News

posted on 03 June 2008 12:12

Intel's new Z-P230 solid state drive (SSD) is positioned as a smaller and lighter replacement for 1.8-inch hard disk drives in mobile PCs, now being called netbooks or nettops.

It comes in 4 and 8GB capacity points with a 16GB version arriving in the fourth quarter of this year.

The device has a standard 40-pin ZIF PATA (IDE) system interface and measures 38mm x 54mm x 4mm, which is a quarter of the volume of a standard 1.8-inch hard disk drive, and weighs 10 grams. The power draw is 1.65mW when idle and 314mW when operating.

The 1.8-inch hard drive market is being attacked by Intel, by TDK, and SanDisk, with announcements all timed for the end of May and beginning of June. It is going to be a fiercely competitive market and system OEMs should face energetic SSD sales people.

^{[Paul Roberts, news editor.]}