I-O Data Details New USB 3.0 SSD

I-O Data, Maker of multiple IT product types, has been revealed to have put together a new series of solid state drives, one that relies on the high data rates achievable via the SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface standard.

The solid state drive industry is a field that has progressed at a rapid rate, what with both consumers and the enterprise market finding them worthwhile.

This goes for both 'standard' models and mobile units that utilize the Universal Serial Bus standard.

Speaking of USB, it is the latest iteration, otherwise known as the SuperSpeed USB 3.0 specification, that has been used in I-O Data's newest product.

Users might remember that, not long ago, this company introduced a number of internal SSDs that stuck to the SATA II (3 Gbps) interface instead of lunging for the SATA III (6 Gbps).

Now that it has also designed a line of external, portable units, the company did not enact the same principle of staying at lower yet affordable data speeds.

Instead, it went all the way at threw in the full benefits of the USB 3.0 connection, leading to read and write speeds of up to 220 MB/s and 180 MB/s, respectively.

The series is named GH-SSDE-U3A and is composed of three members, their capacities being 64 GB, 128 GB and 256 GB.

All of them are identical in size, measuring 79 (W) x 137.5 (D) x 12.5 (H) mm, and the same goes for the weight of 141 grams.

Finally, the trio are constructed out of MLC (multi-level cell) NAND Flash memory chips and are enclosed in solid metal, colored black.

Regrettably, even though the one-year warranty was among the details made available, the prices were kept under wraps. Fortunately, with availability scheduled for the end of the month (July, 2011), in Japan at least, this final mystery will be unraveled then.