RAIDON announced the Runner R2420-B3, a dual 2.5-inch SATA external enclosure. It can enclose two 9.5 mm-thick 2.5-inch SATA hard drives or solid-state drives, and offers RAID capabilities. The two drives are held in place by caddies that eject the drive when the lid is opened (push to eject).

The SATA 3 Gb/s controller offers RAID JBOD, RAID 0 (performance) and RAID 1 (redundancy) modes, which can be configured by setting a pair of DIP switches on the back of the enclosure. The controller connects to the host using USB 3.0 interface. The enclosure draws power from an external 5V AC adapter. Measuring 174 mm x 105 mm x 33 mm (L x W x H), its dry-weight is about 490 g. The company did not give out pricing information.

Every year, technology is able to become more and more advanced and is constantly improving. Also, with being physically the smallest, and performing the best is the end goal of any storage system. This is why SFF (Small Form Factor) storage systems are becoming more popular due to its low power consumption and space-saving benefits. With the advent of recent solid state technology, this allows 2.5" SSD's to easily achieve 500MB/sec in transfer rate, which overcomes the 3.5" SATA hard drives in every category except capacity. Therefore, maximize the capacity in a limited space becomes the most important task that many storage consulting firms are faced with often. For SFF systems, we introduce the Icy Dock MB992SK-B 2.5" SATA Mobile Rack solution for use in 3.5" device bays (Floppy bay).

The new Thecus N4510U powered by Intel Atom with 2GB DDR3 RAM is a versatile 1U unit that offers enhanced performance, 4-bays for multiple RAID function, and link aggregation for easy expansion. It's perfect for the user who seeks a smaller NAS unit but requires the ability to integrate into a rack system.

The embedded Intel Atom CPU provides over-the-top performance to power on hungry NAS demands. In fact, utilizing a 64-bit driver allows the N4510U NAS to perform at its best. With HDMI output, USB 3.0 and hot-swap ability, the N4510U NAS packs powerful and dynamic features despite its 1U size. Attaching a TV tuner to the N4510U allows the ability to watch TV via your Thecus NAS. The flexibility of Thecus NAS elevates the user experience. In fact, not only watch TV but also record what you are watching directly to you NAS for instant media playback.

The new ThecusOS 5.0 has been released! This means that users will be able access more innovative functions with their Thecus NAS. Dedicated Thecus users know that Thecus NAS utilizes the best and most up-to-date hardware. The new ThecusOS 5.0 is the key piece that will unlock the most efficient and advanced NAS on the market. Ultimately, Thecus is a well-known innovator in the storage industry and ThecusOS 5.0 sets higher limits.

Texas Memory Systems, Inc. (TMS), provider of The World's Fastest Storage, today announced that TMS RamSan PCIe storage systems, including RamSan-70 products, are now bootable storage devices. This functionality is provided through a new firmware feature that allows most common servers to load operating systems directly from RamSan PCIe Flash storage systems, without requiring the presence of legacy hard drives or RAID controllers.

Launched in 2011, TMS RamSan-70 products have already been adopted by a broad variety of customers in healthcare, banking, e-commerce, and many other industries. Industry-leading bootability further minimizes complexity in such business-critical systems. Newly bootable RamSan-70 products are available with up to 900 GB of SLC Flash storage capacity and capable of 1.5 million I/Os per second (IOPS), 2.5 GB/s of bandwidth, and 30-60 microsecond latency. Bootability is available with the purchase of all new RamSan-70 PCIe storage systems, or as a firmware update with no hardware replacement necessary for existing RamSan-70 PCIe storage customers.

Infortrend today announced the North American availability of two new product lines in its EonNAS family of unified storage solutions, the EonNAS Pro and EonNAS 1000 Series. Although NAS is fast becoming the storage solution of choice for the SOHO and SMB markets, when it comes to data protection, current offerings from other brands come up short. Infortrend's new EonNAS Pro and EonNAS 1000 Series, running on ZFS file system fill this void by offering an unprecedented collection of advanced data protection features -- including data deduplication, corrupt data self-healing, snapshot and pool mirror -- bringing enterprise-level data protection and storage features to the SOHO and SMB markets.

Sharkoon is expanding its assortment of external RAID hard drive enclosures: The Sharkoon 5-Bay RAID Station and the Sharkoon 8-Bay RAID Station contain both 2.5 and also 3.5 inch SATA hard drives. With its fast RAID controller, simple handling and high-quality finish, they together form a perfect base as a fail-safe backup system for private media collections or SOHO environments.

Both cases are presented in a classy medal design from black SECC steel. Concealed behind the plastic front door with a mesh insert is the mounting frame for hard drives in both 2.5 and 3.5 inch formats. The frames with screwed in place storage mediums can simply be slide in place and locked by a lever. To cool the hard drives, a 120 mm silent fan is pre-installed in the rear panel.

As cloud computing becomes a mainstream, it is essential for enterprise servers to improve capacities and data transmission speeds. Apacer is taking cloud computing as one of its core areas of development, and has created the Apacer SAFD 25A - a SATA 3.0 SSD that boasts both capacity and performance gains to address the needs of this industry. This is a high-end SSD targeted for cloud-based computing, featuring outstanding efficiency, based on high IOPs, and a large storage capacity of 512GB. It aims to optimize data storage variables in cloud computing centers by providing speed within a stable and power-saving operating environment.

By using the exceptional features of SSDs such as anti-shock, anti-vibration, low-power consumption, and high-speed data transmission, Apacer expects to help enterprise servers to improve their data access constraints and, in doing so, take the place of traditional hard drives. This can all be accomplished in tandem with cutting a large amount of the cooling cost, providing ground-breaking efficiency to create an increasingly reliable operating environment.

HighPoint Technologies, Inc., an industry leading Storage HBA and RAID solutions manufacturer, has announced a new class of SAS 6Gb/s ROC HBA Series. The RocketRAID 4500 series were designed to meet the demanding requirements of professional business and media applications, where performance, 24-7 data availability and reliability of storage are paramount.

Introducing the RocketRAID 4520 - 8-Port 6Gb/s PCI Express SATA and SAS RAID HBA
The first of this new SAS 6Gb/s hardware RAID Host adapter series, the RocketRAID 4520, utilizes a Marvell RAID-on-Chip 900MHz onboard processor, 512MB DDR3 cache memory, PCI-Express 2.0 x8 bus speeds and SAS 6Gb/s connectivity combined with industry-proven RAID IP, delivers unrivaled performance and superior reliability.

Century Japan introduced CRNS35U3MR "EX Volume" 2-bay HDD enclosure, which provides fast external storage. The enclosure holds two 3.5-inch SATA hard drives in lockable caddies. It allows you to run them in standalone (as independent USB mass-storage volumes), or in RAID 0 (performance) and RAID 1 (redundancy) modes. To alleviate host interface bottlenecks, the enclosure utilizes USB 3.0 SuperSpeed interface.

The enclosure draws power from an external AC power line (power supply is located internally), its controller logic spins down the hard drives sensing extended periods of inactivity (5 minutes, by default). The enclosure also has a temperature-controlled fan that completely spins down, below a temperature threshold. Measuring 130 x 210 x 115 mm (WxDxH), the enclosure weighs about 1922 g. Slated for early-June, the CRNS35U3MR from Century is priced at 14,800 JPY (US $186).

The annual event is approaching, computer gurus, enthusiasts and novices all alike prepare anxiously to cover the grounds of Computex 2012. Attendees seek for the most innovative technology available and exhibitors are kept on their toes to present eye-catching IT hardware and software. The time has come Computex 2012 is set for June 5th - 9th at Nangang Exhibition Hall, Taiwan. Visit Thecus at booth K0510 as new hardware and software will be presented to the public.

Thecus proudly exhibits:

• ThecusOS 5.0
• McAfee Antivirus
• TopTower Series
• Microsoft Windows Storage Servers: W Series
• V Series (Microsoft Windows 2008R2 Certified)
• Home & Small Office: Vision & EVO Series
• Thecus NVR, Visoguard

Today LaCie announced a new 2-bay network-attached storage solution (NAS) that delivers the ideal combination of speed and security for small businesses - the LaCie 2big NAS, design by Neil Poulton. Powered by a 2 GHz processor and improved file system, the 2big NAS delivers speeds up to 100 MB/s, ensuring employees can share files from any PC, Mac, or Linux workstation.

"According to data from Research and Markets, network storage is growing in excess of 30% annually, increasing the demands placed on network storage devices," said Erwan Girard, Professional Business Unit Manager at LaCie. "The LaCie 2big NAS was developed to scale with the needs of SOHO users, delivering fast file sharing and data security, the two most critical factors for a small business."

Dell today announced additions to the PowerEdge portfolio with new blade, rack and tower servers designed to deliver value and performance in demanding enterprise and mainstream environments. The new blade servers offer strong performance gains and improved efficiencies from the shared power, cooling and network infrastructure, and professional IT services. The new tower and rack servers are built to enhance customer IT infrastructures with enterprise-class capabilities and tailored chassis designs for small and midsize businesses.

Dell introduced industry-leading innovations in the PowerEdge 12th generation servers based on input gathered from more than 7,700 customer interactions in 17 countries across four continents. The company was the first-to-ship servers based on the Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 product family with the first wave of PowerEdge 12th generation servers in March 2012.

QNAP Systems, Inc. today announced its new additions for the high-end SMB market segment with two 16-drive 3U rackmount Turbo NAS models with up to 64TB storage capacity using 4 TB drives. The TS-EC1679U-RP and TS-1679U-RP, powered by the Intel Xeon processor and the Intel Core i3 processor respectively, are the highest capacity and highest performing NAS products ever developed by QNAP. Both models feature optional 10GbE networking and 6Gb/sec SATA interfaces, achieving incredible 2,000 MB/sec and 200,000 IOPS throughput; delivering sustained ultra-high performance suitable for demanding data center & high-end SMB environments. The new models feature cable-less disk drive backplanes, hot-swappable power supply, and cooling fan modules for maximum reliability and uptime.

Lenovo today announced its new ThinkCentre M92p "tiny" desktop PC, the industry's first Intel vPro enabled one-litre desktop measuring just the width of a golf ball (34.5 mm). The ThinkCentre M92p, along with the new M72e tiny desktops, exhibits an innovative tiny form factor allowing it to fit in practically any space while maintaining first-class productivity with up to 3rd Generation Intel Core Processors.

The ThinkCentre tiny form factor is equipped with the latest desktop power manager for optimal energy efficiency and enhanced reliability and manageability features. It's the perfect desktop for users who need uncompromised computing power in a small package. Lenovo today also announced the new ThinkCentre M92z all-in-one (AIO) and the ThinkVision LT2323z wide monitor offering an improved VoIP experience.

StarTech.com, a leading manufacturer of hard-to-find connectivity parts has announced the release of the Mini-SAS to 4x SATA/SAS Backplane (part # SATSAS425BK), which enables users to add four 2.5" SATA or SAS hard drives to a desktop computer, using a single Mini-SAS (SFF-8087) host connection, while requiring only a single 5.25" bay for installation. The backplane offers a versatile solution for adding multiple hot-swappable Serial ATA or Serial-Attached SCSI drives, even in computers with a limited number of drive bays available - ideal for adding removable storage for backups or RAID storage systems.

The backplane supports SATA and SAS Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) and Solid State Drives (SSDs) up to 15mm in height, including high-capacity drives, and each tray features a locking mechanism that prevents unauthorized removal of the individual drive. The hotswap backplane is constructed from durable lightweight aluminum, which helps improve operating heat dissipation, and also features a 40mm cooling fan to increase air flow around the installed drives to ensure peak performance.

Taking a giant leap for "Mac-Kind," G-Technology is now shipping its 8 TB G-RAID with Thunderbolt drive - the extremely fast and highest-capacity, two-drive, RAID 0 external drive in the world. Incorporating 10 gigabit per second (Gbps) Thunderbolt technology by Intel and two 4 TB, 7200 RPM Deskstar hard drives, the new G-RAID with Thunderbolt drive sets a new capacity and performance standard for RAID storage.

Aimed at the professional audio/video (A/V) market, the G-RAID with Thunderbolt drive delivers blazing speed and massive capacity, helping Thunderbolt-enabled laptops and desktops morph into full-fledged video editing workstations. It features two Thunderbolt ports, enabling the connection of up to six Thunderbolt peripherals such as additional G-RAID drives, a high-resolution display and professional video capture devices. The G-RAID with Thunderbolt drive delivers up to 280 MB/sec sustained throughput for handling multi-stream compressed HD workflows, including REDCODE, DVCPro HD, XDCAM HD and ProRes 422. It can also transfer a full-length, high-definition, internet-ready H.264 movie in less than a minute.

HighPoint Technologies, Inc., an industry leading Storage HBA and RAID solutions manufacturer, will unveil a new series of Thunderbolt based Storage Controller Boards at the NAB 2012 tradeshow. This ground-breaking new product series aggregates Intel's revolutionary I/O technology, with HighPoint's extensive SAS, SATA and USB 3.0 design and manufacturing expertise, delivering innovative, highly versatile development platforms for storage solution providers.

Thunderbolt's revolutionary connectivity technology, presents great opportunities for HighPoint and solution providers the world over. For 2012, we are expanding our comprehensive product portfolio to include a new series of Thunderbolt based Storage expansion and controller boards.

Century also rolled out a 2-bay RAID box for those of you out of drive-bays (model: CRTS35EU3R). This glossy-white enclosure measuring 80 x 189 x 144 mm (WxDxH) packs two 3.5" SATA drive bays with caddies. It can run installed hard drives as independent mass storage volumes, in RAID 0 mode (high-performance), and RAID 1 (redundancy). The enclosure connects to a host over eSATA and USB 3.0. It uses 40 mm fans to ventilate the unit, keeping the drives and its RAID logic cool. The enclosure also comes with power-saving features that can spin down the drives when there's no access for a while (both drives spin down, if they're configured in RAID). The CRTS35EU3R goes for 9,980 JPY (US $123).

Intel today finally announced its SSD 910 "Ramsdale" PCI-Express SSD family. This is Intel's first SSD in the PCI-Express add-on card form-factor. Like its 2.5" SSD 710 series, the SSD 910 utilizes HET-MLC NAND flash chips, arranged in four SSD subuits. SSD 910 design consists of three stacked PCBs, the one with the PCI-Express 2.0 x8 bus interface holds a PCI-Express to SAS bridge (essentially a RAID controller), and four SAS/NAND ASICs (SSD controllers). Each controller is wired out to its NAND flash memory chips, which are arranged in the other PCBs.

The PCIe-SAS bridge is made by LSI. The SSD 910 series comes in two variants based on capacity: 400 GB and 800 GB. The 400 GB variant has just two SSD subunits, and hence provides transfer rates (according to an older article) of 1 GB/s reads and 750 MB/s writes, with 90,000 IOPS reads, with 38,000 IOPS writes; while the 800 GB variant, with its four subunits, provides 2 GB/s reads with 1 GB/s writes, and 180,000 IOPS reads, with 75,000 IOPS writes. The launch price of the SSD 910 400 GB variant is US $1,929; while the 800 GB variant is priced at US $3859, at launch.

Crucial is known for issuing firmware updates for its M4 series SSDs that bring significant improvements, be it the 0009 update that introduced performance improvements by as much as 20%, or the 0309 update that fixed a lot of BSOD instability issues. Introduced on Wednesday, the newest firmware update, "000F", introduces the following changes:

• Improved compatibility with certain SAS expanders and peripheral RAID cards.
• Improved throughput stability under extremely heavy workloads.
• Improved data protection in the event of unexpected, asynchronous power loss.

With higher performance, improved OS-level stability, and now with higher throughput stability and improved data protection in the event of power loss, Crucial M4 is closer to being the perfect consumer SSD.

DOWNLOAD: Crucial M4 000F Firmware Update Windows 7 Updater Utility, Manual Boot File, Instructions

I-O Data released the HDS2-UT USB 3.0 external RAID enclosure. It is available in three variants with pre-installed hard drives: the 2 TB HDS2-UT2.0, 4 TB HDS2-UT4.0, and 6 TB HDS2-UT6.0. Measuring 90 x 135 x 176 mm, and weighing 2.2 kg, the HDS2-UT is a 2-bay external 3.5" SATA HDD enclosure, with the ability to run its two drives in RAID 0, RAID 1, and JBOD modes. To take advantage of RAID 0, the enclosure connects to the host over 5 GT/s USB 3.0 SuperSpeed interface. Also included is software to build, manage, and monitor RAID volumes. The enclosure relies on an external power brick. Slated for market release in late-April, the HDS2-UT 2 TB, 4 TB, and 6 TB variants are priced at 35,490 JPY (US $439); 46,725 JPY (US $578); and 66,780 JPY (US $827), respectively.

Synology Inc. today launched RackStation RS2212+ and RS2212RP+, the reliable 10-bay rack mount NAS servers designed with seamless scalability for small and medium businesses.

"Synology RS2212+ and RS2212RP+, the newest addition to the Plus Series line-up, are a highly dependable and scalable solution for small and medium business owners. It delivers high system availability and storage capacity for mission-critical workloads, enabling clients to run business-critical applications with continual service uptime," said Peter Chen, Product Manager of Synology Inc.

MSI released pictures and performance numbers of its in-house SuperRAID storage design that's implemented in its GT70 gaming notebook. The GT70 has two drive bays, one of which holds a 500 GB WD Scorpio Black hard drive, and the other, the SuperRAID module. The hard drive is tasked with just storage and a system recovery partition, while the SuperRAID module is where the action is.

Simply put, the SuperRAID module is a PCB with a RAID controller, and two mSATA 6 Gb/s slots. Each of these slots holds a SanDisk U100 64 GB mSATA SSD. Each of these SSDs come with rated sequential transfer rates as high as 440 MB/s (reads) with 220 MB/s (writes), but striped in RAID 0, the volume churns out tested transfer rates as high as 964 MB/s (max. read), 928 MB/s (avg. read), and 843 MB/s (min. read), when tested by HDTune Pro 5.00. The SuperRAID module is bootable, and holds the operating system and programs. MSI claims with transfer speeds well over 900 MB/s, it has the fastest storage solution among gaming notebooks.

Japanese company Princeton introduced the ProNAS DN-503AH-PDC-10T 5-bay NAS for small businesses, with 10 TB of pre-installed storage. Its storage controller supports SATA 3 Gb/s interface, with RAID 6 mode for data redundancy. The NAS is powered by Intel x86 architecture, an Intel Pentium Dual-Core 1.60 GHz processor, with 2 GB of DDR2-533 MHz memory drives the machine. Surprisingly, it features four gigabit Ethernet interfaces. A Linux-based OS drives the NAS, which supports most modern NAS technologies. Measuring 199 x 338 x 264 mm, the DN-503AH-PDC-10T weighs about 13 kg. Its price is not given out, but varies depending on the warranty and on-site maintenence packages that go with it.