Introduction

mSATA is about to blow up this year. This tiny form factor that was once an enabler of small netbook devices is starting to make its way into notebooks and even desktop systems. For the most part notebooks ship with a single 2.5", notebook standard HDD, but these days informed users want a SSD for their OS and a large HDD for their long term storage needs. To make this happen, manufacturers are turning to the mSATA standard so users can install a small, yet high speed SSD and still retain their 2.5" space for a higher capacity HDD.

Just recently we previewed the Patriot Torqx and introduced you to the new Phison PS3105-S5 SSD controller. This new product from Phison has been talked about quite a bit around the virtual water cooler and is a contender for the mainstream budget minded consumer SSD crown for 2011. The controller packs some impressive specifications for its price range and target market. More impressive, though, is that manufacturers are already starting to get creative with the controller and MyDigitalSSD has taken this controller to mSATA land.

MyDigitalSSD, part of the MyDigitalDiscount e-tail group is the first to offer an mSATA Phison based SSD. This product is designed to replace slow SSDs that are currently shipping in notebooks and to add an SSD in notebooks that ship with an unpopulated mSATA dock. So far I've come up with this list of compatible products. This list is not a complete list, but it's a starting point.

- ASUS Eee Slate EP121
- Dell: M4500, M6400, M6500
- Fusion Garage JOOJOO
- Google: CR-48 Chrome
- Lenovo: K26, K47A, K47G
- Lenovo IdeaPad: Y460, Y560
- Lenovo ThinkPad: T420S, T420, T520, L420, L520, W520
- Lenovo ThinkPad Edge: E220s, E420s, Y460, Y560

As you can see, the list is already impressive and filled with products from quality manufacturers. mSATA is just starting to get off the ground, but this is a very good start.