultra M.2 (PCIe 3.0 x4) connector and no less than six PCIe x16 slots (SLI and CrossFire are supported).

The X99 WS also has dual Intel Gigabit Ethernet, Purity Sound 2 7.1 channel audio, one eSATA port, four USB 3.0 connectors, and a debut LED. Unfortunately ASRock hasn't shared any info regarding the board's price tag.

Claiming popular demand, MSI has come up with a Z97-based motherboard that adopts a simple (but not unappealing) black and white color scheme. Seen below, this upcoming board is named Z97 SLI Krait Edition and seems somewhat basic in terms of design and extras, although it does include both a SATA Express port and an M.2 connector.

MSI's ATX offering features four DDR3 memory slots, two SATA 6.0 Gbps ports, two PCI-Express x16 slots, Gigabit Ethernet, 7.1 channel audio, and provides D-Sub and HDMI outputs. No word yet on the availability or pricing of the Z97 SLI Krait Edition.

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of NAND Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, updates its NGFF SSD series. Super Talent next generation form factor SSDs are internally mounted high performance storage solutions utilizing M.2 connectors. These devices are designed to be used for embedded applications and mobile computing in a variety of industries.

"Super Talent's NGFF SSDs are used extensively in today's rapidly expanding ultra-lightweight computing sector. The small form factor and high performance speeds make them a highly sought after storage solution for mobile computing," said VP of Engineering, Shimon Chen.

MSI released teaser shots of its upcoming flagship socket LGA2011-2 motherboard, designed for Core i7 "Haswell-E" processors, featuring DDR4 memory interfaces. Called the X99S Gaming 9 AC, as its name suggests, the board is based on Intel X99 Express chipset. It appears to feature eight DDR4 DIMM slots, supporting quad-channel DDR4 memory; five PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots, with the ability to drive 4-way SLI and CrossFireX; storage connectivity that includes one or more M.2 slots, and SATA-Express, apart form eight SATA 6Gb/s ports. Networking includes 802.11 ac WLAN, Killer E2200 gigabit Ethernet, eight (or more) USB 3.0 ports, and a boat-load of overclocker-friendly features.

Traditional PC providers are targeting the upcoming vast wave of replacement of enterprises'equipment caused by termination of Window XP system update service. Besides, a new generation of Internet of Things, cloud-based services and Smart Automation are booming and growing. These have created a great demand for terminal devices, along with the ever-increasing applications.Given the trend of compactness, it is very important that memory module features both simplicity and flexibility, as the storage devices designed for more and more system service resources and for the purpose of thinner hardware appearance.

Apacer, the leading professional manufacturer of memory modules, presented Combo SDIMM in Computex this year. The product derives from an innovative concept and underlines its innovative R&D design that integrates SSD (Solid State Drive) and DRAM on the DRAM Module, adding a new storage choice for principal customers of embedded industrial computer providers. It takes up less motherboard space occupied by storage devices and memory modules. Users can expand SSD storage capacity anytime. Currently Apacer has launched two SSD options, including M.2 NGFF and CFast memory card, both supporting SATA 3.0 (6Gb/s) interface. It is a great breakthrough in storage device field.

Lite-On SSD, a global leader in development and manufacturing of high-performance enterprise SSDs, will be attending the Flash Memory Summit, August 5-7, in Santa Clara, California. Lite-On will feature two new enterprise storage solutions - the M.2 PCIe P1P Series and N9S Series 2.5" SATA 6.0 Gb/s SSDs. Both units are designed to address high capacity and high performance needs of hyperscale computing, highly virtualized data centers, and high I/O server operations.

The P1P Series is a M.2 PCIe enterprise solution with capacities of 1 TB and power loss protection circuit all in a small form factor. This series is designed to offer the low latency through the PCIe bus. The small form factor and high capacity allow enterprise customers to pack more storage in a smaller footprint. The P1P Series can deliver sequential read/write speeds of up to 610 MB/s and 520 MB/s, while random read/write speeds can be achieved as high as 95K/15K IOPS.

Intel Corporation today announced an addition to the Intel Solid-State Drive (SSD) Professional Family: the Intel SSD Pro 2500 Series. This new business-class SSD delivers lower total cost of ownership, security and manageability features, and blazing-fast SSD performance demanded by today's business users.

Intel SSD Pro 2500 Series offers IT departments peace of mind with advanced security features and capabilities designed for businesses ranging from small companies through large IT-managed enterprises. Security and remote manageability features, combined with lower annual failure rates than hard disk drives (HDDs), help to reduce the need for resource-intensive deskside visits.

The common interface M.2 SSD that made its debut in 2013 has started to enter the application market recently. The major memory manufacturer KINGMAX is now officially announcing the release of a new M.2 SSD product to manufacturers.

High Compatibility Interface
M.2 SSD (originally known as NGFF) evolved from the Mini PCI-E (PCI Express mini Card) specifications, and supports PCI-E and SATA interfaces simultaneously. This device covers a wide variety of products and allows great flexibility in connection designs. It also has powerful bandwidth expansion capabilities and is gradually become the main storage equipment of ultra-lightweight mobile computing products.

ASUS today announced H97-Pro Gamer, a new ATX motherboard that speeds up gamers' fun with 10 Gbit/s M.2 and SATA Express connectivity, Intel Gigabit Ethernet and exclusive GameFirst ll networking technology. H97-Pro Gamer additionally benefits from exclusive SupremeFX for unrivalled in-game audio and exclusive Sonic Radar ll technology to lend players a stealthy advantage in first-person-shooter (FPS) games.

The new motherboard also includes ASUS Gamer's Guardian, a collection of components hand-chosen for exceptional safety, durability and performance to protect gamers' backs.

ADATA Technology Co., Ltd., is honorably invited by Intel as a strategic partner to the Grantley New Platform Workshop. During the 4 day event taking place on June 24th & 25th in Hillsboro, Oregon and July 9th & 10th in Hudson, Massachusetts, ADATA will proudly demonstrate the latest DDR4 server DIMMs, DDR3 LR-DIMMs, and complete product line of 2.5" SSDs and PCIe SSDs. One of the primary showcases will be server grade DDR4 R-DIMMs supporting the latest Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 v3 series with the features of up to 16 GB density, 1.2V low power consumption, and maximized 2133 MHz high speed transmission. ADATA's DDR4 product line includes DDR4 RDIMMs, VLP R-DIMMs, LR-DIMMs, and ECC SO-DIMMs.

In-memory computing stores data on memory chips rather than hard drives removes any performance bottleneck caused by traditional storage. ADATA DDR3 LR-DIMMs 64GB and R-DIMMs 32GB (with Invensas DFD technology) support In-memory computing with high capacity and outstanding performance. In Intel New Platform Workshop, ADATA will demonstrate DDR3 LR-DIMMs, which deliver up to 64GB capacity for Intel Xeon processor E5 V2 family-based servers, and increase total memory capacity by up to 1.5 TB to fulfill In-Memory Computing application.

The consumer SSD market could witness a price-war, with leading manufacturers spooling up production, according to industry sources. NAND flash chip supplier Micron Technology reportedly reduced supplies of its chips to other manufacturers, in a possible bid to increase production of consumer SSDs bearing its own channel brand, Crucial Memory. The company plans to double shipments of Crucial-branded SSDs quarter-over-quarter. Elsewhere, Kingston Digital ramped up SSD shipments to 600,000 units a month, to step up competition against SanDisk and Samsung.

SSD makers are likely to take advantage of the entry of M.2 standard in the consumer space, with the introduction of Intel's 9-series chipset. M.2 offers 10 Gb/s of interface bandwidth (physical layer PCI-Express 2.0 x2), and some non-standard implementations are wired to offer even 20 Gb/s (physical layer PCI-Express 2.0 x4). M.2 slots feature SATA 6 Gb/s wiring in some onboard implementations, which could pave the way for M.2 replacing 2.5-inch SATA as the highest selling SSD form-factor, in the near future.

Transcend Information, Inc. (Transcend), a leading manufacturer of storage and multimedia products, today announced the launch of its SATA III 6 Gb/s MTS series of M.2 SSDs. Featuring high capacities of up to 512 GB, ultra compact dimensions, and a next generation SATA III 6 Gb/s interface, Transcend's MTS400/600/800 M.2 SSDs are best suited to address the strict size limitations and high performance needs of today's advanced portable devices.

Higher Capacities
The MTS series of M.2 SSDs includes three space-saving M.2 form factors (Type 2242, 2260 and 2280) for MTS400, MTS600 and MTS800 (42/60/80mmx22mmx3.5mm). The series is designed to meet future market demands of ultra-thin and light mobile devices that require an SSD, including Ultrabooks, notebooks, tablets, portable gaming systems, and smartphones.

Alongside an updated desktop CPU roadmap, Intel posted an updated consumer SSD roadmap at its 3D Revolution 2014 presentation in Rome. It reveals the company's next-generation consumer SSD series, codenamed "August Ridge," and branded SSD 750 series. Targeting both the "consumer" and "professional" (≠ enterprise) market segments, the SSD 750 series comes in three form-factors, 2.5-inch SATA 6 Gb/s, mSATA 6 Gb/s, and M.2 (likely PCIe 2.0 x2 link layer). The series will sell in most popular sub-terabyte capacities, and will be based on the company's 20 nm MLC NAND flash. We have no reason to believe Intel will discontinue using SandForce-made processors in its consumer SSDs. Intel's SSD 750 series "August Ridge" is slated for Q4-2014.

For all those without M.2 slots on their motherboards, and want to buy some of the new-generation SSDs that offer transfer rates as high as 1.8 GB/s, ASUS unveiled a cost-effective new way, with its ASUS Hyper M.2 X4 adapter. It's a simple half-height add-on card, which converts PCI-Express 2.0/3.0 x4 to M.2, with gen 2.0/3.0 x4 wiring, so not only can you install current-generation M.2 SSDs with PCIe 2.0 x2 link layer, but also certain upcoming ones based on SandForce 3700 series processors, that feature PCIe 2.0 x4 link layer, offering stellar 1.8 GB/s sequential transfers. The card is also future-proof against an M.2 standard that makes use of PCI-Express gen 3.0. In addition to the M.2 slot, which can seat drives as long as 12 cm, the card also features some basic electrical circuitry, and M.2 SSD link/activity LEDs. For use on older (pre-M.2 motherboards), you may need BIOS support and/or F6 drivers from the SSD manufacturer, this card is merely an adapter, of the kind Plextor bundles with its M6e SSDs.

Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced a new M.2 2280 SATA SSD. Shipping next week, the new 22 mm x 80 mm dimension provides a thin, caseless and compact form factor ideal for new notebook platforms such as Ultrabooks, smaller design embedded systems, ultra-thin computing devices and motherboards that support the recently released Intel Z97 chipset.

M.2 2280 SATA SSD features advanced garbage collection, wear leveling and TRIM support to keep drive performance consistent over the life of the drive. SATA DevSleep allows efficient power management and minimal power consumption while also allowing devices to stay on and connected without necessarily reducing battery life. M.2 2280 SSD also features firmware-based power-loss protection to maintain data integrity in case of unexpected power loss or unsafe shutdown.

Addonics Technologies (www.addonics.com) today announced the M2/SSD/HDD Duplicator -- a family of high-speed duplicators designed for making multiple copies of M2 (NGFF) SSD or 2.5" SATA HDD/SSD media from a single master drive. Each duplicator comes bundled with a 2.5" M2 (NGFF) flash drive kit that turns a M2 (NGFF) card into a 2.5" SATA SSD. You can mix and match the M2 (NGFF) SSD, 2.5" SSD or standard SATA hard drives into the duplicator, which makes it a handy tool for transferring content between multiple media formats.

There is no computer needed or complex software required to operate any Addonics duplicator. Just open the doors on the drive bays, load the master media into the source bay and the target media of capacity equal or larger into the target bays, lock the drive doors and push the start button to start the copying process. Designed with snap-in drive bays, drives can be easily added or removed without any special tool, just like an ordinary cassette tape.

ASRock updated its Fatal1ty branded socket AM3+ motherboard. The new ASRock 990FX Fatal1ty Killer gives AMD platform gamers most advancements in onboard connectivity. To begin with, the board is based on the AMD 990FX chipset, with SB950 southbridge. It draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX and 8-pin EPS power connectors, and conditions it for the CPU with a 10-phase VRM. The CPU is wired to four DDR3 DIMM slots, supporting up to 64 GB of dual-channel DDR3-2400 memory.

Expansion slots include two PCI-Express 2.0 x16 wired to the AMD 990FX northbridge, a PCI-Express 2.0 x16 (electrical x4) wired to the southbridge; and two PCI-Express 2.0 x1 slots. Storage connectivity includes five SATA 6 Gb/s, and one M.2, with a combination of PCIe 2.0 x2 and SATA 6 Gb/s link layers. The board features Realtek's latest ALC1150 HDA CODEC, which boasts of 115 dBA SNR; equipped with ground-layer isolation, and a headphones amp. Wired networking is care of a Broadcom Killer E2200 controller. Four USB 3.0 ports, and gaming peripheral-optimized USB 2.0 ports (stabilized power); make for the rest of it. The board is driven by AMI Aptio UEFI BIOS, supporting Windows 8 Secure Boot.

In what could be a boon for mini-ITX PC builders, Apacer created a new line of DDR3 memory modules that come with M.2 slots. Called Apacer Combo-SDIMM, the contraption puts a DDR3 DIMM and M.2 slot onto the same PCB. The DRAM portion is restricted to half the module's height, while the other half takes up the M.2 slot. Sadly, the M.2 slot is wired to through its SATA link layer, and not PCIe, so your SSDs are capped at 6 Gb/s speeds. Points for the engineering, though.

Unigen Corporation has announced SLC or MLC NAND Flash based M.2 SATA III SSDs in densities ranging from 16 GB - 256 GB. Measuring 22 mm 'W' x 80 mm 'H' these small form factor flash modules are used for high reliability storage of critical code and data, in space-constrained embedded, industrial, gaming and networking applications. This New Generation Form Factor (NGFF) SSD allows for scalability with 110 mm 'H' modules, consistent with emerging trends.

To meet the needs of Unigen's diverse customer base and applications, these flash modules are offered in densities up to 256 GB in both commercial (0ºC - 85ºC) and industrial (-40ºC - 85ºC) temperature ranges. They feature Sustained Sequential Read/Write performance of 540/490 MB/s, and support S.M.A.R.T features, power loss protection, advanced wear leveling and ECC.

Galaxy unveiled its Captain line of mSATA and M.2 SSDs. Both the Captain-mSATA and the Captain-MAC (M.2) are based on a JMicron-made controller, with Intel-made MLC NAND flash. Both the Captain-mSATA and Captain-MAC come in capacities of up to 256 GB, offering sequential speeds of up to 520 MB/s reads, with up to 275 MB/s writes. Their 4K random read performance is rated at 72,000 IOPS, and 4K random writes at 70,000 IOPS. It's important to note here, that the Captain-MAC may feature an NGFF interface, but runs on a SATA 6 Gb/s link layer. It's one of the many examples of M.2 SSDs that have crept into the industry, with such an interface.

ASRock unveiled prototypes of its first LGA2011-2 motherboards based on Intel X99 Express chipset, ready for the company's upcoming Core i7 "Haswell-E" HEDT processors. The color-scheme and heatsink designs are not finalized. Both boards are built in the ATX form-factor, and draw power from a combination of 24-pin ATX, 8-pin EPS, and 4-pin Molex power connectors; and use 12-phase VRM to condition power to the CPU. Both further feature eight DDR4 DIMM slots. They differ in their expansion slot areas. The Extreme4 features a total of four PCI-Express 3.0 x16 slots, while the Extreme6 features three, which uses the space saved to drop in two storage slots, an Ultra-M.2 (x4 link layer) and an mSATA. The Extreme6 offers two Intel-made GbE connections, while the Extreme4 offers just one.