OCZ Technology has perhaps the most diverse solid-state drive portfolio, which includes 1.8" and 2.5" internal SATA 3 Gb/s SSDs - with SLC, and MLC NAND flash technologies; 3.5" SSDs, bootable PCI-Express SSDs, and even eSATA based ones. While SSDs utilizing SATA 6 Gb/s are very predictable in the near future, the company already has plans to unveil an external, portable SSD that utilizes the USB 3.0 SuperSpeed interface, at the upcoming CES 2010 event. With over 4 Gb/s of interface bandwidth at its disposal, it can also be expected of the drive to be powered entirely by the USB port. A concept design is already in place.

Patriot Memory, a global pioneer in high-performance memory, NAND flash and computer technology, today announced the release of their new PS-100 Series SSDs.

The PS-100 is the latest in Patriot's "cache" based SSD drives and has been targeted for cost-conscious consumers pursuing performance and reliability without having to empty their bank account. The 2.5" SSD makes use of a 64MB cache, power consumption of 5.3W when operating, and .5W when in standby mode; an option that is sure to attract notebook and laptop users alike. The PS-100 boosts sequential read speeds of up to 210MB/s, with sequential write speeds up to 150MB/s, another feature that will be attractive to end users. The low power consumption of the PS-100 drives extends battery life on notebooks and netbooks while the performance reduces system boot times and application load times improving overall system responsiveness.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and flash-based storage as an alternative to hard disk drives (HDDs), today released the Colossus 3.5" Solid State Drive (SSD) Series, designed to meet the performance and storage demands of high-end desktop users and enterprise clients. Available in up to one terabyte configurations, the Colossus Series marks a milestone in solid state drive technology, making it possible to have both high performance and high capacity in one solution.

"The new Colossus Series is designed to boost desktop and workstation performance and is for high power users that put a premium on speed, reliability and maximum storage capacity," said Eugene Chang, VP of Product Management at the OCZ Technology Group. "The Colossus core-architecture is also available to enterprise clients with locked BOMs (build of materials) and customized firmware to match their unique applications."

Active Media Products, manufacturer of SSDs and innovative USB drives, today announced the new Wink USB drive measuring merely 1.2 x 0.5 x 0.1 inches and tipping the scales at only 1/20 of an ounce. The Wink drive is available now in capacities from 2GB to 16GB.

Waterproof Wink Drive Measures only 1.2 inches Long and Weighs Less Than 1/20 Oz. Although its size is small, the Wink drive's storage capacity is great. The 16GB model holds up to 5,000 MP3 songs. The Wink drive is also quite rugged. The delicate electronics are encapsulated in a waterproof COB unit, which is in turn protected by a high-impact polymer outer shell. The outer case features an embossed wink face and an eye hole for an included keychain. According to Active Media Products VP of Sales, Jerry Thomson, "We designed the Wink drive to be extremely small, yet rugged and reliable." These new drives are Windows 7 and OS X compatible. All four capacities are available today through Amazon at prices starting at $7.95.

PhotoFast announced three new solid state drives in the 1.8 inch form-factor. All three use IDE interfaces, and hence are ideal for consumer electronics such as PMPs, video cameras, etc. The new series these come under is the G-Monster V4. The drives offer capacities ranged between 32 and 256 GB (probably including 64 GB and 128 GB models along the way), and are characterized by the interface type: 40-pin ZIF, 44-pin IDE, and 50-pin IDE. All three feature MLC NAND flash chips, with 64 MB DRAM memory for the NAND flash controller. The controller offers a "Built-in Garbage Collection" feature that clears deleted data, relocating existing data onto its area. In this way, data fragmentation is reduced. The read-write speeds on offer are 128/90 MB/s, respectively.

G.Skill announced the Falcon II family of SATA solid state drives (SSDs). This new line of SSDs brings with it support for the Windows 7 TRIM command feature, which improves performance by reducing file fragmentation using clever ways to allocate data on the flash modules. Speaking of which, like its predecessor, the NAND flash technology of Falcon II is of the multi-level cell (MLC) type. The NAND flash controller in use is Indilinx ECO. It comes in 256 GB (model: FM-25S2I-256GBF2), 128 GB (FM-25S2I-128GBF2) and 64 GB ( FM-25S2I-64GBF2) variants. They come in the usual 2.5" form-factor, have 64 MB of DRAM cache memory, and under 0.2 ms of access time. The read/write speeds on offer are 220 MB/s (read) and 150 MB/s (write). Backed by a two year company warranty, the SSDs come with an MTBF of over 1.5 million hours. Its pricing is yet to be known.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and flash-based storage as an alternative to hard disk drives (HDDs), today announced its collaboration with SandForce on OCZ's next generation of mainstream and enterprise solid state drives (SSDs). Based on the highly-anticipated SandForce SSD Processor family, OCZ's new line of SSDs will be the pinnacle of storage options designed to optimize complex IT infrastructures as well as the computing experiences of everyday consumers.

To accommodate a wide range of consumer and enterprise storage applications, OCZ's impending solutions will feature various configurations of SandForce's innovative SF-1500 and SF-1200 SSD Processors and multi-level cell (MLC) and single-level cell (SLC) NAND flash memory, all with the objective of providing best-in-class storage with exceptional performance, reliability, endurance, and power efficiency. The SandForce-based SSD line will be available in multiple interfaces including 3Gb/s SATA and 6Gb/s SAS in capacities ranging from 50GB to 400GB, addressing an assortment of storage and infrastructure requirements.

Active Media Products, manufacturer of SSDs and endangered species series USB drives, today released a new line of Windows 7 compatible SaberTooth S4 SATA Mini PCIe SSDs that achieve sequential read speeds up to 130MB/sec. Available now in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB capacities, these drives are guaranteed compatible with many models of Asus Eee PC including 900, 900A, 901 and 1000 models.

The company posted a detailed Benchmark Report on the SaberTooth S4 tested on an Eee PC 1000 under Windows XP here. The benchmark results show the S4 soaring to read speeds over 120MB/sec, nearly four times faster than the default SSD in the Eee PC 1000. "We optimized the SaberTooth S4 for exceptional read performance", explained Active Media Products Vice President of Sales, Jerry Thomson. "But it also runs circles around the default SSD in write speeds, scoring about 2X faster than the default SSD in write tests."

Speed plays a decisive role in computing. When the computer runs slowly, not only will the work progress be delayed, even our thoughts will be interrupted. Therefore, hard drives with higher speed will mean efficiency to professional graphic designers. The 2.5-inch P2 IDE Solid State Disk (SSD) from Team Technologies not only enhances the computer startup and data transfer speed, but also loads programs much faster than conventional mechanical hard drives. The excellent speed performance of the P2 IDE SSD is particularly felt when users open many windows at the same time. This saves designers a lot of time from searching images and drawings and allows them to enjoy speedy reading and writing, thus fully displaying computing performance and speed.

Active Media Products, manufacturer of SSDs and innovative USB drives, today began shipping an eco-friendly silicone rubber Koala drive, that is both waterproof and shock resistant, in capacities from 2GB to 16GB.

The Koala drive is exceptionally rugged. The sealed COB style USB drive has a soft silicone rubber outer casing that provides outstanding protection from the elements and protects the drive if it is dropped or banged around. "Customers will enjoy the Koala drive's durability as much as its stylish design." commented Active Media Products' VP of Sales, Jerry Thomson. "The Koala drive merges form with function, and the result is an awesome little product with great visual appeal and a soft tactile feel that protects its contents much better than most USB drives".

Stealth.com Inc. (Stealth Computer) a leading ISO 9001 manufacturer of industrial rugged computers and peripherals has released the new Model LPC-395F, a rugged, small footprint, fanless computer with integrated removable storage.

Stealth's LPC-395F fanless mini PC includes front loaded removable media slots for both hard drive and compact flash media. An industry standard mobile 2.5" SATA hard drive slides directly into the machine without having to open the chassis. The system also supports a front loaded CF memory card for easy system updates and file deployment. Ed Boutilier, President & CEO of Stealth.com states; "Stealth's removable storage feature presents a new level of security, maintenance and data protection in a small form factor PC. There is no longer any need to spend lengthy time to open a chassis to change/ remove the hard drive. Our removable storage feature allows the user to secure or replace their critical data in a matter of seconds."

Icy Dock is out with its newest single-drive enclosure that converts 2.5 inch HDDs or SSDs into 3.5 inch drives, to properly fit into PC cases with 3.5 inch bays. The Icy Dock MB882SP-1S-2B provides enclosure and ventilation for 2.5 inch drives, while connecting them to the SATA interface (data and power) in accordance with the standards, so it could be easily inserted into desktop HDD docks that use a 'cartridge-load' mechanism. Measuring 145 x 101 x 25 mm, it is the size of a the typical 3.5 inch HDD. It weighs 163 g, and is made of plastic. The unit also has a simple slide-open lid that makes handling it (installing/uninstalling 2.5 inch drives) tool-less. The Icy Dock MB882SP-1S-2B is priced at $17.

A-DATA Technology Co., Ltd., the worldwide leader in DRAM memory and Flash application products, announced today its industry-leading SSD S596, a 2.5" SATA 3 Gb/s SSD designed specifically for PC enthusiastic, multi-task and heavy-graphic users to perform assorted applications five times faster.

Delivering sequential read and write speed up to 250 MB/sec and 180 MB/sec, the S596 eases the bottleneck conventional HD causes. The S596 utilizes the next generation of Flash technology and DDR2 SDRAM cache buffer to provide an amazingly fast boot-up time at 20 seconds on platforms running Windows 7, a 40% performance improvement compared to platform equipped with ordinary SSD.

Verbatim introduced a new USB/eSATA combo portable SSD. What looks like just another USB stick, which pops its USB connector out with a push of a slider, pops an eSATA connector out from the other side, with the push of the same slider, the other way. Measuring 80 (L) x 23 (W) x 9 (H) mm, and weighing 19 g, the USB/eSATA combo SSD offers 32 GB of storage, with the eSATA interface offering high-performance wherever an eSATA port is available, while the USB 2.0 interface ensures high compatibility. In eSATA mode, the drive offers speeds of 60 MB/s (read) and 25 MB/s (write), which goes down to 26 MB/s (read) and 16 MB/s (write) in USB 2.0 mode. The bundled EasyLock software provides 256-bit AES data encryption. Backed by a 2-year warranty, the Verbatim USB/eSATA Combo SSD sells for 159 EUR.

Intel has retracted the recently released 02HA Firmware Update for its X25-M solid state drives, in view of the firmware causing the drive to malfunction on systems with Windows 7. Reports suggest that a bug in the firmware causes the drives to stop working. To investigate the issue further, and possibly release a corrective firmware, Intel retracted the software from its website. This is not the first time such a thing has happened. Soon after its release in July, the X25-M Gen 2 54 nm SSDs were diagnosed with a problematic firmware, to which the company had to release corrective firmware two weeks later.

Intel's formidable enterprise-grade solid state drive (SSD) lineup has received an important feature update, which includes a new firmware that adds support for the "Trim" feature on Windows 7, which enhances the drive's stability and extends its service life. This is the second major update for the company's breakthrough 34 nm NAND based X25M Gen.2 SSDs. The first one corrected a major stability issue. These stress the importance for users to keep the drive's firmware up to date. Not only do they correct major issues, but also add to the feature-set. The new firmware update promises an up to 40% increase in sequential write speeds, which will now top 100 MB/s.

For users of older versions of Windows, Intel is providing the SSD Toolbox and SSD Optimizer software, which intend to provide similar levels of reliability, as Windows 7 Trim brings about. The new firmware, with relevant information can be found here, while the SSD Toolbox, and SSD Optimizer can be found here.

Kingston Digital, Inc., the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced the release of the Kingston SSDNow V Series 40GB Accelerator Drive, the latest addition to its SSDNow V 'Value' family of solid-state drives (SSD). The Kingston SSDNow V Series 40 GB Accelerator Drive is one of the best and most cost-effective ways to accelerate any desktop's start up, shutdown and application load times.

"The SSDNow V Series 40GB Accelerator Drive offers instant performance enhancement and lower power consumption on existing systems at a fraction of the cost of a new system," said Ariel Perez, SSD business manager, Kingston Digital. "In real-world numbers this means that by upgrading with an SSDNow 40GB drive, you can speed up open and close times of web browsers such as Internet Explorer or Firefox, and programs like iTunes or Photoshop by almost 4 times over existing regular desktops hard-disk drives*".

pureSilicon Inc. is now shipping Renegade R2, its latest generation of ruggedized solid-state drives (SSD), designed to deliver uncompromised performance in the harshest conditions. Renegade R2 Series SSDs offer enhanced read and write speeds (sequential read: 255 MB/s; sequential write: 180 MB/s), improved IOPS (random read: 18,000 IOPS @ 4K; random write: 1,200 IOPS @ 4K) and proprietary SiPher data security technology. The drives are available immediately in a wide range of densities (4GB, 8GB, 16 GB, 32GB, 64GB, 128GB) with SATA II configuration, in a low profile (9.5mm height) 2.5-inch form factor. 256GB, PATA, 1.8-inch form factor, and encryption versions will start shipping in Q1 2010.

"pureSilicon is dedicated to providing high-performance, rugged storage solutions to the defense, military, industrial, and government markets," said Jason Breakstone, founder and CEO of pureSilicon. "While many SSD manufacturers are focusing their efforts on the mass consumer markets, pureSilicon is committed to designing and delivering technologies that will provide significant benefits to our customers such as full-disk encryption and data declassification methods. Renegade R2 is designed to operate in the harshest conditions."

Active Media Products, manufacturer of SSDs and innovative USB drives, today announced imminent arrival of a line of Predator-X7 2.5-inch SATA-II 3Gbps Windows 7 compatible SSDs built with the new Jmicron JM612 controller.

Predator X7 SSDs will be offered in capacities from 32GB to 256GB. At the heart of these SSDs is the JMF612 controller, which boasts numerous advances in features and performance. The 8-channel flash controller combined with 128MB of DRAM cache achieves sequential read speeds up to 230MB/sec and sequential write speeds up to 180MB/sec. "One big advantage of this controller is its support for a USB 2.0 port, which can be used for cloning the contents of your old hard drive onto the Predator X7. The mini USB port makes installation and setup a lot faster and easier." stated Active Media Products' VP of Sales, Jerry Thomson.

When designing solid-state storage for enterprise applications, standard SLC NAND has been the technology of choice because of its reliability and endurance. But customers are often challenged on how to cost-effectively reach their capacity requirements. Micron Technology, Inc. is meeting customers' requirements by announcing today that it has leveraged its award-winning 34nm NAND process to manufacture an MLC Enterprise NAND device, which provides enterprise organizations a way to cost-effectively and reliably double their flash-based enterprise storage capacity (since MLC provides twice the capacity in the same die size as SLC). Micron's new MLC Enterprise NAND device achieves 30,000 write cycles - a 6x increase in endurance when compared to standard MLC NAND. And for enterprise applications that are more performance driven, Micron today also introduced a 34nm SLC Enterprise NAND device that achieves 300,000 write cycles - a 3x increase in endurance when compared to standard SLC NAND.

Additionally, leveraging the full performance capability of NAND, Micron's newest Enterprise NAND products also support the ONFI 2.1synchronous interface, delivering a 4- to 5x improvement in data transfer rates when compared to legacy NAND interfaces. Micron's 34nm Enterprise NAND portfolio includes a 32Gb MLC NAND chip and a 16Gb SLC NAND chip that can be configured into multi-die, single packages supporting densities up to 32GB MLC and 16GB SLC, respectively. Micron is now sampling its Enterprise NAND products with customers and controller manufacturers, and is expected to be in volume production in early 2010. For further explanation on Micron's Enterprise NAND products, visit Micron's Innovations blog to catch a video that describes how Micron leveraged its mature 34nm NAND process to achieve these levels of reliability.

Silicon Power released its second edition eSATA/USB SSD II flash-drive. With a capacity of 64 GB, the drive provides support for both USB 2.0 and eSATA interfaces, so the user can choose between the broadest compatibility (using USB), or maximum performance (using eSATA). Both connectors are located on either sides of the drive, and pop out by moving a retractable slider. The unit measures 76.4 mm x 27 mm x 11.4 mm, and weighs 20 g, on par with most 64+ GB flash drives. In eSATA mode, the drive offers read speeds of 90 MB/s and write speeds of 50 MB/s, while in USB 2.0 mode, the read-write speeds are 30 MB/s and 20 MB/s, respectively. The drive also comes in a 32 GB variant with the same specifications, otherwise. The 64 GB variant costs 138 EUR, while the 32 GB one costs 62 EUR.

Scythe presents the new product, Kama Stay (Model Nr.: SCKST-1000). A simple very flexible product for mounting additional fans into an unused PCI Slot. The set also includes a manually regulated 120 mm Slip Stream Slim fan. Kama Stay is a highly-adjustable cooling platform that can be mounted onto an unused PCI Slot. Improved stability is granted by screwing the frame to a case like a common PCI expansion card. Once installed, Kama Stay allows you to mount all kinds of fans in many different positions. Even 140 mm fans can be used with this new accessory. Due to its high flexibility, Kama Stay helps you to adapt and improve the existing Airflow in your PC case.

Keeping your system cool is not the only task Kama Stay can handle. Optionally, you can also mount up to three 2.5" HDDs or SSDs. Just set the frame to the matching height and fix the drives with screws. Supplied 120 mm Slip Stream Slim fan works in an operating-speed range of 800 to 2,000 rpm. The fan speed can be controlled by using the pre-attached potentiometer located in the PCI bracket. Scythe Kama Stay is now available for EUR 12.25 (MSRP, excl. VAT) or US$ 19.00 (MSRP, excl. TAX.)

Gateway rolled out two new all-in-one PCs that boast of multi-touch capable displays. The Gateway One ZX6800 (23-inch), and Gateway One ZX4800 (20-inch) PCs come with everything expected from PCs in this quickly growing category. While the ZX6800 offers a full-HD screen resolution of 1920 x 1080, the ZX4800 give 1600 x 900. Under the hood, the ZX6800 packs an Intel Core 2 Quad 2.33 GHz processor, 8 GB of memory, and ATI Radeon HD 4670 1 GB powering the graphics, DVD Writer, 64 GB SSD to store the OS and installed applications, 1 TB hard drive for storage, gigbit Ethernet and WiFi b/g/n, a hybrid TV-tuner, and 5.1 channel audio (outputs).

The ZX4800 on the other hand, is powered by an Intel Pentium Dual-Core 2.10 GHz, 4 GB memory, Intel GMA X4500 integrated graphics, a 750 GB hard drive (no SSD here), the rest of its specs is identical to its sibling, except that it doesn't pack the TV-tuner. Both come with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit pre-installed. The multi-touch capabilities may come of use thanks to Windows 7's finger enhancements, and the various applications the company will be bundling. Slated for a time-frame between late October and early November, the Gateway One X6800 will carry a price-tag of US $1399, while the X4800 will sell for $749.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and flash-based storage as an alternative to hard disk drives (HDDs), today announced the Z-Drive m84, a PCI-Express Solid State Drive (SSD) designed to offer the performance of OCZ's Z-Drive product line to enthusiasts for a more affordable price point and availability in the mainstream market segment versus the enterprise channel. The Z-Drive m84 is the answer to the demand from end-users to have access to this state-of-the-art storage solution.

"The OCZ m84 Z-Drive is the newest addition to our line of PCI-E solid state drives and is designed to offer consumers a high performance yet aggressively priced solid state solution," said Eugene Chang, Vice President of Product Management at the OCZ Technology Group. "While the previously released p84 and e84 Z-Drives were intended specifically for enterprise applications, the m84 delivers much of the same performance but at a price point that is competitive with standard SSD drives. This is the first time that such a high performance PCI-E based SSD that is optimized for media editing, gaming, and workstation productivity, has been so within the reach of power users."

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced the new co-branded UltraDrive DX SSDs that offer two levels of security to prevent unauthorized data theft or loss. Co-branded Toshiba, the new UltraDrive DX SSDs will be sold through Super Talent's North American retail and distribution channel starting this week.

As a first level of security the UltraDrive DX supports password protection with an encrypted password. This blocks malicious hackers from accessing the data stored on the SSD. As a second level of protection the DX incorporates new hardware data randomization technology. Data randomization happens automatically with every write to the drive to prevent unauthorized copying of blocks of data. Both encrypted password protection and data randomization are standard features that do not affect performance.