Details on MSI SSDs leaked – unconfirmed fast!

23 Jul 12 18:46 by DoMiN8ToR in category Solid State (ssd)

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With the current amount of SSD announcements from a wide array of companies, there is only one way prices of SSDs can go; down! Recently we reported that the SandForce website gave away that MSI would introduce a line of SSDs and today we can report some more details on these drives as the website insideindustrynews has more information. The website reports that the SSD line will be called Reflex and the drives will become available in three capacities: 60GB (RX-60), 120GB (RX-120), and 240GB (RX-240) .

They are all 2.5″ form factor drives and come with a 3.5″ adapter bracket. All drives are assembled in the USA, use the SandForce SF-2281 controller and connect to the PC using a SATA3 interface.

Here are the specifications of each individual drive of the Reflex series.

RX-60

525MB/s read
495MB/s write
85,000 IOPS

RX-120

550MB/s read
515MB/s write
90,000 IOPS

RX-240

560MB/s read
525MB/s write
90,000 IOPS

Unfortunately no pricing information was available at the time of writing.

10 Comments on Details on MSI SSDs leaked – unconfirmed fast!

Dee: Posts: 12810; Posted on: 23 Jul 12 19:15

With those specs, it would suggest the MSI SSDs will be using toggle NAND. Very fast toggle NAND, in fact,

DukeNukem: Posts: 1606; Posted on: 23 Jul 12 19:43

Toggle NAND? Never heard of it. Over the weekend a friend of mine gave me a new, sealed 150GB VelociRaptor HDD. I was going to use it, but think I should just try and sell it and put the money towards an Intel 520 180GB SSD. I don't have an SSD drive or even know anyone who has one, so I have no real world experience with them. I just know they're finally at the level of reliability and cost I'm comfortable with.

Just shut up and take my money!!! ... LOL.

Dee: Posts: 12810; Posted on: 23 Jul 12 19:47

Toggle NAND. The DDR2 RAM equivalent for NAND.
Currently manufactured by Samsung, Toshiba, and SanDisk.

Kenshin: Posts: 13160; Posted on: 23 Jul 12 20:17

For US consumers, I would recommend either Crucial M4 512GB or OCZ Agility 4 512GB (when their prices are discounted at newegg.com and amazon.com, that is.) They are the latest, fastest, most proven, and cheapest of the SSD world.

Like processors and DRAM chips, yield rate and scale of production take very important roles in SSD. According to Samsung, 'Toggle-mode' NAND is much faster than non-Toggle NAND.

Legacy NAND: 40MT/s
Toggle DDR 1.0 NAND: 133MT/s
Toggle DDR 2.0 NAND: 400MT/s

Samsung started production of 64Gb MLC NAND flash chips based on Toggle DDR 2.0 and 20nm processes either during 2011 1H or 2011 2H, but it's obvious more SSD's are adopting these newer-generation NAND chips.

http://img.yonhapnews.co.kr/etc/inne...00003_01_i.jpg

English source: http://www.toshiba.com/taec/Catalog/...lineid=1735086

Quote:

MLC and SLC Lineup of Asynchronous DDR NAND for Fast Data Transfers

Toshiba offers a full lineup of 32nm DDR Toggle-Mode NAND, in MLC versions with densities of 64Gb1, 128Gb and 256Gb and SLC versions with densities of 32Gb, 64Gb and 128Gb. Toggle-Mode NAND is a DDR NAND solution designed to consume less power than synchronous DDR NAND flash by eliminating the clock signal typically used in synchronous DDR memories.

Toshiba DDR Toggle-Mode 1.0 NAND has a fast interface, rated at 133 megatransfers/second2 (MT/s), as compared to 40MT/s for legacy SLC single data rate NAN. This makes it suitable for high performance solid state storage applications, including enterprise storage.

With an asynchronous interface similar to that used in conventional NAND, the Toggle-Mode DDR Flash NAND requires no clock signal, which means that it uses less power and has a simpler system design when compared to competing synchronous NAND alternatives. The DDR interface in Toggle-Mode NAND uses a Bidirectional DQS to generate input/output signals (I/Os) using the rising and falling edge of the write erase signal.

The bi-directional data signal also ensures scalability to future higher frequency operations. Toshiba is working with JEDEC on a new standard for the most advanced high-performance NAND flash memory, a DDR NAND flash with a 400Mbps3 interface. This next generation Toggle-Mode DDR NAND 2.0 is targeted to provide a three-fold increase in interface speed over Toggle DDR 1.0, and a ten-fold increase over the 40Mbps single data rate NAND that is widely used today.

Quote:

1 Product density is identified based on the maximum density of memory chip(s) within the Product, not the amount of memory capacity available for data storage by the end user. Consumer-usable capacity will be less due to overhead data areas, formatting, bad blocks, and other constraints, and may also vary based on the host device and application.

2 Megatransfers (MT) per second refer to the number of data transssfers (or data samples) captured per second, with each sample occurring at the clock edge. In a double data rate system, the data is transferred on both the rising and falling edge of the clock signal. For purposes of measuring data transfers in this context, 1 Megatransfer equals 1,000,000 transfers per second. Actual data transfer speed may vary depending on the device, read and write conditions, and file size.

3 Mbps, or megabit per second. For purposes of measuring read and write speed in this context, 1 megabit or Mb = 1,000,000 bits. Maximum read and write speed may vary depending on the device, read and write conditions, and file size.

CDan: Posts: 3913; Posted on: 23 Jul 12 21:06

A bit late in the game for yet another version of the Sandforce-based drive, unless it's very cheap.

AcEric87: Posts: 29; Posted on: 18 Aug 12 01:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenshin

From my understanding from a review done at StorageReview.com PCIe based OCZ RevoDrive 3 x2 is as fast as they come with 4KB random write 200k+.

Now, I know I'm not the most knowledged with SSD, so if there is something I'm misunderstanding please let me know.

Yes, these SSD are a bit more pricey given that a 480GB @ $699.99 and the 960GB @ $3299.99 ( jumps up quite a bit).

One thing I'm not sure is would having so much space be necessary.

alan1476: Posts: 18358; Posted on: 18 Aug 12 01:22

I wonder what Nand the new Transend 720s are using?

deanwitty: Posts: 2698; Posted on: 18 Aug 12 04:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by alan1476

I wonder what Nand the new Transend 720s are using?

They are listed as "Equipped with 24nm Synchronous Toggle Mode MLC Chips". Typical slow Sandforce sequential write speed and kinda middle of the road performance judging by these benchmarks.

Kenshin: Posts: 13160; Posted on: 18 Aug 12 08:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by AcEric87

You are right. OCZ RevoDrive is faster than more consumer-oriented drives. When I said fastest and cheapest, I meant something very fast at prices like $50 or $200.

SSD used to mean DRAM-based PCI cards and other types of devices for servers and rich individual home users. NAND flash memory chip-based SATA drives first appeared only very recently. OCZ RevoDrive series drives use NAND to make the manufacturing cost lower while still targeting server and workstation markets.

They aren't really for consumers, but 480GB RevoDrive for about US$700 doesn't sound that expensive so it's your choice... spending $700 for a truly fast SSD instead of the spending the same money elsewhere. Apple Retina MacBook Pro 512GB version costs about $700 more than the 256GB model.

alan1476: Posts: 18358; Posted on: 18 Aug 12 13:55

This is what Transend advertises for their 720 256gb model

Read up to 560MB/s, Write up to 540MB/s
Next Generation SATA III 6Gb/s Interface; SandForce Driven
Ultra-slim 7mm form factor; TRIM Command support
Intelligent Block Management and Wear Leveling; Supports S.M.A.R.T.
AES 256-bit Hardware Encryption; Equipped with 24nm Synchronous Toggle Mode MLC Chips

Seems pretty fast to me. LOL, thanks Dean for the info.

Details on MSI SSDs leaked – unconfirmed fast!

10 Comments on Details on MSI SSDs leaked – unconfirmed fast!

Details on MSI SSDs leaked – unconfirmed fast!

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