FMS: Western Digital launches fast PCIe SSDs with low power consumption
WDC showed two M.2 SSDs with PCIe 5.0, which will probably be released under the WD_Black label. We will still have to wait for the 4 TB microSD card.
To demonstrate the power consumption, WDC has soldered thick cables to the SSD. The quality of the image suffers due to the Plexiglas in between.
(Image: c't)
Western Digital showed two new SSDs in a demo at the FMS. The as yet unnamed models are expected to come onto the market in around six months, WDC manager Eric Spanneut told us. In the demo, the faster model achieved almost 15 GByte/s when reading and only required 6.5 watts. When accessing random addresses, it achieved more than 2 million IOPS, which is significantly higher than the values achieved by current 5.0 SSDs. However, WDC did not specify whether the configuration of the SSD shown would correspond to the later sales model. What is certain is that it will work with an 8-channel controller and DRAM.
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WDC also showed a mainstream SSD with PCIe 5.0, which is expected to have a maximum storage capacity of 2 TByte, no DRAM support and only four NAND channels, but works with less power consumption. The display showed exactly 5 watts, with the SSD achieving around 10.5 GByte/s when reading.
Both SSDs will probably be released under the WD_Black label, but further details are not yet available.
MicroSD card with 4 TByte: Please wait
WDC also showed SD and MicroSD cards with unprecedented capacity at the stand: 4 TByte in the MicoSD card, 8 TByte in the SD card. However, it is still unclear when or even if these models will be launched on the market: They are not even on the WDC roadmap yet. WDC announced a 4 TByte SD card a few months ago, but this is not yet available either.
The largest MicroSD cards currently available have a capacity of 2 TByte, and WDC's production partner Kioxia has one. However, WDC has not yet followed suit under its own brand. (ll)
