The Genesis series starts shipping to OEMs

Jun 16, 2010 12:54 GMT  ·  By

Hard disk drives are still the main choice of most consumers and even enterprise users, but solid state drives are becoming increasingly popular, no doubt because of their high speeds and tendency to go on existing when the laptop that houses them falls off a building. In fact, SSDs appear to be quite a promising venture right now, promising enough that even more stealthy players have decided to break cover and join the fray.

Anobit, a NAND technology company headquartered in Israel, has officially introduced its first series of SSDs based on MLC (multi-level cell) NAND Flash memory chips. Aptly dubbed Genesis, the un-priced series is, at present, composed of two models, one with 200GB of storage and the other with a capacity of 400GB. All in all, these newcomers promise to deliver the same level of reliability as SLC (single-level cell) NAND. To achieve this, Anobit implemented its patented Memory Signal Processing (MSP) technology, which extends endurance of MLC from 3,000 read/write cycles to over 50,000.

Unlike most of the other companies that recently released SSDs, Anobit didn't use the SandForce controller. Instead, it implemented its own solution. The end result was a pair of devices capable of 20,000 IOPS for random writing and 30,000 for random reading. As for sustained data rates, the Genesis duo reach 220MB/s and 180MB/s, respectively, when reading and writing.

"There's something of a reliability-and-cost 'Catch 22' obstructing the wider adoption of solid state storage in enterprises; the usage viability of enterprise SSDs is inextricably linked to the physical viability of their underlying NAND. While MLC NAND offers economics that can at least approach that of spinning storage, its endurance limits are still often a concern to SSD vendors and users alike," said Mark Peters, Senior Analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. "Anobit's approach is to undo that Catch 22 by enabling enterprise-grade endurance to be delivered from low-cost commercial NAND, something that could help to accelerate the adoption of SSDs in datacenters, and something that positions Anobit well in the market."