PNY has launched a new line of 2.5“ solid-state drives that can be used in PCs and notebooks, as PNY looks to begin expanding its SSD product portfolio.
The new PNY Optima Series SSD includes a 64GB and 128GB model of the drives -- and uses multi layer cell flash memory, with the 64GB model supporting 100 Mb/s write and 220MB/s read speeds. The larger, more expensive 128GB model has a 150 Mb/s write and 235 Mb/s read speed.
PNY decided to use the SATA II interface, but the drives are backward compatible with original SATA. Both drives also have 64MB cache and can be swapped into desktops and notebooks.
“With PNY’s SSDs, each user will find an application that perfectly meets their needs -- the product is of real value to our customers,” said Jonathan Filleau, PNY Marketing manager, in a statement.
The PNY 64GB Optima SSD is available for $119.99, while the PNY 128GB Optima SSD is available for $349.99. The drives are available now.
This is a solid decision by PNY, especially because the $119.99 price tag for the 64GB SSD puts it below pricing of Kingston, Western Digital, Plextor, and other rival SSD makers. PNY is well known for its video cards, RAM, and flash-based memory products--so I think this a great idea for the company.
The $349.99 price tag for the 128GB model puts it in the midrange of rival SSDs, though I think it’s a bit too high to gain significant marketshare.
