Plextor Completes Development of M3S SSD

Solid state drives are still expensive, but they sell anyway, so Plextor decided to launch a new line of such storage units, dubbed M3S.

Like most every other desktop and notebook SSD, the M3S have the 2.5-inch form factor.

Also, in order to make the best of the performance potential of flash memory, the SATA III interface is utilized (SATA 6.0 Gbps).

This allows for Marvell’s server-grade controller to push read speed to 525 MB/s and write data at 445 MB/s.

Those are the maximum numbers for the largest-capacity model, whose capacity is of 512 GB and which has 256 GB and 128 GB siblings.

Also, when no major task is being carried out, the 1.8V power mode will reduce energy consumption even further than the already considerable advantage that NAND Flash chips (Toshiba, 24nm in this case) have by nature.

Moving along, when making the M3S SSDs, Plextor had to wrestle with their tendency to lose performance over time, as they become more fragmented.

The company's solution was the True Speed technology, which should prevent this degradation, supposedly even better than TRIM, or at least as well.

Other specifications include random read/write speeds of up to 70,000 / 65,000 IOPS and a firmware that has, besides True Speed, Bad Block Management, Global Wear Leveling, and Instant Restore technologies.

“The M3S has all of the key components Plextor strives for – fast performance, the latest technology, reliability, and quality. It’s not just speed that matters to Plextor, but high performance that can be sustained after years of intensive use and continuous operation.” said Christine Hsing, marketing manager.

Plextor sells the drives along with 3.5-inch mounting brackets, as they can't really be housed in many desktop cases without one.

The prices are of $199.99 / 148 Euro (128 GB) and $349.99 / 259 Euro (256 GB) and $699.99 / 518 Euro (512 GB) and shipments will start this month or, for the 512 GB unit, in the first quarter of next year (2012).