You are previewing premium content. 
New Intel 320 SSD: Smaller, cheaper, less reliable?
- TAGS:320, 5%, enterprise, Flash, flash memory, Insider Content, INTC, Intel, SATA, solid state disk, solid state drive, solid state drives, SSD, X25-M
- IT TOPICS:Data Center, Emerging Technology, Hardware, Laptops & Netbooks, Macs & PCs, Privacy, Servers, Storage
By Richi Jennings. March 29, 2011.
Hurrah! SSDs are getting less expensive. And the reason is our old friend, Intel co-founder Gordon E. Moore and his eponymous law -- Moore’s Law forecasts that the density of integrated circuits doubles every two years -- which usually causes falling prices. Read how Intel's new 320 Series SSDs are an unusual illustration of how this works, in The Long View...
SSDs are following the classic pattern. Let's use Intel's SSD product history as an example: Its first generation drives used 50nm process technology and were eye-wateringly expensive. Its followup X25-M G2 drives used a 34nm process and were (relatively) inexpensive -- something around $2 per GB. Now we're finally seeing the next jump in density: 25nm.
This is going to drive street prices of mainstream SSDs down, say, 20% soon -- dropping even more once production volumes ramp up. I'm pleased to see that my worst fears about Intel's 25nm fab seem to be unnecessary. Here's why: read on...
To continue reading, register here to become an Insider
It's FREE to join
Already an Insider? Sign in
Free Insider Guide