SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) has announced a new Ultra SSD line of solid state drives with capacities of 60GB, 120GB and 240GB. Though the Ultra SSD offers a relatively good performance of 280Mbps read and 270Mbps write using multi-level cell NAND flash memory, the use of a SATA2 interface means that it lags one generation behind the latest generation of SSDs on the market. Intel's latest 510 Series SSD for example, comes with a SATA3 interface with up to 500Mbps read speeds.

SanDisk appears aware of this, and is targeting the Ultra SSD at the budget crowd with a starting price of $129.99 (60GB), $219.99 (120GB) and $449.99 (240GB). In addition, the company is marketing the drive to retail consumers instead of selling them directly to computer makers, positioning the Ultra SSD family at upgraders looking to enhance the performance of older systems. Having upgraded my laptop with an SSD two years ago, I can attest to the fact that an SSD can add a substantial performance boost to an older system.

For more:
- check out this article at Storage Review
- check out this article at Computerworld

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