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- HDD/SSD
CDRLabs kicks off the week with a review of Samsung's new 850 EVO SSD. Optimized for everyday computing, the 850 EVO is available with up to 1TB of Samsung's 3-bit 3D V-NAND and, depending on the capacity, is powered by either the MEX or the new MGX controller. To compensate for the slow write speeds typically associated with 3-bit (TLC) NAND, the 850 EVO uses Samsung's TurboWrite write acceleration technology, which creates a high-performance write buffer in the SSD. It also supports Device Sleep (DEVSLP) for lower power consumption as well as self-encrypting drive (SED) technology that is TCG Opal 2.0 and IEEE-1667 compliant. Last, but not least, the 850 EVO supports Samsung's RAPID technology. By using free PC memory as a cache, RAPID can push the performance of the SSD beyond the limits of the current SATA specification.
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- DVD Writers
CDRLabs returns to its roots with a review of Samsung's latest portable DVD writer, the SE-208GB. This lightweight drive sports a new design that maximizes the ease of pressing the eject button by placing it on top of the case. The SE-208GB is capable of 8x DVD±R, 8x DVD+RW, 6x DVD-RW, 6x DVD±R DL and 5x DVD-RAM writing speeds and a maximum DVD read speed of 8x. The drive is also USB powered and features support for Samsung's AV Connectivity and Smart Archive technologies. When written on archival grade media, Smart Archive delivers a 30 year long data lifetime.
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- HDD/SSD
Today, CDRLabs brings you a review of Western Digital's new Wi-Fi enabled storage drive, the My Passport Wireless. Available in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB capacities, the My Passport Wireless broadcasts its own wireless network that allows up to eight devices to connect at the same time and access any content stored on the drive. The drive can also be used to share an internet connection with multiple devices and stream up to four HD videos simultaneously. If that weren't enough, the My Passport Wireless features a built-in SD card slot, rechargeable battery with 20 hours of standby time and an ultra-fast USB 3.0 port for when you need to transfer large amounts of data.
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- HDD/SSD
CDRLabs kicks off the week with a review of OCZ's ARC 100 solid state drive. Developed to deliver exceptional performance at an enticing price point, the ARC 100 is based on OCZ's Indilinx Barefoot 3 M10 controller. This cutting-edge controller is powered by both an ARM Cortex processor and OCZ's own Aragon co-processor and features an advanced, multi-level ECC engine, low write amplification, efficient garbage collection, and adaptive NAND flash management. The ARC 100 is also equipped with Toshiba's Advanced 19nm (A19) Toggle Mode MLC NAND flash and an extra large DRAM cache to deliver up to 490 MB/s read and 450 MB/s write speeds along with a maximum of 80,000 4KB random write IOPS.
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- HDD/SSD
Today, CDRLabs brings you a review of SanDisk's new Ultra II solid state drive. This easy, affordable upgrade solution is available in capacities ranging from 120GB up to a 960GB, and, depending on the capacity, is powered by one of two controllers from Marvell. The Ultra II is also the first SSD from SanDisk to use TLC NAND flash. To overcome the challenges typically associated with this type of NAND, the drive is equipped with SanDisk's new nCache 2.0 technology which utilizes a two-tiered caching architecture to optimize drive speed and endurance.
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- HDD/SSD
CDRLabs has taken an in depth look at Crucial's MX100 SSD. This consumer-oriented drive offers powerful speeds and advanced features at a low cost per gigabyte. The MX100 combines Marvell's 88SS9189 controller with a custom firmware and Micron's new 16nm 128gb NAND to deliver up to 550MB/s read and 500MB/s write speeds. The MX100 also offers a long list of features including AES 256-bit encryption, thermal and power loss protection, TRIM support and active garbage collection. Additionally, it uses Native Write Acceleration to deliver consistent throughput by spreading the drive’s workload across several elements. It also employs technologies like Data Defense and Redundant Array of Independent NAND (RAIN) to increase security and protection of data to a level that’s rarely found in consumer-class SSDs.
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- Network Storage
Today, CDRLabs brings you a review of QNAP's four-bay TS-x70 series Turbo NAS, the TS-470. Designed to meet the growing data needs of modern business environments, the TS-470 is powered by a high performance, dual-core Intel 2.6 GHz processor and is equipped with 2GB of DDR3 RAM and four Gigabit Ethernet ports to deliver up to 450 MB/s read and 423 MB/s write speeds. The TS-470 also offers a full range of applications for business use, including virtualization support, volume management, cross-platform file sharing, multiple backup and recovery options, and SSD caching. In addition, it gives businesses the ability to create their own private cloud with large storage capacity and Dropbox-style data synchronization.
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- HDD/SSD
Today, CDRLabs brings you a review of SanDisk's new Extreme PRO solid state drive. Designed with gamers, enthusiasts and media professionals in mind, this high-performance SSD is powered by Marvell's 88SS9187 "Monet" controller and is equipped with SanDisk's new 1Ynm eX2 ABL MLC Toggle NAND flash to deliver up to 550 MB/s sequential read and 520 MB/s sequential write speeds. The Extreme PRO also features a tiered caching system which combines a sizeable DRAM cache with the latest developments in SanDisk's nCache Pro technology. To deliver consistent high performance, nCache Pro uses a large non-volatile SLC cache to accumulate small writes at high speed and then flushes them to the larger MLC sections of the NAND flash memory array.
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- HDD/SSD
CDRLabs kicks off the week with a review of Samsung's 256GB 850 PRO SSD. First unveiled at the 2014 Samsung SSD Global Summit in Seoul, the 850 PRO is ideal for use in high-end PCs and workstations. The drive is powered by Samsung's own 3-core MEX controller and is available with up to 1TB of their second generation, 32-layer 3D V-NAND flash. The 850 PRO also supports Device Sleep (DEVSLP) for lower power consumption as well as self-encrypting drive (SED) technology that is TCG Opal 2.0 and IEEE-1667 compliant. To top it all off, it supports Samsung's RAPID (Real-time Accelerated Processing of I/O Data) technology. By using free PC memory as a cache, RAPID can push the performance of the SSD beyond the limits of the current SATA specification.
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- HDD/SSD
CDRLabs has taken an in depth look at Plextor's new 256GB M6S Series SSD, the PX-256M6S. This highly efficient, high-performance SSD combines Marvell's 88SS9188 "Monet Lite" controller with Toshiba's Advanced 19nm (A19) Toggle Mode MLC NAND to deliver up to 520MB/s read and 440MB/s write transfer rates. The M6S also features support for Plextor's exclusive True Speed technology as well as the Device Sleep (DEVSLP) standard which extends the battery life of a device by reducing the drive's power consumption to a mere 2 mW when it's not in use.
