May 25, 2005 When you're a military or aerospace integrator and you've just gotta have a certain gadget, weight of dollars will win the day every time. Which is why flash-based data storage M-Systems has commenced mass production of its new FFD Ultra320 SCSI flash disk. The new FFD Ultra320 SCSI is specifically designed for mission critical systems required by the military, aerospace, telecommunication, video server, broadcasting and factory automation industries and is now available in capacities ranging from 1 to 176 gigabytes and SCSI interface speeds of 320 megabytes per second, all within in a standard 3.5" case. How much? As pricing is usually OEM, it's hard to get a retail price, but Engadget reported last year's 90GB model cost US$40,000. A sign of the times is that this year's 176GB version costs less than US$25,000.
"We have seen a tremendous demand for a rugged high capacity flash disk at an attractive price," said Ofer Tsur, vice president of sales and marketing for M-Systems' embedded division. "For the first time, the highest flash disk capacity in standard disk casing combined with a 320 megabyte per second SCSI bus interface is available on the market. With the price of flash-based products now even more attractive, a broader range of applications will enjoy the top data reliability and endurance of the FFD Ultra320 SCSI." The FFD Ultra320 SCSI meets the MIL-STD-810F standards for shocks, vibrations and altitude. Its high level of endurance is enabled by its embedded TrueFFS® flash management software, which provides more than five million write/erase cycles. The FFD Ultra320 SCSI operates at -40°c to +85°c and complies with the NSA, DoD, IRIG 106, US Air Force, Navy and Army procedures for data sanitization (purge). The FFD Ultra320 SCSI is available in capacities up to 64 gigabytes in a 3.5" case measuring half an inch thick and up to 176 gigabytes in a case of one inch thickness. The FFD Ultra320 SCSI currently supports an 80-pin connector and will support a 68 pin connector this quarter. More details on the FFD Ultra320 SCSI product are available online
