sata | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net KitGuru.net - Tech News | Hardware News | Hardware Reviews | IOS | Mobile | Gaming | Graphics Cards Tue, 26 Mar 2024 11:03:44 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://www.kitguru.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-KITGURU-Light-Background-SQUARE2-32x32.png sata | KitGuru https://www.kitguru.net 32 32 EVGA RMA blunder sees customer lose 22TB of storage drives https://www.kitguru.net/components/power-supplies/matthew-wilson/evga-rma-blunder-sees-customer-lose-22tb-of-storage-drives/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/power-supplies/matthew-wilson/evga-rma-blunder-sees-customer-lose-22tb-of-storage-drives/#respond Mon, 25 Mar 2024 16:45:26 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=652605 While EVGA may not be in the graphics card market anymore, the company is still ticking with power supplies, with some units being very popular in the US. Unfortunately, EVGA is making headlines this week for the wrong reasons, after an RMA customer had 22TB worth of SATA drives killed by a replaced power supply. …

The post EVGA RMA blunder sees customer lose 22TB of storage drives first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
While EVGA may not be in the graphics card market anymore, the company is still ticking with power supplies, with some units being very popular in the US. Unfortunately, EVGA is making headlines this week for the wrong reasons, after an RMA customer had 22TB worth of SATA drives killed by a replaced power supply.

The power supply is the heart of your PC, supplying power to all critical components. This is the exact reason we always advise on picking up a reputable unit, backed by high efficiency certification and strong reviews. Unfortunately, this isn't always a recipe for success though. Over on Reddit, a user has reported that an RMA'd EVGA power supply has killed off 22TB worth of storage.

The issue begins when the user's EVGA GQ1000W power supply exhibited coil whine, so EVGA had them hand on to their modular cables and reclaimed the power supply. The Redditor was then sent back an ‘identical' unit, but was not informed that the replacement PSU had new internal pinouts. As a result, 12V of power was sent to the SATA drives through older 5V cables, essentially frying all of the connected drives.

When contacting EVGA support, a customer service representative did send out a new batch of cables compatible with the pinouts from the newer version of this PSU, but the damage was already done and the drives were defunct.

As spotted by Tom's Hardware, EVGA did not offer to replace the impacted drives, despite this blunder. If important information had been passed on properly, this entire situation could have been avoided, but due to lapses in communication, this user is now out of an expensive collection of drives and recovering whatever data was on them may not be possible.

Fortunately, this is a rare issue and isn't the sort of thing we hear about very often. One thing is for sure though, more care needs to be taken in the PSU RMA process to ensure customers have the right cables when getting a replacement unit, and we should all be paying a little more attention to our modular cables and their compatibility with future power supplies.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Has anything like this ever happened to you when replacing a modular power supply?

The post EVGA RMA blunder sees customer lose 22TB of storage drives first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/power-supplies/matthew-wilson/evga-rma-blunder-sees-customer-lose-22tb-of-storage-drives/feed/ 0
Greenliant samples new line of robust industrial SATA SSDs https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/james-dawson/greenliant-samples-new-line-of-robust-industrial-sata-ssds/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/james-dawson/greenliant-samples-new-line-of-robust-industrial-sata-ssds/#respond Sat, 28 Dec 2019 10:06:18 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=443833 Industrial enterprise SSD’s are often subject to harsh environments with devices expected to operate under extreme temperatures. In these situations, a reliable and robust design is required and that is exactly the thought behind a new range of enterprise SSD’s from Greenliant. Greenliant is sampling a new range of enterprise industrial SATA 2.5” SSDs. The …

The post Greenliant samples new line of robust industrial SATA SSDs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Industrial enterprise SSD’s are often subject to harsh environments with devices expected to operate under extreme temperatures. In these situations, a reliable and robust design is required and that is exactly the thought behind a new range of enterprise SSD’s from Greenliant.

Greenliant is sampling a new range of enterprise industrial SATA 2.5” SSDs. The EnduroSLC Industrial Enterprise EX series from Greenliant is designed for primary storage applications requiring high performance under extreme temperatures in harsh environments, to provide reliability for businesses and industries.

The new range of enterprise SSDs use Greenlaint’s EnduroSLC technology to offer robust data retention and the highest system-level lifetime endurance of 30 drives writes per day for five years. The new EnduroSLC Industrial Enterprise EX series from Greenliant is available in capacities from 800 GB up to 1.92 TB and include On-Chip Adaptive RAID to improve SSD reliability, with Power Interrupt Data Protection helping to prevent data loss and corruption during power failures.

“With high reliability and outstanding quality of service, Greenliant’s industrial enterprise storage products are ideal for mission critical, I/O intensive applications in aerospace, defense, transportation, energy and power, communications and industrial control.” said Xuanhui Li, Vice President of Business Development, Datacenter Products, Greenliant.

Greenliant  EnduroSLC Industrial Enterprise EX SSDs are capable of operating in a temperature range of -40 to +85 degrees Celsius while keeping sensitive data secure with AES 256-bit encryption and crypto erase. Greenlaint has begun sampling of its G3200 Industrial Enterprise SSDs and expects to start shipping to customers in volume by the end of 2019.

Discuss on our Facebook page HERE.

KitGuru says: Greenliant’s new range of industrial SSDs certainly offer specifications for reliable operation in harsh environments. If you are interested in finding out more information, then head over to the official Greenliant product pages.

The post Greenliant samples new line of robust industrial SATA SSDs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/james-dawson/greenliant-samples-new-line-of-robust-industrial-sata-ssds/feed/ 0
Kingston KC600 SSD launches with 3D TLC NAND and up to 2TB capacity https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/kingston-kc600-ssd-launches-with-3d-tlc-nand-and-up-to-2tb-capacity/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/kingston-kc600-ssd-launches-with-3d-tlc-nand-and-up-to-2tb-capacity/#respond Mon, 21 Oct 2019 15:30:55 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=431014 While new form factors and higher speed SSDs have been dominating much of the news cycle this year, there is still a big market for 2.5″ SATA SSDs. If you are looking to finally move on from that ageing high capacity HDD, then Kingston's new KC600 SSDs might be the perfect replacement. Today Kingston is …

The post Kingston KC600 SSD launches with 3D TLC NAND and up to 2TB capacity first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
While new form factors and higher speed SSDs have been dominating much of the news cycle this year, there is still a big market for 2.5″ SATA SSDs. If you are looking to finally move on from that ageing high capacity HDD, then Kingston's new KC600 SSDs might be the perfect replacement.

Today Kingston is launching the KC600 series SSD, a 2.5″ drive with a SATA 3.0 interface, 3D TLC NAND and up to 2TB of storage space. Security features are a big part of the package here too, with AES-XTS 256-bit hardware based encryption, or TCG Opal 2.0 and eDrive encryption.

The Kingston KC600 SSD will be available in capacities of 256GB, 512GB, 1TB and 2TB with read/write speeds up to 550/520MB/s. The first two are shipping starting this week, while the 1TB and 2TB drives will take a little longer to hit store shelves. For now, we don't have pricing information but as soon as stock lands in the UK, we shall be able to update.

When availability does come to retail, the KC600 will be sold as a standalone SSD, or with a kit for easy desktop or laptop installation.

KitGuru Says: Are any of you looking to pick up a new SSD before the end of the year?

The post Kingston KC600 SSD launches with 3D TLC NAND and up to 2TB capacity first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/kingston-kc600-ssd-launches-with-3d-tlc-nand-and-up-to-2tb-capacity/feed/ 0
The best SSDs on Amazon Prime Day https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/the-best-ssds-on-amazon-prime-day/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/the-best-ssds-on-amazon-prime-day/#respond Tue, 16 Jul 2019 14:55:36 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=418200 Amazon Prime Day has officially kicked off today and there are already some excellent deals starting to show up. If you are looking for a PC gaming upgrade, then today would be a good day to start shopping around. In this post, we break down the best SSDs currently discounted, including SATA and M.2 versions …

The post The best SSDs on Amazon Prime Day first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Amazon Prime Day has officially kicked off today and there are already some excellent deals starting to show up. If you are looking for a PC gaming upgrade, then today would be a good day to start shopping around. In this post, we break down the best SSDs currently discounted, including SATA and M.2 versions in capacities up to 2TB! 

 

We will start off with Samsung and WD. Today's Prime Day deals see the Samsung 860 EVO 1TB Sata SSD at 62 percent off, bringing the price down to just £99.99. Since this is a Sata SSD, you will be getting a typical read speed of 550MB/s, which is solid for the money. If you are after a speedier M.2 SSD, then the Western Digital SN750 NVMe SSD is on sale today, you can get a 500GB version with transfer speeds of up to 3470MB/s for £105.

While these aren't strictly Prime Day deals, Crucial and Corsair also have some sensibly priced SSDs available right now. The Crucial MX 500 for instance is available in 500GB form for just £60, 1TB for £100 or 2TB for £200. On the Corsair side of things, you can get an M.2 MP300 240GB SSD for £44, a 480GB for £74 or a 960GB version for £145. Since these are all M.2 drives, there is a speed advantage over SATA, with read speeds of up to 1600MB/s.

KitGuru Says: There will be more deals coming up throughout the week so we'll have a few more updated round-ups as things progress. Tomorrow in particular should be an interesting day for PC hardware. Let us know if any of you end up picking something up! 

 

The post The best SSDs on Amazon Prime Day first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/the-best-ssds-on-amazon-prime-day/feed/ 0
Kick off 2019 with an SSD upgrade! (closed) https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/competitions/matthew-wilson/kick-off-2019-with-an-ssd-upgrade/ https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/competitions/matthew-wilson/kick-off-2019-with-an-ssd-upgrade/#respond Thu, 31 Jan 2019 14:01:59 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=401916 There is just ONE day left to enter our competition with TOSHIBA. We are giving away TWO brand new SSDs- if you are in need of fresh and speedy storage, then get your entry in fast!

The post Kick off 2019 with an SSD upgrade! (closed) first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Update: This competition is now CLOSED. Thanks to everyone who entered. Our winners this time around are:

TR200 240GB- Kurt Dugmore

RC100 120GB- Rob De Vries

If you didn't win this time around, then keep an eye out as we'll have more giveaways coming up in the future. We currently have a new one running, which you can find HERE.

Did your New Years resolution involve finally upgrading to an SSD? If that's the case, then we would like to help you out with that. We have teamed up with Toshiba to give away two brand new SSDs! One lucky KitGuru reader will be getting a 240GB TR200 and another will be getting a 120GB RC100. 

We know that there are still many people without an SSD, even now in 2019. The performance benefits are well documented at this point, it is time to upgrade and we are going to help two lucky readers get there.

We reviewed the Toshiba TR200 SSD a while back, praising it for its performance. We have also reviewed the OCZ Toshiba RC100, which scored points for its tiny design and affordable price point. We are giving away one TR200 240GB and one RC100 120GB- two winners, one SSD each.

Entering this competition is simple. All you need to do is head over to THIS POST on our Facebook page and comment with a picture of your PC. We love seeing what hardware our readers are using!

This giveaway will be running from Friday the 25th of January until Friday the 1st of February. Two winners will be picked, messaged and announced then.

KitGuru Says: Kick off 2019 with an SSD upgrade! Good luck to all of our readers who enter and thanks to Toshiba for teaming up with us for this giveaway! 

The post Kick off 2019 with an SSD upgrade! (closed) first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/tech-news/competitions/matthew-wilson/kick-off-2019-with-an-ssd-upgrade/feed/ 0
Gigabyte pushes into the storage market with two SATA SSDs https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/damien-cox/gigabyte-pushes-into-the-storage-market-with-two-sata-ssds/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/damien-cox/gigabyte-pushes-into-the-storage-market-with-two-sata-ssds/#respond Tue, 15 May 2018 12:44:30 +0000 https://www.kitguru.net/?p=373387 Gigabyte is already well established in the motherboard and graphics card markets, making its latest expansion into the storage market a logical progression. Its first selection of UD Pro solid state drives will be available in 256GB and 512GB variants, with durability as the company’s primary focus over speed. Despite billing its UD Pro series …

The post Gigabyte pushes into the storage market with two SATA SSDs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Gigabyte is already well established in the motherboard and graphics card markets, making its latest expansion into the storage market a logical progression. Its first selection of UD Pro solid state drives will be available in 256GB and 512GB variants, with durability as the company’s primary focus over speed.

Despite billing its UD Pro series being billed as offering a “high quality, ultra-durable and superior product experience,” both models still manage to push 530MB/s sequential read, and 500MB/s sequential write speeds with ease. The company utilises Toshiba’s 3D TLC NAND Flash, a Phison PS3110 S10 drive controller with optimised firmware, and a DDR3L SDRAM cache to make this happen.

Both models are relatively on par with one another, however the 512GB variant noticeably pushes 80K random read IOPS and 75K random write IOPS instead of the smaller 256GB’s 70K random read IOPS and 40K random write IOPS thanks to its lower capacity.

It seems that Gigabyte is playing it safe with the introduction of two 2.5” SATA drives rather than opting for the newer M.2 form factor, with Jackson Hsu explaining that “SATA interface SSDs are mainstream and have a considerable development history.”

UK pricing has yet to be confirmed, however the 256GB model will set US buyers back by $68.99, while the 512GB variant pushes the cost up to $119.99. Set for launch later this week, both models come with a three-year or 200 terabytes written (TBW) warranty, whichever comes first.

KitGuru Says: While I tend not to push brand loyalty, instead favouring the best products out there based off their own merit, Gigabyte has managed to impress me time and time again. If the company does push into the M.2 market, sign me up. Are you interested in Gigabyte’s new SSDs?

The post Gigabyte pushes into the storage market with two SATA SSDs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/damien-cox/gigabyte-pushes-into-the-storage-market-with-two-sata-ssds/feed/ 0
Toshiba launches 1TB SSD using TLC flash https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/toshiba-launches-1tb-ssd-using-tlc-flash/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/toshiba-launches-1tb-ssd-using-tlc-flash/#comments Wed, 17 Feb 2016 21:27:51 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=284667 Toshiba has unveiled its 1TB SSD this week, built using 15nm cell lithography as well as TLC flash. The SG5 SSD comes in the form of a 2.5-inch drive as well as an M.2 drive, this is part of Toshiba's switch over from 19nm SSD devices to denser 15nm NAND variants, which will be phasing …

The post Toshiba launches 1TB SSD using TLC flash first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Toshiba has unveiled its 1TB SSD this week, built using 15nm cell lithography as well as TLC flash. The SG5 SSD comes in the form of a 2.5-inch drive as well as an M.2 drive, this is part of Toshiba's switch over from 19nm SSD devices to denser 15nm NAND variants, which will be phasing in over the next six to twelve months.

As Channel Register points out, these new SG5 M.2 and 2.5-inch drives are intended for consumer desktops and notebooks and will come in 128GB, 512GB and 1TB flavours using a 6Gbit/s SATA interface, with read speeds of up to 545 MB/s and write speeds of up to 388 MB/s.

10180-toshiba-ssd-sg5-1

Right now, IOPS numbers have not been released and we don't know how many hours the drive is rated to last for. However, we do know that the drive makes use of Swing-By Code error-correction technology, which is new so details on exactly what it does for drive performance aren't present just yet.

KitGuru Says: Toshiba is currently working on switching from 19nm to 15nm in its SSDs and this appears to be the first step. Do any of you own a Toshiba drive? 

The post Toshiba launches 1TB SSD using TLC flash first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/toshiba-launches-1tb-ssd-using-tlc-flash/feed/ 3
Sony is breaking in to the SSD market https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/sony-is-breaking-in-to-the-ssd-market/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/sony-is-breaking-in-to-the-ssd-market/#comments Fri, 12 Feb 2016 18:00:49 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=284014 We have seen plenty of companies flock to the SSD market in recent years and now there is a new member joining the ranks- Sony is set to break into the SSD market with its own line of SATA based drives. Technically, Sony has some experience with SSDs but it has usually limited its product to …

The post Sony is breaking in to the SSD market first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
We have seen plenty of companies flock to the SSD market in recent years and now there is a new member joining the ranks- Sony is set to break into the SSD market with its own line of SATA based drives.

Technically, Sony has some experience with SSDs but it has usually limited its product to Asian markets, so this marks its international debut, with the launch of the SLW-M series of drives, built in Japan. These SSDs use a SATA 6GB/s interface and come in two sizes, 240GB and 480GB.

19a

As far as performance goes, Sony's offerings advertise some decent numbers, with up to 560 MB/s read speeds and up to 530 MB/s write speeds, which puts it on par with plenty of other mainstream offerings currently floating around today.

Unfortunately, we don't know what controller or NAND flash Sony is using with these drives nor do we have word on pricing in the US or Europe. However, we do know that the drives come bundled with a license to Acronis True Image 2015 for those looking to clone their drive and switch to an SSD without losing data.

KitGuru Says: Sony has experience with SSDs in the Japanese market but this is the first time it has announced a drive for other countries. It will be interesting to see if Sony can compete with the likes of Samsung in this area. What brand do you use for SSDs? Would you consider going with Sony?

The post Sony is breaking in to the SSD market first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/matthew-wilson/sony-is-breaking-in-to-the-ssd-market/feed/ 25
Toshiba’s 2.5” hard disk drive with 3TB capacity finally hits retail https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshibas-2-5-hard-disk-drive-with-3tb-capacity-finally-hits-retail/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshibas-2-5-hard-disk-drive-with-3tb-capacity-finally-hits-retail/#comments Sat, 26 Sep 2015 09:19:48 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=269555 Toshiba Corp. has finally started to sell its 2.5” hard disk drive with extreme 3TB capacity in retail. The drive is not compatible with the vast majority of mobile personal computers, but can be installed into servers and network area storage (NAS) systems. The Toshiba MQ03ABB300 hard disk drive with 3TB capacity is based on …

The post Toshiba’s 2.5” hard disk drive with 3TB capacity finally hits retail first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Toshiba Corp. has finally started to sell its 2.5” hard disk drive with extreme 3TB capacity in retail. The drive is not compatible with the vast majority of mobile personal computers, but can be installed into servers and network area storage (NAS) systems.

The Toshiba MQ03ABB300 hard disk drive with 3TB capacity is based on four perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) 750GB platters produced by Showa Denko K.K. (SDK). The HDD features 5400rpm spindle speed, 16MB cache, Serial ATA-6Gb/s interface, 512e advanced format and 5.56ms average latency time. The drive is very power efficient for its capacity: it typical power consumption is 1.7W, whereas its idle power consumption is 0.7W.

toshiba_3tb_hdd

Since the hard disk drive relies on four magnetic platters, it is 15mm thick – two times thicker than mainstream 2.5”/7mm HDDs – and cannot be installed into contemporary laptops. Toshiba positions its MQ03ABB300 as an ultimate solution for various storage systems that rely on 2.5” HDDs.

Toshiba introduced the record 3TB 2.5” hard disk drive in January and started to sample it with select customers in May. At present, the drive is used inside Toshiba’s Canvio Connect II 3TB as well as Western Digital’s My Passport Ultra external HDDs. This week the 3TB hard drive finally showed up in Japanese retail and is available for ¥22800 ($189, £125), reports Akiba PC Hotline. It is noteworthy that the pure drive costs more than external storage solutions on its base, which are available for $150 – $170 in the U.S.

toshiba_3tb_hdd_1

Although Toshiba’s MQ03ABB300 continues to be a unique HDD, there is also a 4TB 2.5”/15mm HDD model from Seagate Technology (which are sold under Samsung brand). The latter is used inside portable external storage devices only, whereas Toshiba’s product can be “officially” used everywhere as the company designed it with NAS (and vibrations) in mind.

While the Toshiba 3TB 2.5” hard drive yet has to make it to the U.K., it is possible to buy Western Digital My Passport Ultra 3TB external HDD for £123.95 inc VAT. The Samsung M3 4TB external drive is available for £149.95 inc VAT.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: If you own a NAS that uses 2.5” drives and is compatible with 15mm HDDs, then it is now possible to upgrade its capacity with the Toshiba MQ03ABB300 hard disk drives. They are not exactly affordable, but they are unique and designed for NAS environments, which means enhanced durability and reliability.

The post Toshiba’s 2.5” hard disk drive with 3TB capacity finally hits retail first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshibas-2-5-hard-disk-drive-with-3tb-capacity-finally-hits-retail/feed/ 5
Toshiba launches largest-capacity 2.5-inch 3TB HDD https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshiba-launches-largest-capacity-2-5-inch-hdd-with-3tb-capacity/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshiba-launches-largest-capacity-2-5-inch-hdd-with-3tb-capacity/#comments Wed, 07 Jan 2015 23:52:49 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=229475 Toshiba Corp. has introduced the world’s highest-capacity 2.5” hard disk drive. The offering can hold 3TB of data and sets up a record, however, the drive may not be suitable for mainstream laptops. The Toshiba MQ03ABB300 hard disk drive with 3TB capacity is based on four perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) 750GB platters. Since the hard drive …

The post Toshiba launches largest-capacity 2.5-inch 3TB HDD first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Toshiba Corp. has introduced the world’s highest-capacity 2.5” hard disk drive. The offering can hold 3TB of data and sets up a record, however, the drive may not be suitable for mainstream laptops.

The Toshiba MQ03ABB300 hard disk drive with 3TB capacity is based on four perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) 750GB platters. Since the hard drive employs so many platters, it is 15mm thick, which means that it will not fit into the vast majority of laptops. According to Toshiba, the hard drive is designed for “personal external storage and space-constrained needs”.

The MQ03ABB300 hard disk drive features 5400rpm spindle speed, 16MB cache, Serial ATA-6Gb/s interface as well as 512e advanced formats. Toshiba declares 5.56ms average latency time. The drive typically consumes 1.7W and 0.7W in idle mode, which means that it is very power efficient for its capacity.

toshiba_al13_15k_hdd

The new hard drive for Toshiba is suitable for single and multi-drive HDD home and SMB storage enclosures by providing ample space for data storage. The power efficient design also makes it a suitable solution for USB connected external personal storage applications.

Sample shipments of the Toshiba MQ03ABB300 will begin in May. Pricing is unknown.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Western Digital also has technology to integrate four platters into a 2.5” hard drive. Therefore, expect WD to introduce a similar 3TB 2.5” HDD in the foreseeable future.

The post Toshiba launches largest-capacity 2.5-inch 3TB HDD first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshiba-launches-largest-capacity-2-5-inch-hdd-with-3tb-capacity/feed/ 4
Toshiba unveils enterprise 6TB HDD with 7200rpm spindle speed https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshiba-introduces-enterprise-class-6tb-hdd-with-7200rpm-spindle-speed/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshiba-introduces-enterprise-class-6tb-hdd-with-7200rpm-spindle-speed/#respond Thu, 18 Dec 2014 11:25:21 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=227051 Toshiba Corp. late on Thursday introduced its first 6TB enterprise-class hard disk drive with 7200rpm spindle speed. The new HDD will be a part of the MG04 family, which is specifically designed for midline and nearline business critical workloads, introduced earlier this year and features persistent write cache technology. Toshiba MG04 6TB hard disk drive …

The post Toshiba unveils enterprise 6TB HDD with 7200rpm spindle speed first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Toshiba Corp. late on Thursday introduced its first 6TB enterprise-class hard disk drive with 7200rpm spindle speed. The new HDD will be a part of the MG04 family, which is specifically designed for midline and nearline business critical workloads, introduced earlier this year and features persistent write cache technology.

Toshiba MG04 6TB hard disk drive features Serial ATA-6Gb/s (MG04ACA) or SAS-12Gb/s (MG04SCA) interfaces and sport 7200rpm spindle speed and 128MB cache. It is unclear whether the new MG04 HDDs are based on six 1TB platters or five 1.2TB platters. Power consumption figures for the drives were also not revealed by Toshiba. Maximum power consumption of other MG04 hard drives is 11.3W; in idle mode the drives consume 6W – 6.2W.

The new enterprise hard disk drives support both industry-standard 4K native and 512e advanced format sector technologies for optimum performance in the latest generation servers and storage systems. Emulated 512e AF sector technology performs best in legacy applications requiring 512 sector lengths using aligned-write environments.

toshiba_mg04_hdd

The new MG04 family of HDD also supports optional persistent write cache technologies that help to protect against data-loss in the event of sudden power loss, while also helping to improve performance and data reliability. Models supporting sanitize instant erase (SIE) option are also available.

“Our customers expect to benefit from the increased capacity, efficiency and performance made possible by the latest industry-standard interface and long sector technologies,” said Scott Wright, director of HDD product marketing at Toshiba storage products business unit. “These additions to the MG04 series deliver an impressive 6TB capacity and continue to provide the benefits of Toshiba’s persistent write cache technology to improve performance for business critical server and storage systems.”

The 6TB MG04ACA SATA and MG04SCA 12-Gb/s SAS models will begin sampling to OEM customers in Q1 2015.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: The key thing about the new drives has not been disclosed: the amount and capacity of platters inside the drive. If Toshiba managed to squeeze in six platters into one 3.5” hard drive, then it is a technical breakthrough for Toshiba. If the company uses 1.2TB platters, then someone has started to sell 1.2TB enterprise-grade platters to Toshiba, which is a technical breakthrough of another company.

The post Toshiba unveils enterprise 6TB HDD with 7200rpm spindle speed first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/anton-shilov/toshiba-introduces-enterprise-class-6tb-hdd-with-7200rpm-spindle-speed/feed/ 0
Foremay announces 4TB, 8TB SSDs with Serial ATA-6Gb/s interface https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/anton-shilov/foremay-announces-4tb-8tb-ssds-with-serial-ata-6gbs-interface/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/anton-shilov/foremay-announces-4tb-8tb-ssds-with-serial-ata-6gbs-interface/#respond Tue, 18 Nov 2014 23:30:22 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=222280 Foremay, a maker of solid-state drives primarily known for special-purpose industrial and mission-critical drives, has announced the world’s first SSDs with 4TB and 8TB capacities with Serial ATA interface. The drives do not offer high performance, but those, who need ultra-high capacity solid-state storage will have to be satisfied with what they are offered. Foremay …

The post Foremay announces 4TB, 8TB SSDs with Serial ATA-6Gb/s interface first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Foremay, a maker of solid-state drives primarily known for special-purpose industrial and mission-critical drives, has announced the world’s first SSDs with 4TB and 8TB capacities with Serial ATA interface. The drives do not offer high performance, but those, who need ultra-high capacity solid-state storage will have to be satisfied with what they are offered.

Foremay 4TB and 8TB SSDs belong to the SC199 and the EC188 product families. The manufacturer does not reveal too lot of information about the new drives, but claims that they feature read/write speeds up to 500MB/s, and random read/write IOPS up to 100,000. It is unknown what kind of NAND flash and SSD controller are used inside these solid-state drives.

The new high-capacity solid-state drives from Foremay feature AES-256 bit hardware encryption as well as self-encryption algorithms that comply with TCG Opal 2.0 specifications, military grade secure erase, one-key self-destroy in emergency situations, battery for sudden power down protection, and read-only function to prevent the drive from being written and files from being altered by unauthorized access or hacking.

foremay_ssd

“Our 4TB and 8TB large capacity SATA 3 drives are offered as solutions for ruggedized servers and enterprise servers,” said Jack Winters, Foremay’s chief technology officer. “When we asked our customers what we should do for the next step in SSDs, most replied with capacity, capacity and capacity. We believe our 4TB and 8TB 2.5” SATA SSDs can help system designers innovate to the next level of high density and highly reliable systems in both enterprise and industrial applications.”

The prices of the 4TB and 8TB solid-state drives are unknown, but do not expect them to be priced reasonably. SanDisk sells its Optimus Max 4TB SSDs for around $7000 in the U.S. and starting from around €5400 in Europe. A 8TB SSD will cost even more than that.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: While extreme-capacity SSDs are reality, it should be noted that they are still very expensive. In a bid to build a 8TB SSD, Foremay probably had to use memory chips in custom packages, which are prohibitively expensive. It will take years before such solid-state drives will get even close to affordability since while it is technically possible to build such storage solutions, it is tremendously hard to to and it is even harder to make them reliable enough.

The post Foremay announces 4TB, 8TB SSDs with Serial ATA-6Gb/s interface first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/ssd-drives/anton-shilov/foremay-announces-4tb-8tb-ssds-with-serial-ata-6gbs-interface/feed/ 0
Icy Box FlexCage MB973SP 2B Trayless 3-in-2 SATA Backplane https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/bill-smyth/icy-box-flexcage-mb973sp-2b-trayless-3-in-2-sata-backplane/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/bill-smyth/icy-box-flexcage-mb973sp-2b-trayless-3-in-2-sata-backplane/#respond Mon, 08 Sep 2014 06:54:26 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=180982 It's a self-evident truth that our requirement for storage will never stop increasing. While the cloud promises plenty for the future, up and download speeds will need to increase several fold before we can do away with local storage. That leaves NAS and internal drives. Icy Box offers a handy solution for those who want …

The post Icy Box FlexCage MB973SP 2B Trayless 3-in-2 SATA Backplane first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
It's a self-evident truth that our requirement for storage will never stop increasing. While the cloud promises plenty for the future, up and download speeds will need to increase several fold before we can do away with local storage. That leaves NAS and internal drives. Icy Box offers a handy solution for those who want direct drive access.

Most enthusiasts reading this will have upgraded and migrated many, many times over the years. Each time, you set up your new system, install your apps and port your data across as best you can. Finally, you try to make good use of your old drives.

Companies like Synology provide excellent systems for the external storage of important/archive data, but what if you want to keep your old drives inside your new system? And what if you have more drives than bays?

The Icy Box Trayless range of hard drive cages is one solution to this problem and we are going to be exploring the more advanced of the 3 models available, the Icy Box MB973SP 2B FlexCage.

They are made from aluminum and rigid plastic, and this kind of product is available for around £100 at the time of writing.

For further control, you can turn each drive on and off using one of 3 small, child-proof buttons on the front of the Icy Box FlexCage.

Icy-Dock-MB973SP-2B-Trayless-KitGuru

Here are the key features:-

  • Fits 3 x 35” SATA III HDD into 2 x 5.25” Device Bays.
  • Supports SATA 3 (6 Gb/s) hard drives.
  • Compact and space saving design to fit multiple drives.
  • Designed for consumers & enthusiasts gaming / media computer cases and servers.
  • Tray-less design for genuine plug & play and hot swap use.
  • Front and rear ventilation slots.
  • 80mm cooling fan for maximum air flow.
  • 3 speed fan control, including auto setting featuring Smart Cooling Technology.
  • Lightweight aluminium body construction for durability and heat dissipation.
  • Fan is replaceable with aftermarket fans that use standard 2-pin or 3-pin connectors.
  • SuperSpeed USB 3.0 hub built into front of device for performance and easy access.
  • Individual power switches and LEDs for each drive.
  • Active Power Technology+ – cooling fan and drive only powers up when the child proof power buttons are pressed.
  • Flex Fit Design – accommodates different 5.25” tab lengths for different type of cases.
  • Multi-locking door latches to prevent accidental drive ejection.
  • Two 4 pin to 15 pin adapter cable included for 15 pin SATA power ports.
  • ICY DOCK 3 year warranty equivalent to hard drive manufacturer warranty to ensure maximum reliability and long life.
The post Icy Box FlexCage MB973SP 2B Trayless 3-in-2 SATA Backplane first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/bill-smyth/icy-box-flexcage-mb973sp-2b-trayless-3-in-2-sata-backplane/feed/ 0
Asus: our future mainboards will be 100% SATA Express-compliant https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/anton-shilov/asustek-vows-that-its-future-mainboards-will-be-sata-express-compliant/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/anton-shilov/asustek-vows-that-its-future-mainboards-will-be-sata-express-compliant/#respond Wed, 23 Apr 2014 22:59:43 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=188786 Although Intel Corp. decided not to bring support for next-generation solid-state drives with Serial ATA Express (SATAe) interface this year, Asustek Computer earlier this year demonstrated motherboards with SATA Express connectors and vowed to bring the new interface to the market. On Wednesday the company said that it can now assure that its future mainboards …

The post Asus: our future mainboards will be 100% SATA Express-compliant first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Although Intel Corp. decided not to bring support for next-generation solid-state drives with Serial ATA Express (SATAe) interface this year, Asustek Computer earlier this year demonstrated motherboards with SATA Express connectors and vowed to bring the new interface to the market. On Wednesday the company said that it can now assure that its future mainboards will be 100% compatible with future SSDs.

The SATA Express is the next-generation interface for storage devices that is based on PCI Express 2.0 (5GT/s) or PCI Express 3.0 (8GT/s) protocols and which can increase maximum bandwidth to 1GB/s (PCIe 2.0) or 2GB/s (in case of PCIe 3.0). While it is possible to add support for SATA Express with the help of a special controller, it is still extremely important to know that not every motherboard is made the same: having the physical connector is only a small part of the equation. In order to deliver the full potential of SATA Express, the host mainboard must support the separate reference clock with independent spread spectrum clocking architecture (SRIS) technology. Obviously, the SSDs connected to the host should also feature the tech.

Z87-Deluxe-SATA-Express-1

Since SATA Express uses PCI Express logical protocol and SATA connectors, there is a number of requirements for SATA Express devices to work correctly since PCIe was developed for connecting devices over short distances on mainboards.

For PCI Express-based applications the same reference clock (usually with spread spectrum clocking, a.k.a. SSC) needs to be delivered to both ends of the link. For in-box apps this is not a problem since the PCIe edge connector already has pins to carry this reference clock. However, for long-distance cases that necessitate using a cable, the requirement that the reference clock (Refclk) needs to be sent in addition to the data signals is troublesome. While sending the reference clock using a special link within a cable does not seem hard, it creates two issues: the cables and connectors need to be thicker, heavier, larger and more expensive to carry the extra clock signals; even though the reference clock does have SSC on it there can still be a large amount of electromagnetic interference (EMI) resulting from sending it. Moreover, since SATA Express uses SATA connectors it may be simply impossible to implement a link with Refclk.

pci_express_typical_interconnection

Typical PCI Express-based interconnections. Image by Synopsys.

In a bit to avoid such troubles, the PCI SIG developed SRIS technology to define a usage model with separate reference clocks at each end of a link. Thus, the root complex Refclk does not need to be sent across the cable in a PCIe SRIS application. The SRIS has to be supported by the BIOS of the host mainboard, which is exactly what Asustek plans to implement.

pci_express_typical_with_sris

PCI Express/SATA Express interconnection with SRIS technology.

According to Asus, SATA Express-capable mainboards that lack the SRIS architecture in the BIOS could present compatibility problems: storage might not be recognized, might not work correctly, or function with limited performance. While the SRIS technology is a part of the PCI Express 3.0 standard, since it is not needed for add-in-cards, it may not be supported by modern mainboards.

The SRIS BIOS technology will be implemented in future Asus motherboards, the company said. As a result, all SATA Express-enabled platforms by Asus will support the future SSDs.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: It is nice to see that Asustek is ready for solid-state drives featuring SATA Express interface although there are no such SSDs yet. However, there are three important things that have to be said about the current SATA Express employments. Firstly, Asustek’s (and probably other makers’ as well) implementation of SATAe is based on PCI Express 2.0 x2 interface that is supported by Intel 8-series and 8-series chipsets, hence its peak bandwidth is 1GB/s or less. While it should be possible to use processor’s PCI Express 3.0 interconnection, the implementation could slowdown graphics cards that use CPU’s PCIe. Moreover, the first-generation SATA Express controllers for SSDs may only support PCIe 2.0 since they will be intended for platforms based on chipsets that only support PCIe 2.0. Secondly, even SATAe implementation based on PCIe 2.0 has to be validated by industry groups and SSD makers, so any surprises from the current-gen SATAe platforms may be expected. Thirdly, SATAe based on PCI Express 3.0 protocol (and this is when SATAe will become a true alternative for PCI Express slots) will only emerge when chipsets start to support the technology. At present it is expected that core-logic sets for Intel Skylake processors will support PCIe 3.0 protocols. All-in-all, the SATAe will get truly important not today, not tomorrow, but the day after tomorrow.

The post Asus: our future mainboards will be 100% SATA Express-compliant first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/anton-shilov/asustek-vows-that-its-future-mainboards-will-be-sata-express-compliant/feed/ 0
Seagate debuts new SSHDs https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/jon-martindale/seagate-debuts-new-notebook-sshds/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/jon-martindale/seagate-debuts-new-notebook-sshds/#respond Tue, 05 Mar 2013 20:00:35 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=127354 Seagate has announced a new line of hybrid drives, melding solid state technology with traditional hard drive platters, in a variety of sizes and shapes – making them applicable for both laptops as well as desktop PCs for those that don't want to take the jump to a single SSD just yet. Known simply as …

The post Seagate debuts new SSHDs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
Seagate has announced a new line of hybrid drives, melding solid state technology with traditional hard drive platters, in a variety of sizes and shapes – making them applicable for both laptops as well as desktop PCs for those that don't want to take the jump to a single SSD just yet.

Known simply as the SSHD lineup, these drives will come in two flavours. The smaller 500GB and 1TB offerings will be designed for laptops and will come in a 2.5″ form factor – though the larger of the two will be 2.5mm wider and will include a second platter. Pricing wise, they're going to be $79 (£52) and $99 (£65). The hard drive portion of their storage will spin up at 5,400 RPM, while the solid state portion will be made up of 8GB NAND flash memory.

SSHD
I'll stick with my SATA III SSD, neeeeeowwwwm.

The larger desktop versions, will come in the 3.5″ form factor again again feature one or two platters depending on whether you pick the smaller or larger variants – which come in 1TB and 2TB respectively. While they will be a little more expensive at $99 (£65) and $149 (£99) they will spin up at 7,200 RPM a piece. They'll also include the same 8GB NAND as the smaller laptop versions.

Without much in the way of NAND storage space, the performance increase from something like this compared to a traditional hard drive may not be huge, but some reads will be able to occur at least. According to Anandtech, the big seller for these is the price, as they're competitive with traditional hard drive options, thereby helping people make the jump from the older tech to this bridging one.

KitGuru Says: Nice to see Solid State options becoming more affordable, even if it is part of a more traditional hard drive platter system.

The post Seagate debuts new SSHDs first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/jon-martindale/seagate-debuts-new-notebook-sshds/feed/ 0
ASRock 990FX Extreme9 Motherboard Review https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/luke-hill/asrock-990fx-extreme9-motherboard-review/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/luke-hill/asrock-990fx-extreme9-motherboard-review/#comments Mon, 18 Feb 2013 08:15:58 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=124510 ASRock's latest addition to their 990FX series of AMD motherboards, the 990FX Extreme9, aims to occupy the company's AM3+ top spot alongside the Fatal1ty Professional board. With premium power delivery components, compatibility with AMD's 8 core PileDriver processors and support for 3-way SLI and CrossFire graphics configurations, the ASRock 990FX Extreme9 sports an excellent set of features …

The post ASRock 990FX Extreme9 Motherboard Review first appeared on KitGuru.]]>

ASRock's latest addition to their 990FX series of AMD motherboards, the 990FX Extreme9, aims to occupy the company's AM3+ top spot alongside the Fatal1ty Professional board.

With premium power delivery components, compatibility with AMD's 8 core PileDriver processors and support for 3-way SLI and CrossFire graphics configurations, the ASRock 990FX Extreme9 sports an excellent set of features which should impress the enthusiast market.

The board makes use of ASRock's new-and-improved power delivery components which include; Gold Capacitors, Digi Power VRM, Dual-Stack MOSFET, Hi-Density power connector, and a 12+2 power phase design.

Can this plethora of overclocking enhancements and an excellent feature set translate into enthusiast-grade performance potential?

Specifications:

  • Premium Gold Caps, Multiple Filter Cap
  • Supports Dual-Stack MOSFET (DSM), Digi Power, 12 + 2 power phase design
  • Supports AM3+ Processor, 8-Core CPU
  • Supports Dual Channel DDR3 2450(OC)
  • 4 PCIe 2.0 x16 Slots, Support NVIDIA® 3-Way SLI, AMD 3-Way CrossFireX™
  • 8 x SATA3, 2 x eSATA3, 8 x USB 3.0, 8 x USB 2.0
  • Supports Hi-Density Power Connector
  • Intel® Gigabit LAN
  • Supports ASRock X-Boost, XFast 555, Fast Boot, Restart to UEFI, Dehumidifier, OMG, Internet Flash, Easy RAID Installer
  • 7.1 CH HD Audio with Content Protection (Realtek ALC898 Audio Codec), supports THX TruStudio™
  • Free Bundle : CyberLink MediaEspresso 6.5 Trial, Google Chrome Browser and Toolbar, 1 x Front USB 3.0 Panel with 2.5″ HDD/SSD Rack
The post ASRock 990FX Extreme9 Motherboard Review first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/luke-hill/asrock-990fx-extreme9-motherboard-review/feed/ 5
Cyberpower Gaming Battalion 502 Windows 8 PC Review (FX 4170 / Radeon 7770) https://www.kitguru.net/desktop-pc/gaming-rig/luke-hill/cyberpower-gaming-battalion-502-windows-8-pc-review-fx-4170-radeon-7770/ https://www.kitguru.net/desktop-pc/gaming-rig/luke-hill/cyberpower-gaming-battalion-502-windows-8-pc-review-fx-4170-radeon-7770/#comments Wed, 26 Dec 2012 09:57:01 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=119749 Cyberpower has always tended to the needs of every gamer with its pre-configured systems. Targeting mid-range gamers with a tighter budget, does the Cyberpower Gaming Battalion 502 PC have what it takes to become a competitor in today's ever-growing system market? Cyberpower has chosen the Gaming Battalion 502 PC's hardware to offer good gaming performance …

The post Cyberpower Gaming Battalion 502 Windows 8 PC Review (FX 4170 / Radeon 7770) first appeared on KitGuru.]]>

Cyberpower has always tended to the needs of every gamer with its pre-configured systems. Targeting mid-range gamers with a tighter budget, does the Cyberpower Gaming Battalion 502 PC have what it takes to become a competitor in today's ever-growing system market?

Cyberpower has chosen the Gaming Battalion 502 PC's hardware to offer good gaming performance at a modest price. Coupling the 4.2GHz, quad core AMD FX 4170 CPU with an MSI Radeon HD 7770 1GB graphics card has allowed Cyberpower to create the foundations for a competitively-priced mid-range gaming system.

Add a 2TB HDD, Gigabyte USB 3.0 motherboard, 8GB of Kingston RAM and Cooler Master's Elite 310 into the mix and the Gaming Battalion 502 starts to look even more appealing to gamers on a budget.

Specifications:

  • Processor: AMD FX 4170 4.2GHz
  • Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3
  • Memory: 8GB Kingston DDR3 1333MHz
  • Graphics Card: MSI Radeon HD 7770 1GB (R7770-PMD1GD5)
  • Hard Disk Drive: 2TB Seagate 7200.14 ST2000DM001
  • CPU Cooler: Reference AMD FX 4170 heatsink
  • Case: Cooler Master Elite 310 w/ Side Panel Window
  • Power Supply: Artic MPS550 550W
  • Optical Drive: 24x Optiarc AD-7280S
  • Operating System: Windows 8 64-bit
The post Cyberpower Gaming Battalion 502 Windows 8 PC Review (FX 4170 / Radeon 7770) first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/desktop-pc/gaming-rig/luke-hill/cyberpower-gaming-battalion-502-windows-8-pc-review-fx-4170-radeon-7770/feed/ 3
Working around Sandy Bridge problem https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/jules/working-around-sandy-bridge-problem-is-easy-with-asus/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/jules/working-around-sandy-bridge-problem-is-easy-with-asus/#comments Sun, 06 Feb 2011 12:39:09 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=32620 But how safe is it? Intel doesn't really do ‘Total Recalls' like this. It's scary stuff. The company that effectively made the global market for microprocessors is such a galactically huge corporation, with advanced R&D the like of which has never been seen before, that no one ever really expected it to get knocked off …

The post Working around Sandy Bridge problem first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
But how safe is it? Intel doesn't really do ‘Total Recalls' like this. It's scary stuff. The company that effectively made the global market for microprocessors is such a galactically huge corporation, with advanced R&D the like of which has never been seen before, that no one ever really expected it to get knocked off track. Not even for a quarter. That's what happened, so what can be done now?

Intel's processors work perfectly. The company guarantees that this is true. However, every CPU needs to sit on a mainboard. Apart from providing comfortable living accommodation, the mainboard provides the meeting point for the CPU to link up with the other parts of your system.

That mainboard is, pretty much, divided down the middle into slow and fast. On the very quick side of the board, you have memory and graphics. Over on the slow side, you have hard drive controllers. Looking at the hard drive controllers, you get a further break down into slow(er) and fast(er). While many old kit gurus will remember transfer rates in the Mb per second range, those speeds are now so slow that we only use them for the Internet (cue the creaking of the rocking chair and shuffle of slippers).

All H67 and P67 boards have two sets of SATA ports. Four of these support 3 Gbps operation and two support the faster 6Gbps speeds. Each of these sets requires its own PLL source. This problem in the chipset has been traced back to a transistor in the 3Gbps PLL clocking tree. This transistor has a very thin gate oxide which allows you to turn it on with a very low voltage. The mistake that Intel made was biasing the transistor with too high of a voltage which caused a higher than expected leakage current. Each transistor will operate slightly differently, so over time the leakage current can cause a failure on the 3Gbps ports. Luckily the fact that the 3Gbps and 6Gbps circuits have their own independent clocking trees helps ensure that the problem will be only limited to ports 2-5 of the controller.

OK. Now we know where the problem is – we need to ask “How much of an issue is it ?”

.For Intel, the answer is simple. The product is outside the specification which they set, which means it is not correct and must be cancelled/returned/buried in a pit and forgotten about.

But the real world does not work that way. IT is a business and companies need to sell. Checking around, no one in the UK channel seems to have missed much of a beat.

So the real question is, “Can you safely sell/buy/use a Sandy Bridge system?”.

The answer is, quite obviously ‘Yes – as long as you are aware of the issues and you're sure they won't affect you'. Especially if you choose a mainboard from one of the top vendors like Asus.

KitGuru has no specific brand preference when it comes to mainboards, but what looked like ‘Asus overkill' a month ago, may well turn out to be a life jacket for the channel over the next few months as Intel scrambles to re-build its reputation.

Here's a question: In an average system, how many SATA devices does the normal user have?

Here's the KitGuru reply: Booting from an SSD and then loading programs onto a big system drive from a DVD/BluRay is about as many attachments as the majority of people will make. Add in a second hard drive (either internally – or through an eSATA port on the front of your system) and you have solution that probably works for >95% of the world's users.

That means as long as you use the correct 4 headers, you should not only enjoy carefree data transfers for the life of your system – those transfers will also be as fast as (presently) mechanically possible.

This image is being passed around the industry right now and it helpfully shows you where up to 4 drives can be attached on an Asus board with no risk whatsoever.

Slow is relative. That's around 300MB/sec. Damn fast in most people's books.

So there you have it. As long as your system builder, local store or KitGuru knows what they are doing – you can build a perfectly good Sandy Bridge system, without ever experiencing an issue.

AMD will, no doubt, be creating some new, faster Phenom II X6 SKUs for launch in the next 4-8 weeks and they also have Bulldozer coming soon. Competition is a good thing, so we hope AMD gets these new launches right. Them's your options.

Not many seem to have stopped selling the 'known to have a fault' Intel Sandy Bridge mainboards

KitGuru says: If you really want to buy a Sandy Bridge product before it has been fixed by Intel, then that's your call. You will be paying full price for a board which has a documented problem and which the original chipset manufacturer has recalled. That said, deals seem to have been reached with Asus, Gigabyte, MSI and Intel that say the boards can be sold and, if you like, swapped out later.

AMD also has solutions – fully functional and guaranteed.

Choosing a pre-assembled system from a ‘known' company who offers a full warranty, is a smart way to go. In most cases, the cost of buying assembled will be close to buying yourself and building. With pre-assembly, you get to blame someone else if it goes wrong (although your data is still your responsibility).

If it's Intel you really want, KitGuru suggests waiting for the fixed boards. But at least you know the risks of buying sooner.

Comments below please – or unload in the KitGuru forum.

The post Working around Sandy Bridge problem first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/motherboard/jules/working-around-sandy-bridge-problem-is-easy-with-asus/feed/ 4
Hard Drive Buying Guide https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/faith/hard-drive-buying-guide/ https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/faith/hard-drive-buying-guide/#respond Sat, 03 Apr 2010 14:08:58 +0000 http://www.kitguru.net/?p=71 Before you choose a hard drive, read KitGuru's expert guide.

The post Hard Drive Buying Guide first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
We all want fast/responsive systems, with plenty of storage and back-ups of our most important data – like photos, videos and emails. While SSDs provide fast boot times, many of us will still be using hard drives for years to come. KitGuru investigates the market and makes some recommendations.

Terminology
GB means Gigabyte and TB means Terabyte. For our purposes, 1TB = 1,000GB. To fill a 1TB drive with HD photos would mean taking 1 shot a minute, every minute, 24 hours a day, for 6 months. Drives connect using Serial ATA. SATA2 is the most popular (transfers ~150MB/sec). SATA3 drives are twice as fast and will ship in 2010 – but at a higher price. RPM tells you how fast a drive spins. 5,400rpm is slow and 7,200rpm is average and 10,000rpm is fast. Drives also have a small amount of fast memory (cache) to speed transfers. 8MB is small, 16MB is average and 32MB is good.

Pricing
At the time of writing, the trade price for a 250GB drive is under £30 with 500GB drives <£10 higher. In comparison, 2TB drives are under £100. Street price will normally be around 10% higher – plus VAT. That gives us a spread of £30 to £130 inc vat.

Choosing
Buy the biggest drive you can afford. Once you have the size, if you can afford a model with more cache or a faster spin speed – then that’s an advantage. But SIZE matters more. Remember that you MUST back up your data and bigger drives take longer.

RAID
You can put more than one drive in a system. This can increase data security (writing all data to BOTH drives,  RAID 1) or improve performance (writing to whichever drive is ready, RAID 0).

KitGuru says… We love the 1TB Samsung SpinPoint F3 drive. It runs at 7,200rpm with a 32MB cache. Unless you’re prepared to spend SSD money, this is about as good as it gets.

Where to buy links…
Dabs
Overclockers
YOYOTech

The post Hard Drive Buying Guide first appeared on KitGuru.]]>
https://www.kitguru.net/components/hard-drives/faith/hard-drive-buying-guide/feed/ 0