SanDisk showed off their upcoming third generation solid state drive (SSD) – the G3 SSD family – at CES 2009. These drives feature new algorithms such as ExtremeFFS, new technologies such as All Bit Line MLC NAND flash, and a new SanDisk controller. More importantly, the G3 SSD family will be available at extremely competitive prices with the 60GB model coming out at $149.
For those of you curious what the heck ExtremeFFS is. It’s a new flash management system developed by SanDisk that tries to maximize random write performance. Here’s a snippet from the FAQ:
“The algorithm operation is page-based, which means there is no fixed coupling between physical and logical location. When a sector of data is written, the SSD puts it where it is most convenient and efficient. ExtremeFFS incorporates a fully non-blocking architecture in which all of the NAND channels can behave independently, with some reading while others are writing and garbage collecting. Another key element of ExtremeFFS is usage-based content localization, which allows the advanced flash management system to “learn” user patterns and over time localize data to maximize the product’s performance and endurance. The result is an improvement in random write performance – by up to 100 times – as well as in overall endurance.”
SanDisk also introduces a new metric called “virtual Revolutions Per Minute (vRPM)” which tries to compare the performance of a solid state drive (which has no moving parts) against a traditional hard drive (which does rotate) using a traditional benchmark – RPM. SanDisk claims the G3 SSDs can achieve up to 40,000 vRPM.
The new SanDisk G3 SSDs will be available in the middle of this year in 2.5 inch and 1.8 inch form factors. As mentioned earlier, the 60GB model will be available for $149, the $120GB for $249, and the 240GB for $499.


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