SMART Modular Technologies (SMOD)

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SMART Modular Technologies Releases XceedIOPS2(TM) SSD: Fastest SATA Drive Equipped With Enterprise-Grade Flash

SMART's Second-Generation of Enterprise SSDs Combines High Performance and High Reliability in a Single Design

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/SMART-Modular-Technologies-iw-3233260022.html?x=0&.v=1

Press Release Source: SMART Modular Technologies On Monday April 4, 2011, 9:00 am EDT

NEWARK, CA--(Marketwire - 04/04/11) - SMART Modular Technologies (WWH), Inc. ("SMART" or the "Company") (NASDAQ:SMOD - News), a leading independent manufacturer of solid state storage products and memory modules, today announced the release of its second generation of XceedIOPS™ serial ATA (SATA) solid state drives (SSDs). Leveraging state-of-the-art functions and proprietary technologies, the XceedIOPS2 SATA SSD is available in 1.8" and 2.5" form factors for enterprise storage and server systems.

"Data center applications, cloud computing, and servers are increasingly looking toward SSDs based on multi-level cell (MLC) flash to satisfy the demands of enterprise economically," said Jeff Janukowicz, Research Manager for Solid State Storage Technologies at IDC. "Enterprise SSDs using MLC NAND flash with advanced performance and state-of-the-art controller technologies, such as SMART's new XceedIOPS2 SATA SSD, are necessary to make possible 170% 2009 to 2014 CAGR revenue growth for MLC based enterprise SSDs."

Equipped with the latest SandForce® SF-2000 series SSD processor and a 6Gb/s SATA interface, the XceedIOPS2 enterprise-class SSD is optimized for use in high-volume virtualized storage applications. Available in densities from 50 to 400 GB, the new XceedIOPS2 SATA SSD delivers high random performance of 60K IOPS and sequential performance of 520MB/s. The available 1.8" form factor addresses applications with restricted real estate, such as blade servers and other high-density computing systems.

"SandForce is working closely with SMART to accelerate adoption of SSD solutions in enterprise storage applications by using more cost-effective flash technology while still maintaining the high reliability required for this market," said Thad Omura, Vice President Marketing of SandForce. "Products like the XceedIOPS2 SATA SSD are a perfect match for the extreme demands of enterprise storage and server systems."

Designed to deliver superior reliability, the XceedIOPS2 SATA SSDs are manufactured using the latest enterprise-grade multi-level cell (E-MLC) NAND flash technology, which offers specified endurance of 30,000 program/erase (P/E) cycles. In addition, the new SSDs support AES-256 encryption and are Trusted Computing Group (TCG) enterprise compliant. To ensure consistent, reliable performance and data protection, the XceedIOPS2 SATA SSDs are equipped with extensive error-correction and detection, multi-level data-path and code protection, data-fail recovery, thermal management, advanced management features, and SMART's proprietary PowerGuard™ technology. This unique combination of features results in the industry's highest reliability in the field, which is backed by a five-year warranty.

"The XceedIOPS2 SATA SSD from SMART leverages industry-leading technologies proven to meet the requirements of Tier-1 enterprise applications," said John Scaramuzzo, Senior Vice President and General Manager of SMART's Storage Business Unit. "This second generation product incorporates advances in both established and proprietary technologies, resulting in a highly reliable design that delivers best-of-breed SSD cost and performance for the enterprise."

Optimized to deliver industry-leading reliability at a cost-effective price point, the XceedIOPS2 SATA SSDs are available now in engineering samples for select customers. A version using commercial MLC flash is available for entry-level server environments. SMART is demonstrating its new XceedIOPS2 2.5" SATA SSD at Storage Networking World (Santa Clara, CA), booth #417, from April 4-7 2011. For additional information on SMART's XceedIOPS2 SSDs and other memory storage products, visit www.smartm.com.