14 DAY TRIAL // Solid-state drives may still be a lot more expensive than hard disk drive units, but they are getting better because the NAND chips they are made of are getting cheaper. That's why Transcend has high hopes from 2014.
Well, maybe “hopes” isn't the correct word. After all, lower SSD prices means less revenue made per shipment of device.
Then again, the price cuts will come as a result of lower-price NAND Flash memory chips, as their manufacturing costs have been going down the smaller the manufacturing process has gotten.
So, if Transcend continues to add VAT the same way it's always been doing, or at least in the same proportion compared to the manufacturing cost, it could get away with the same profit margin, maybe even a higher one.
Anyway, Transcend chairman Peter Shu is of the opinion that SSD sales will grow this year, even in the case of those high-end 256 GB drives (because their average price might drop to under $100 / €100).
All in all, SSDs should become 20-30% cheaper than last year, which is significant. Doubly so when you factor in the fact that they dropped in price 30% in 2013.
In anticipation of higher sales, Transcend increased its production to 100,000 units per month, 50% of which are industrial and consumer models.
Industrial because SSDs will always have an endurance advantage over HDDs (since they have no moving parts, unlike the latter).
Consumer because that's where the money will be now that high prices won't be deterring prospective buyers from acquiring a Flash-based storage device to use as boot drive.
The average 256 GB SSD price hasn't fallen to under a hundred dollars/euro though, so don't rush out to buy a drive just yet.
Besides, you don't need a boot drive with more than 120 GB anyway. Even a 60 GB unit is sufficient if you only intend to keep Windows on it.
If you're a gamer that wants everything to run super-fast, though, you'll want to keep both eyes out just in case. Seeing as how Transcend is so optimistic, the company may just be the first to release that sub-$100 256 GB drive.
It could be this month, it could be the next, or it could be in December, but it will definitely be this year. Unless some disaster strikes chip production facilities and drives prices up by means of shortages, but hopefully that won't happen.