Transcend launches MSA720 mSATA SSD

Transcend Information, Inc., a worldwide leader in storage and multimedia products has announced the launch of its advanced MSA720 SATA III 6GB/s mSATA solid state drive (SSD). The new MSA720 packs all the benefits of SATA III 6GB/s performance and SSD reliability into an ultra-small design, to offer the ideal solution for space-restricted embedded systems that use the mini-PCIe (mSATA) interface. Supporting the next-generation SATA III 6GB/s standard and built around a powerful SandForce SF2281 controller, the MSA720 delivers fast sequential transfer speeds up to 560 MB/s read and 530 MB/s write, and impressive 4K random file writes up to 91,000 IOPS. This performance is particularly beneficial in dual-drive hybrid systems, where a large capacity hard drive is used for storing data, while the MSA720 acts as a cache drive to accelerate operating system boot-up time. There’re no pricing details at the moment, since it’s targeted mostly towards business and enterprises.

Transcend's new mSSD

Only one-eighth the size of a standard 2.5-inch SSD and weighing just seven grams, the MSA720 is perfect for use in thin-and-light portable devices, such as Ultrabooks, notebooks, and tablet PCs. Moreover, the use of Toggle-mode MLC NAND flash chips provide excellent shock and vibration resistance to compact industrial applications, such as slim servers and medical equipment, where sustained performance and reliability are a major concern. Support for S.M.A.R.T., TRIM and NCQ functions further increase the long-term health and efficiency of the SSD.

To prevent unauthorized access to data, the MSA720 features hardware-based 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) protection that automatically encrypts all data written to the SSD in real time, with no reduction in performance. In addition, the MSA720 uses DuraWrite flash endurance enhancement to ensure reliability, data retention, and power handling. The MSA720 is available in 64GB and 128GB capacities, and backed by a three-year limited warranty.