April 30th, 2012 by Josh Linden
Western Digital Scorpio Blue Review - 500GB 7mm (WD5000LPVT)
Shrinking dimensions in the ultrathin computing market have threatened to push hard drives to the side in favor of higher performing and more battery friendly SSDs. At only 7mm high and featuring a new single-platter design, Western Digital's updated Scorpio Blue hard drive line is engineered for maximum mobile appeal for those who still need bulk storage in their ultrathin devices.
April 26th, 2012 by Andrew Baxter
Lenovo IdeaPad Y480 SSD Upgrade Review
We recently reviewed the new Intel SSD 330 and awarded it an Editor’s Choice for its combination of capable performance and value. The Intel 330 120GB flavor can be had for only $150 at retailers, putting it within reach of many consumer buyers looking to boost the performance of a laptop that might be hobbled by a slow hard drive. It just so happens we have another one of Intel’s latest technologies in house, a laptop equipped with the new Core i7-3610QM “Ivy Bridge” family processor. This Core i7 processor, housed inside the new Lenovo IdeaPad Y480, offers incredible processing performance but the laptop itself is still hobbled with a slow 5400RPM hard drive. Fortunately the Y480 is easy to upgrade, so we took the liberty of stuffing the Intel 330 inside it to see just how much of a performance boost resulted.
April 25th, 2012 by Josh Linden
Seagate GoFlex Desk Thunderbolt Adapter Review
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The GoFlex Desk Thunderbolt Adapter stakes a Thunderbolt claim for Seagate in the external desktop storage market. Intel and Apple are betting that consumers will adopt Thunderbolt technology for rapid external storage, and the GoFlex Desk Thunderbolt Adapter shows that other manufacturers are playing along. Seagate's GoFlex Desk Thunderbolt Adapter is an option for those who want Thunderbolt access to large external hard drives.
April 20th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Intel SSD 330 Review
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Intel was one of the last manufacturers to adopt SandForce controllers for their enthusiast grade SSD 520, but apparently they seem to be doing well enough with it to commit to a second line of SandForce-based SSDs with the Intel SSD 330 family. The SSD 330 uses the same controller as the 520 does, the core differentiation being the a change in NAND layout from the SSD 520 to SSD 330 and different firmware. The Intel SSD 330 makes use of fewer memory channels, resulting in slower write speeds in certain scenarios. Such diversification is common in the client SSD space as manufacturers look for ways to provide different levels of performance and pricing for broader market appeal.
April 16th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Western Digital VelociRaptor 1TB Review
While SSDs get all the attention when it comes to high-performance storage, the venerable platter-based alternatives aren't dead yet. Western Digital is out to prove that hard drives can still create substantial performance under the right conditions, with capacity points that would make most SSD users envious. The new WD VelociRaptor is a 10,000 RPM hard drive with enlarged 1TB total capacity, up from 600GB in the prior model. The goal is to provide enterprise-grade drive reliability for workstation users and creative professionals who want a high-performance, high-capacity drive, without the expense of SSDs.
April 13th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Western Digital My Book Thunderbolt Duo Review
Western Digital has long made excellent external hard drive solutions that appeal to creative types and others who want large capacity local drive access with the fastest interface available. From a Mac perspective, the current interface of choice for speed is Thunderbolt. But to this point we haven't seen much in the way of direct attached storage where Thunderbolt has proven a worth investment for the mainstream user. WD's hoping to change our perspective on that with the My Book Thunderbolt Duo, a two-drive external which supports up to six Thunderbolt Duos daisy-chained together.
April 10th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Micron RealSSD C400 mSATA SSD Review
Micron has released a new version of their RealSSD C400 SSD in an mSATA form factor. While most consumers aren't familiar with the C400 line, it closely mirrors the performance and design of the client-facing Crucial m4. The C400 mSATA SSD will be offered through Micron's OEM partners and will generally be found in the ultrathin compute space where mSATA SSDs are finding great strength in caching and in some cases even as primary storage. The C400 mSATA SSD leverages a SATA 6Gb/s interface, 25nm Micron NAND and a Marvell 9174 controller.
April 10th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Kingston HyperX 3K SSD Review
Kingston has launched the HyperX 3K SSD, a new entry in their enthusiast line of client SSDs. The twist with the HyperX 3K compared to its HyperX bigger brother is a simple NAND change. While they both use high-quality 25nm Intel MLC NAND, the 3K is rated for 3,000 P/E cycles where the HyperX is 5,000. The difference in practical terms is modest, most consumers won't ever tax the write life of an SSD in the five year effective life of the drive. Even better then that Kingston offers the HyperX 3K SSD for those who want the great performance the HyperX line provides, with a lower price.
April 8th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Crucial Adrenaline Caching SSD Review
The Adrenaline Caching SSD solution is Crucial's effort to leverage their m4 SSD pedigree to make application acceleration for consumers easy and affordable. Based around the Marvell controller and SATA 6Gb/s interface, the 50GB caching SSD gives consumers an interesting blend of performance, reliability and Micron home-grown NAND in an easy to install caching platform based on NVELO's Dataplex software.
April 7th, 2012 by Kevin OBrien
Western Digital My Passport Studio Review (2TB)
WD has been in rapid fire mode this year when it comes to refreshing and bumping capacities on their popular line of My Passport and My Passport Studio portable hard drives. The newly increased in capacity (and girth) My Passport Studio picks up on the new design deployed earlier this year in the 1TB My Passport Studio. The 2TB portable drive uses the same all metal body that is both stylish and functional and provides users with dual FireWire 800 ports and a single USB 2.0 port for compatibility.
