Toshiba unveils new blade-style SSDs for portable devices

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There are some very tiny and thin profile devices on the market today like the new MacBook Air notebooks that Apple launched a few weeks ago. The thinner portable devices get, the thinner the hardware that goes inside has to be as well. Toshiba has unveiled a new type of SSD called the Blade X-Gale series. These SSDs look more like sticks of RAM than a SSD we typically think of.

The new SSDs are aimed at use in mini-mobile and netbook computers and give more flexibility in the design of computers thanks to their small form factor. The new SSD comes in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB capacities. All of the SSDs need 3.3V to operate and use the SATA 2.6 interface. The data speed of the drives is 220MB/s read and 180MB/s write. This is the style of drive Apple uses in the MacBook Air

The 64GB and 128GB versions measure 24mm W x 2.2mm H x 108.9mm L and the 256GB version is slightly larger at 24mm W x 3.7mm H x 108.9mm L. The smaller SSDs weigh 9.8g and the larger capacity weighs 13.2g and they all have a MTBF of 1 million times. The SSDs are 42% thinner than the typical mSATA form factor drive. The 256GB version has storage on both sides of the board.