Today, CDRLabs brings you a review of Crucial's new MX300 M.2 SSD. Designed for tablets and ultrabooks, this new addition to the MX300 line isn't much larger than a stick of gum. The drive is powered by Marvell's 88SS1074B1 controller and is available with up to 1050GB of Micron's 3D TLC NAND. The MX300 M.2 also shares many of the same features as its full size counterpart. In addition to Crucial's Dynamic Write Acceleration technology, it offers AES 256-bit encryption, thermal and power loss protection, TRIM support and active garbage collection. The MX300 M.2 also uses technologies like Data Defense and Redundant Array of Independent NAND (RAIN) to increase security and protection of data to a level that’s not typically found in consumer-class SSDs.

Launching today is the latest version of Nero 2017, the successful multimedia software for burning, copying, creating, editing, ripping, converting, playing and streaming media content.

This latest edition sees significant improvements such as ease of use, playback, video editing, transcoding and burning, as well as sharing videos, photos and music in the highest quality. Nero is positioning itself as users ‘best-friend’ for day-to-day digital life. For example, through support for the HEVC (H.265) format, SecurDisc 4.0 for the highest security standard for burned discs and the Nero KnowHow App, which enables users to get the best out of their Nero software.

Nero users have thousands of photos, videos and other multimedia files stored on lots of different devices such as smartphones, tablet PCs, laptops and desktops. Looking for a specific file can often be like searching for a needle in a haystack with users trying to remember where they saved it. The Classic and Platinum versions of Nero 2017 put an end to this by allowing users to search via timeline, faces, places and tags. While the Nero 2017 Classic multimedia suite includes extensive functions for mastering the day-to-day digital life, Nero 2017 Platinum delivers especially high-quality results thanks to cutting-edge technology (HEVC/H.265) and advanced functions.

ADATA Technology, a leading manufacturer of high performance DRAM modules and NAND Flash products, today launched the XPG SX8000 SSD, which uses an M.2 form factor loaded with 3D MLC NAND Flash and an SMI 2260 controller. The SX8000 meets NVMe 1.2 specifications and connects directly to motherboards via PCI Express 3.0 x4 (PCIe 3x4) to deliver 2.4GB/s read and 1GB/s write, with 100K/140K IOPS. The SX8000 arrives in diverse capacities (128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB), ensuring a new generation of SSD performance is available to more users. A slightly faster version fitted with an attractive XPG heatsink will release by the end of October, promising an aesthetic bonus for case modding enthusiasts.

Compact M.2 PCI 3x4 shatters speed barriers
The XPG SX8000 connects to desktop and notebook PCs via low profile M.2 2280 and channels data through PCI Express 3.0 x4 (four lane). The low latency and big bandwidth of PCIe enable up to 2.4GB/s read and 1GB/s write – four times the read and twice the write performance of average SATA 6Gb/s SSDs. Random 4K IOPS figures are 100K read and 140K write, also significantly more than SATA-based drives. The SX8000 features full NVMe 1.2 compatibility, powering a large performance boost that means users notice gains in real world scenarios, especially loading times within games that require heavy asset streaming and in professional applications such as graphics and audio rendering.

Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. (TAEC), a committed technology leader, today announces the launch of the OCZ TL100 SATA solid state drive (SSD) series. Designed for entry-level users with traditional hard disk drive (HDD) storage seeking an affordable upgrade solution, the Toshiba OCZ TL100 series provides the performance of SSD technology at an attractive price point.

Offering an easy and affordable way for value-oriented users to enhance their mobile or desktop systems, Toshiba OCZ TL100 SSDs improve home/office computing experiences, enabling increased system responsiveness and productivity over hard drives. With Toshiba TLC NAND flash memory under the hood, the TL100 series prioritizes both quality and affordability delivering the reliable system storage end users can rely on.

Lexar, a leading global brand of flash memory products, today announced two high-performance storage solutions to easily transfer and share content between devices with USB Type-C or micro-USB port. The Lexar JumpDrive C20c USB Type-C flash drive (USB-C) and JumpDrive C20m micro-USB flash drive are the newest products to join the premium suite of C-series mobile products, including the Lexar JumpDrive C20i flash drive. The new JumpDrive products are being launched at Photokina 2016.

"Today's users are capturing and storing immense amounts of high-quality content on their devices every day," said Yeon Kim, product marketing manager, Lexar. "Both the Lexar JumpDrive C20m and Lexar JumpDrive C20c provide users with an easy way to transfer, share, and offload content on the go."

The Lexar JumpDrive C20c USB Type-C flash drive allows users to seamlessly move files between next generation Type-C devices and computers. This premium 3-in-1 drive features both USB Type-C and standard USB-Type A connectors in a convenient charging cable design to provide high-speed performance for fast file transfer with speeds up to 150MB/s read and 60MB/s write. The Lexar JumpDrive C20m micro-USB flash drive is a 3-in-1 solution that features both micro-USB and standard USB Type-A connectors that allows users to easily transfer files between On-The-Go (OTG)-enabled Android™ tablets and smartphones. Both drives utilize USB 3.1 (Gen 1) performance for fast file transfer, with speeds up to 150MB/s read and 60MB/s write. Both JumpDrives are compatible with PC and Mac® systems and backwards compatible with USB 3.0 and 2.0 devices, and will be available in capacities of 32GB, 64GB, and 128GB. Both drives have a three-year limited warranty.

Lexar, a leading global brand of flash memory products, today announced the new 256GB capacity Lexar® High-Performance 633x microSDXC™ UHS-I (U3) memory card. Designed for sports camcorders, tablets, and smartphones, the 633x microSDXC UHS-I card has read transfer speeds up to 95MB per second and can capture more than 36 hours of HD video; 67,600 photos; or 58,100 songs. The 256GB capacity card is currently on display at Photokina 2016.

"We've seen the storage demands of our customers grow by leaps and bounds, especially with the massive popularity of 4K video—so we designed this 633x high-capacity microSD card to meet that need," said Steffi Ho, product marketing manager, Lexar. "In today's world, whether you're shooting 4K action footage with a sports camcorder or downloading your entire music library onto your smartphone, the storage space and speed provided by the 256GB Lexar microSDXC card will prove invaluable."

The new 256GB capacity card is capable of recording up to 36 hours of HD video adventures, perfect for aerial camera enthusiasts who too often have to carry multiple memory cards for extended use. It also offers UHS Speed Class 3 (U3) video recording speeds, ideal for capturing extended lengths of 4K video. The microSDXC card comes with a USB 3.0 reader, which allows for quick and easy file transfer from the card to a PC or Mac® computer. The card includes a limited lifetime warranty and a one-year limited warranty for the USB 3.0 reader.

Samsung Electronics America, Inc., a worldwide leader in advanced memory solutions for more than two decades, today unveiled the Samsung 960 PRO and 960 EVO, its newest solid state drives (SSDs). The V-NAND based, M.2 form factor SSDs were built on the company’s category-defining Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) SSD leadership. With powerful performance, endurance and capacity topped with all new and more robust Samsung Magician software package, Samsung continues to accelerate the NVMe era.

Packed with more technology and innovation than ever, the 960 PRO and 960 EVO are designed for users who seek smaller and faster storage solutions that deliver higher bandwidth and lower latency for processing massive amounts of data for everything from gaming and large file transfers to 4K video rendering, data analytics and more on their ultra-thin notebooks and PCs.

Both the 960 PRO and 960 EVO use the Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) Gen.3 x4 lane interface and are compliant with NVMe specifications to realize effective use of the high-speed PCIe bus and optimize both hardware and software configurations to take advantage of the NVMe SSD technology. The SSDs feature Samsung Dynamic Thermal Guard technology to manage performance during extreme workloads.