SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- SATA IO Working Group Booth # 425, IDF 2009 -- Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. (TAEC), a U.S. marketing arm of Toshiba Corporation for electronic components, today announced a series of solid state drive (SSD) modules using the latest generation Toshiba 32nm MLC NAND flash, at Intel Developers Forum 2009. The Toshiba SG2 modules are offered in two types, one based on the new low-profile mini-SATA (mSATA) interface standard and the other a Half-Slim type, which uses a SATA connector. The drives are available in 30GB(1) and 62GB modules. Volume production will start in October.

The two types of modules, each smaller than a business card, provide greater design flexibility and save space and cost compared to SSDs with hard disk drive form factors and cases. The 62GB module is only one seventh the volume and one eighth the weight of a 2.5-inch form factor SSD, and consumes half the power. With interface speeds up to 3 gigabits per second (Gb/s)(2), a maximum sequential read speed of 180 megabytes per second (MBps)(3,4) and a maximum sequential write speed of 70MBps,(3,4) the modules will help bring the performance advantages of SSDs to notebooks, portable electronics and embedded systems. An advanced controller features a translation mode, which enables any drive configuration, and the drive supports 28-bit LBA (Logical Block Address) mode commands and 48-bit LBA mode commands. Multi-word DMA, Ultra-DMA modes and Advanced PIO commands are supported. The drives have an optional capability for secure Full Disk Encryption (FDE) backup that prevents unauthorized data access.

Industry analyst IDC(5) expects mini-notebook shipments to grow at an annual average of around 15% from 2009 to 2013, and, PC manufacturers are looking for SSDs that combine small size with higher storage capacities and advanced performance.

"Initial adoption of most SATA solid state drives has followed the HDD form factor. Our latest 32nm mSATA and Half-Slim case-less modules enable hardware designers to add the performance and reliability advantages of a solid state drive in a smaller, footprint for notebooks, portable electronics and other embedded storage applications," said Scott Nelson, VP Memory, TAEC.

The mSATA modules leverage the speed and reliability of the popular SATA interface, in a small form factor module, 1.18 in. x 0.19 in. x 2 in. (30mm x 4.75mm x 50.95mm) that connects to the system board using the low profile SATA connector. Adaptive Power Mode and SATA Device Initiated Power Management typically reduce power consumption to less than half of the Read power level when the device is in idle, standby or sleep mode.

The Half-Slim SATA II modules feature a SATA connector, measure 1.18 in. x 0.19 in. x 2 in. (54mm x 4 mm x 39mm). The Half-Slim SATA II modules have the same SATA connector used on 2.5-inch HDD and SDD form factors. Thus, this smaller form factor can easily be used in applications designed to use 2.5-inch storage form factors. The Half Slim is also JEDEC compliant.

Product specification

                 Half-Slim Serial ATA-2        Mini Serial ATA-2 Module
                 Module                        mSATA

    Capacity     30GB           62GB           30 GB          62GB
                 THNSxB030GMSJ  THNSxB062GMSJ  THNSxB030GMCJ  THNSxB062GMCJ

    Size (mm)    54 mm x 4mm x 39mm            30mm x 4.75mm x 50.95mm

    Mass         9g (Typ.)                     9g (Typ.)

    Interface    Serial ATA-2 (3Gbps)(2)

    Voltage      5V                            3.3V

    Reading
     Speed       Maximum speed 180MBps (sequential mode)

    Writing
     Speed       Maximum speed at 70MBps (sequential mode)

    Power        Read: 1.3W (Typ.)
     Consumption Write: 1.8W (Typ.)
                 Idle/Standby/Sleep: 65mW (Typ.)

    Temperature  0 to 70 degrees Celsius

    MTTF(6)      1 million hours

    Shock        Operating and non-operating, 1500G

About Toshiba Corp. and TAEC

Through proven commitment, lasting relationships and advanced, reliable electronic components, Toshiba enables its customers to create market-leading designs. Toshiba is the heartbeat within product breakthroughs from OEMs, ODMs, CMs, distributors and fabless chip companies worldwide. A committed electronic components leader, Toshiba designs and manufactures high-quality flash memory-based storage solutions, discrete devices, displays, advanced materials, medical tubes, custom SoCs/ASICs, digital multimedia and imaging products, microcontrollers and wireless components that make possible today's leading cell phones, MP3 players, cameras, medical devices, automotive electronics and more.

Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. is an independent operating company owned by Toshiba America, Inc., a subsidiary of Toshiba Corporation, Japan's largest semiconductor manufacturer and the world's third largest semiconductor manufacturer (Gartner, 2008 WW Semiconductor Revenue, April 2009). For additional company and product information, please visit http://www.toshiba.com/taec/. For more information regarding Toshiba's SSDs, visit: www.ssdfacts.toshiba.com or follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/ToshibaSSD.

Information in this press release, including product pricing and specifications, content of services and contact information, is current and believed to be accurate on the date of the announcement, but is subject to change without prior notice. Technical and application information contained here is subject to the most recent applicable Toshiba product specifications. In developing designs, please ensure that Toshiba products are used within specified operating ranges as set forth in the most recent Toshiba product specifications and the information set forth in Toshiba's "Handling Guide for Semiconductor Devices," or "Toshiba Semiconductor Reliability Handbook." This information is available at www.chips.toshiba.com, or from your TAEC representative.

(1) When used herein in relation to memory density, gigabyte and/or GB means 1,024x1,024x1,024 = 1,073,741,824 bytes. Usable capacity may be less. For details, please refer to specifications.

(2) For purposes of measuring read and write speed in this context, 1 Gigabit or Gb = 1,000,000,000 bits. Read and write speed may vary depending on the controller, read and write conditions, such as file sizes you read and/or write.

(3) Published read and write speed specifications. Actual read and write speeds may vary depending on the system and application.

(4) For purposes of measuring read and write speed in this context, 1 Megabyte or MB = 1,000,000 bytes. Read and write speed may vary depending on the controller, read and write conditions, such as file sizes you read and/or write.

(5) IDC, "WW Quarterly PC Forecast," September 2009.

(6) The MTTF (Mean Time to Failure) is not a guarantee or estimate of product life; it is a statistical value related to mean failure rates for a large number of products which may not accurately reflect actual operation. Actual operating life of the product may not resemble the MTTF.

SOURCE Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc.

Web site: http://www.toshiba.com/taec/