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| Samsung’s 16 GB flash SSD. (LetsGoDigital) |
The South Korean electronics company Samsung has announced the successful development of a 32 GB solid-state drive (SSD), weighing half as much as a traditional hard disk drive (HDD), with data reading speeds three times faster and writing speeds 1.5 times faster, thanks to NAND flash technology.
This new data storage medium is designed for laptops, enabling faster information processing while consuming less power compared to conventional hard drives. The product operates quietly due to the absence of motors and other noisy components.
Samsung also unveiled a laptop equipped with the SSD during their annual mobile solutions conference in Taipei on March 21. This marks the first time that NAND flash chips, previously used in cameras, music players, and mobile phones, have been integrated into laptops.
“Flash memory will soon replace hard drives in all mobile computing applications“, Samsung asserted. The company estimates that by 2008, laptops using SSDs will account for 30% of the global laptop market. At that time, the price of the 32 GB SSD is expected to decrease from the current $500 to $200. Additionally, SSD revenue is projected to grow significantly from $540 million in 2006 to $4.5 billion by 2010.
