Buffalo Americas, a leading provider of external storage, network attached storage (NAS) and networking solutions, today announced availability of its new MiniStation Extreme NFC portable hard drive. Buffalo’s ruggedized drive features advanced hardware encryption and near field communication (NFC) technology to block unauthorized access. It also adheres to U.S. Military Standard shock protection and is safeguarded against water and dust damage.

“When examining the rugged portable drive market, many of our competitors focus on being the best at a single metric of device protection while sacrificing other data security capabilities,” said Matt Dargis, COO, Buffalo Americas, Inc. “We designed the MiniStation Extreme NFC to be the most complete rugged portable drive on the market, including features that not only protect against the elements, but also support the latest hardware encryption technology and NFC secure access functionality. We packaged all of this functionality into a sleek, compact design that sets it apart from the competition.”

Built-in NFC technology allows users to easily unlock files using the included smart card without having to remember a password. This capability also protects valuable data from being accessed by an unauthorized user. Users can securely ship information by sending the hard drive and smart card separately, ensuring the data is protected even if the hard drive is lost or stolen.

Pioneer Japan sent out a press today, announcing its new portable, slot-loading Blu-ray Disc writer, the BDR-XS06JL. Designed for use with both Macs and Windows PCs, this USB 3.0 equipped drive is capable of 6x BD-R, 6x BD-R DL, 6x BD-R LTH, 2x BD-RE and 2x BD-RE DL writing speeds and a maximum BD-ROM read speed of 6x. The BDR-XS06JL also writes to triple- (100GB) and quad-layer (128GB) BD-R media at 4x and triple-layer (100GB) BD-RE media at 2x.

The BDR-XS06JL includes features like Pioneer's PureRead2+ technology, noise reducing firmware and an "intelligent eco mode" that automatically cuts unnecessary power. The drive is also compatible with the company's APS-WF01J wireless dock, which lets it be used with iOS devices like the iPhone and iPad. The BDR-XS06JL is expected to hit stores later this month for about 14,000 Yen ($118US).

Patriot, a leading manufacturer of computer memory, USB/flash, SSDs and mobile accessories, today announced the launch of its new M.2 Ignite solid-state drive (SSD). Its compact form factor is optimal for use in portable devices such as ultrabooks, notebooks and ultra-compact PC’s providing impeccable start up times, instant access to data and installed programs.

The Patriot Ignite M2’s Next-Generation-Form-Factor (NGFF) case free design and small structure of 22mm wide by 80mm long (2280) packs a punch, testing in with sequential read and write speeds of up to 560/320MB/s and 4KB random read and write speeds of up to 90/70K IOP’s. It provides the ultimate upgrade solution for those with mobile computing devices looking to increase storage capacities.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world leader in advanced memory technology, announced today that it has started mass production of the industry’s first NVMe PCIe solid state drive (SSD) which has an M.2 form factor for use in PCs and workstations. Samsung is also the first in the industry to announce that it has begun shipping NVMe SSDs to OEMs for the PC market. The new SM951-NVMe features the industry’s most advanced performance figures, exceptionally low power use in standby mode and the most compact size of any NVMe SSD.

“Our new NVMe SSD will allow for faster, ultra-slim notebook PCs with extended battery use, while accelerating the adoption of NVMe SSDs within the consumer marketplace,” said Jeeho Baek, Senior Vice President of Memory Marketing at Samsung Electronics. “Samsung will continue to stay a critical step ahead of others in the industry in introducing a diversity of next-generation SSDs, that contribute to an enhanced user experience through rapid popularization of ultra-fast, highly energy-efficient, compact SSDs.”