14 DAY TRIAL // HighPoint Technologies has just announced a PCI Express add-on card that transforms any HDD and SSD combo into a hybrid drive, speeding the operation of the system by moving frequently accessed files to the solid state disk while the HDD will be used primarily for storage.
The RocketHybrid HBA cards are based on Marvell's SATA 6Gb/s 88SE9130 controller that was announced during the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show and features the company's HyperDuo technology.
Thanks to HyperDuo, the operating system will see both drives as a single logical unit, that can be accessed, managed and backed-up just like a regular drive.
In addition, speed will be dramatically increased as Marvell's controller automatically moves performance critical files on the SSD, less frequently accessed data remaining on the hard drive.
This way, users get the high transfer rates associated with an SSD as well as the storage capacity of an HDD.
More advanced users will have the option of moving whatever files they desire on the SSD via a software utility developed by Marvell, the same tool allowing for a special mode to be enabled which allows the duplication of critical data.
Moving back to HighPoint's add-on card, this is available in two different versions, the RocketHybrid 1220 and the RocketHybrid 1222.
The only difference between the two is the type of ports installed, as the 1220 features two internal SATA ports while the latter provides two eSATA connectors for use with external disk enclosures.
Both adapters feature a low-profile PCB, install inside an empty PCI Express x1 slot (2.0 or 1.0), and are recognized by the motherboard BIOS as an AHCI device allowing users to boot their operating systems off it.
No details regarding pricing were revealed at this time, but the HighPoint's HBA cards are scheduled to become available this February.