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1.8" Storage Drives
Market - Game Summary (in Production)
number of 1.8" oems
listed here: -
36
highest capacity
SSD shipping - 128GB - from
Mtron and
RunCore.
highest
capacity
SSD announced - 512GB
(using 32Gb/die components) from
SandForce
highest
capacity HDD - 250GB -
from Toshiba
fastest
1.8" SSDs - 250MB/s read, 200MB/s write, 5,000 R/W IOPS -
SandForce
biggest
market share:- Toshiba has
shipped over 60 million 1.8" HDDs since 2000. | |
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1.8" Storage Drives
Market
The
battle for supremacy
in the 1.8" storage drive form factor, between
hard disks and
flash SSDs is
reminiscent of the
30 year
war between Intel and AMD over which processor would be designed into PCs,
notebooks
and servers.
The similarity stems from the fact that most end users
don't buy 1.8" drives, just as they don't buy processors. But their
choice about which system they buy is effectively a vote for what's inside.
You may ask - what about the don't care vote?
In the current
state of the storage market many users may not care about whether their
notebook includes a hard drive or flash SSD - just so long as it works and
satisfies their own parameters on price, performance and battery life. The
impact of fashion and novelty is also an important factor in this type of
consumer market. Systems designers too have been hopping backwards and
forwards across the 1.8" storage line therefore I've decided to list news
and vendors of 1.8" drives on the same page, regardless of whether the
technology inside is magnetic spinning plates or memory chip arrays. In the
distant future the 1.8" market may fragment into applications which are
always done by hard disks and others which are always done by SSDs - but here
and now they're fighting hand to hand in the same trench. | |
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| 1.8 inch storage drive news |
| PhotoFast Announces Faster
1.8" Notebook SSDs |
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Editor:- May 27, 2009 - PhotoFast launched
its G-Monster 1.8"
SATA SSD with
internal 64MB DRAM cache
and upto 128GB capacity.
It supports R/W speeds upto 230MB/s and
160MB/s respectively. The company says - what's important in this type of
notebook product is not just sequential R/W throughput for large blocks - but
also write performance for small random blocks. It claims its 12MB/s (for 4KB
blocks) is best in class. | |
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New Standard
for 1.8" SSDs
Editor:- May 18, 2009 - JEDEC today
published a
new
standard for 1.8"
Slim SSDs.
MO-297 defines the dimensions, layout and connector
position for 54mm x 39mm SSDs with a standard
SATA connector.
"MO-297
is the first document to standardize a physical outline for a solid state drive.
Adoption of this standard has the potential to deliver significant benefits for
the industry by creating a single outline for storage suppliers and systems
manufacturers to use and reference," said Jim Leidy, Business Development
Manager for Tyco Electronics and
Chairman of the JEDEC Task Group behind the effort. Storage ORGs
Skymedi Enters SSD Controller Market
Editor:- May
14, 2009 - Skymedi
has
launched a SATA
SSD controller aimed at the notebook market.
It supports R/W speeds
up to 180MB/s and 150MB/s respectively and upto 512GB capacity.
That
brings the number of companies listed on our merchant market
SSD controller and IP page
up to 17. This growing SSD ecostructure makes it easier for new oems to
enter the SSD market.
1.8" SiliconDrives Get Faster
Editor:- March
17, 2009 - SiliconSystems
today announced it will ship a new, faster -
3rd generation
- of its SLC
SiliconDrives in the 2nd quarter of 2009 - with capacities up to 128GB.
SiliconDrive
III products include 2.5" SATA and PATA and 1.8" SATA products that
offer read speeds up to 100MB/s and write speeds to 80MB/s.
"The
faster speeds and larger capacities of SiliconDrive III will help enable new
multimedia data streaming applications such as IPTV, Video on Demand (VOD) and
digital video surveillance appliances that require a high level of performance
and reliability where failure is not an option" said
Gary Drossel, vp
of product planning at SiliconSystems.
Editor's comments:- SiliconSystems' SSDs have never been the
fastest and I had
always assumed this was because of
design trade-offs
which included more intensive
reliability-related
processes in the on-board controller while coming in at a low power budget. But
in a recent discussion Gary Drossel told me they had some design techniques
in the pipeline which would do all those things plus beef up the speed too.
How Popular are 1.8" Drives?
In February 2009 -
1.8" was the 3rd most popular SSD form factor based on reader
search volume.
- 2.5" SSDs
- PCIe SSDs
- 1.8" SSDs
- 3.5" SSDs
- 1.0" SSDs
SanDisk Offers Cheap Fast SSDs for Q3 Notebooks
CES,
LAS VEGAS - January 8, 2009 - SanDisk Corp today unveiled a new family
of 1.8" and 2.5" MLC flash SSDs that will ship in mid 2009.
SanDisk's
G3 Series
will have capacities (and anticipated MSRPs) as follows:- 60GB ($149), 120GB
($249 ) and 240GB ($499). Anticipated sequential performance is quoted as:-
200MB/s read and 140MB/s write. ...SanDisk profile
Editor's
comments:- SanDisk doesn't quote an IOPS figure for these new SSDs
preferring instead to quote a proprietary 40,000 virtualRPM to indicate how they
compare to
hard drives.
RunCore Announces Notebook Upgrade SSDs
Editor:-
December 29 , 2008 - RunCore
announced 1.8" PATA
SSDs aimed at the notebook upgrade market.
Available with capacity
upto 128GB (retail price $389.99 ) an inbuilt slave
USB port enables users to
easily clone their internal hard
drive using Acronis
True Image (or similar) software. The SSD can then be installed in the notebook
typically giving a 4x speedup.
Toshiba Announces New High Capacity 1.8" flash SSDs
IRVINE, Calif.
- December 18, 2008 - Toshiba Corp. today announced a new family of
MLC flash SSDs with 256GB capacity in 2.5" and 128GB capacity in 1.8"
form factors.
Sampling in Q1 2009, the new SSDs will have R/W
speeds upto 240MB/s and 200MB/s respectively. ...Toshiba profile
SiliconSystems Ships New 1.8" SiliconDrive
Aliso
Viejo, Calif. - November 11, 2008 - SiliconSystems, Inc. announced
shipments of its new 1.8" PATA SSDs with 34MB/s R/W speed and
capacities up to 32GB.
SiliconDrive II 1.8-inch PATA SSDs
feature SiliconSystems' patented PowerArmor, SiSMART and SiSecure integrated
advanced storage technologies that address critical OEM design considerations,
including the elimination of drive corruption due to power anomalies, the
ability to forecast SiliconDrive useable life and the protection of application
data and software IP.
...SiliconSystems
profile, 1.8" storage
drives
Trident Space & Defense Launches Industrial 1.8" SSDs
Torrance,
CA - October 23, 2008 - Trident Space & Defense announced a new
family of ruggedized CF and 1.8" SSDs.
The SLC Compact
Flash SSDs have R/W speeds up to 48/30MB/s and capacities up to 16GB. The 1.8"
drives available with PATA or SATA interfaces in capacities up to 32GB. ...Trident Space &
Defense profile
Toshiba Launches Highest Capacity 1.8" Drive
IRVINE,
Calif. - September 24, 2008 - Toshiba today announced the
industry's first 250GB 1.8-inch HDD.
The 5,400 RPM disk has a
SATA interface and Toshiba's free fall sensor option, which enhances
protection from external shock and vibration events. Peak media transfer rate is
707Mbps. Volume shipments begin in December.
...Toshiba profile
SDK Starts Shipments of 1.89-Inch 120 GB HD Media
Tokyo, Japan -
September 11, 2008 - Showa Denko K.K. (SDK) has started commercial
shipments of 1.89-inch hard disk media with storage capacity of 120GB per disk.
To the best of our knowledge, our new 1.89-inch HD media have the
world's highest storage capacity for this size available on the market today.
The new product has been developed by improving the magnetic layer for 1.89-inch
80 gigabyte HD media commercialized in August 2007. SDK is the world's only
commercial producer of 1.89-inch HD media.
...SDK profile
Toshiba Ships 240GB 1.8" HDDs
IRVINE,
Calif. - September 9, 2008 - Toshiba Storage Device Division today
announced the world's first dual-platter 240GB 1.8-inch PATA HDDs.
The 240GB unit uses 33% less power than Toshiba's previous
generation 160GB 3,600 RPM 1.8" model and is aimed at light-weight
mobile PC applications and high-end digital video camcorders, which require high
capacity and ruggedness to protect users' valuable digital assets. The new
series (which all spin at 4,200 RPM) also includes 80GB and 120GB
single-platter models. Toshiba's new 1.8" HDDs will be incorporated into
consumer products shipping this holiday season. ...Toshiba profile,
HDDs,
1.8" drives
Intel Ships Me-too 1.8" MLC SSDs
SANTA
CLARA, Calif. - September 8, 2008 - Intel Corp has begun shipping 1.8"
and 2.5" SATA MLC flash SSDs for laptop and desktop computers.
The
Intel X18-M and X25-M Mainstream SATA SSDs are available in 80GB capacities,
with 160GB versions sampling in the 4th quarter of this year. The 80GB drive
achieves up to 250MB per second read speeds, up to 70MB per second write speeds
and 85-microsecond read latency for fast performance. The 80GB version is priced
at $595 for quantities up to 1,000. T
...Intel profile,
1.8" SSDs,
2.5 inch SSDs
Editor's
comments:- these are low performance products which would rate a yawn if
announced by any other company. The market is waiting to see how Intel will
deliver on its high performance SSD pledges. The company says it will announce a
faster SLC SSD line in the next 90 days.
2 of Samsung's New SSDs Fit into 1.8"
Editor:- September 1, 2008 - Samsung
revealed details of the new form factor for flash SSDs which it started sampling
a few weeks ago.
The dimensions are:- 39mm (L) x 54mm (W) x 4mm
(H).
It's worth comparing these to a classic 1.8" form factor
dimensions - which are 54 mm (W) x 78 mm (L) x 8 mm (H).
You'll
notice that you can pack 2 of the new Samsung SSDs into the same pcb space as a
1.8" drive, and also in half the height.
Available in densities of
8GB, 16GB and 32GB, the new MLC SSDs will be mass produced beginning this
month. The 32GB device will read data (sequentially) at 90MB/s and write
(sequentially) at 70MB/s. ...Samsung profile
SMART Announces New 1.8" SSD
FREMONT, CA - August 11, 2008
- SMART Modular Technologies today announced 6 new SSDs in the Xceed
family of industrial-grade storage solutions.
Among these products
- the SMART 1.8" XceedLite SATA SSD operates at 72MB/s read and 55MB/s
sustained write speeds, and has densities up to 64GB. Designed to operate using
fewer than 1 watt of power in active mode, this new SSD offers longer battery
life, which is essential for ruggedized mobile applications.
Samples of
the six new SSD drives will be available in the 3rd calendar quarter with
general availability expected shortly thereafter. ...SMART profile
Samsung Previews 256GB 1.8" SSD
TAIPEI,
Taiwan - May 23, 2008 - Samsung today unveiled plans to sample the "fastest2
2.5" SATA SSDs in September.
The 256GB MLC flash design will
have a sequential read speed of 200MB/s and sequential write speed of 160MB/s.
A 1.8" version of the 256GB SSD is also expected to be available in Q4.
...Samsung profile
Editor's
comments:- if such a device were shipping in volume today it would be the
fastest 2.5" SSD. But I doubt if it will actually be the
fastest that's
actually available in Q408. See
Predicting Future Flash
SSD Performance .
STEC Announces Fast 1" SSD
SANTA
ANA, Calif - April 21, 2008 - STEC, Inc. announced the MACH4 - a 1"
SATA / PATA SSD.
For a small drive - the MACH4 is fast:- with
sustained sequential reads upto 90MB/s and writes upto 55MB/s. It's expected to
be in mass production at the end of April in capacities up to 32GB. Projected
OEM pricing for the 8GB capacity point is $45.
"For the numerous
applications which were historically challenged by the severe limitations of 1
inch HDDs, STEC is now offering a much more cost-effective, higher capacity and
higher reliability alternative..." said STEC's Patrick Wilkison.
...STEC profile
Toshiba's MLC SSDs in Mass Production
IRVINE,
Calif. - March 18, 2008 - Toshiba has started mass production of MLC
flash SSDs aimed at the notebook market.
The new
Toshiba
SSDs have SATA
interfaces and will be available in 3 form factors:- module,
1.8" and
2.5", and with
upto 128GB capacity. Toshiba says overall performance is better than 5,400
RPM and 7,200 RPM HDDs.
Read / write speeds are 100MB/s and 40MB/s respectively. Initial production is
for Toshiba's own notebooks. ...Toshiba profile
Toshiba's New 1.8" Hard Drive
IRVINE
- February 25, 2008 - Toshiba Storage Device Division today added a
line of 5,400 RPM SATA 1.8" hard disk drives to its product offerings
for mobile PCs.
Available in 120GB and 80GB capacities, these new
HDDs integrate design
elements from Toshiba's flagship 2.5" line to offer enhanced performance
for ultra-thin and light PC applications.
With over 60 million 1.8" HDDs shipped since 2000, Toshiba has
consistently held the #1 position in the 1.8" HDD segment according to
IDC. Toshiba is showing the
new drives this week at the Intel
Mobility Summit in Shanghai, China. Shipments will start in April 2008.
...Toshiba profile
Mtron's New Notebook SSD will be 6x faster than Hard Drive
SEOUL,
South Korea - February 18, 2008 - Mtron Technology Co. Ltd - announced
today that they have completed the development of a new 1.8" ZIF-type SSD
family for laptop PCs and will begin production in April.
Mtron's
new SLC flash SSD has a maximum reading speed of 120MB/s and writing speed of
100MB/s, which is more than 6x faster than a typical 1.8" HDD.
Therefore when it's used in laptop PC and
UMPC,
it delivers much faster performance than a desktop.
Mtron also
released a 1.8" MLC Flash SSD with up to 128GB capacity along with a
maximum reading speed of 110MB/s and writing speed of 40MB/s.
Steve
Jeon, CEO of Mtron, said, "With our new 1.8 inch SSD, Mtron has added
another great product line as a leader in the SSD market, which is expected to
grow into ten billion dollars in 2012. Our new product is a result of careful
market analysis and research of consumer needs."
...Mtron profile | |
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