Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve already given you the leaked specs for the unannounced updates to Sony’s VAIO Z series of laptops. Now here’s what you haven’t heard: that SSD on the feature list is rather special, a “Quad SSD” in Sony language. To quote from the materials we’ve peeped, the Quad SSD is delineated as “SSD RAID0:64GB/128GB x 4.” What’s unclear is whether that means 4x 128GB or 64GB modules for either 512GB or 256GB of RAID 0 storage, or simply 4x flash modules totaling 128GB or 64GB of RAID 0 capacity. Presumably, it’s similar to devices like the PhotoFast GMonster Quad Drive (pictured, with four CF memory cards) that we’ve already seen. What we do know for sure, however, is that Sony’s Quad SSD features incredible throughput compared to a traditional 5400rpm hard disk. We’re talking about writing a 1GB file at about 4 seconds compared to 25 seconds on that same 5400rpm spinner. We’re also told that the VAIO Z will be the first to feature a backlit keyboard, something we’ve been missing from Sony’s previous generation of Zs. It’s CES kids so the truth is only hours away.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Sony VAIO Z to offer ultra-fast “Quad SSD” in RAID 0 configuration, backlit keyboard? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 16:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

We’ve already seen that early builds of Google’s Chromium OS can be hacked onto existing machines, but those Chrome OS netbooks that the software giant has planned for next year have remained curiously elusive until now. According to both IBTimes and Netbook News, the company is in talks with a number of outfits in order to bring at least a few sub-$300 options to the market that are well suited to power through its first non-mobile operating system. For starters, we’re told that the 10.1-inch machine will be ARM-based, while NVIDIA’s Tegra platform (likely the second generation) steers the graphical ship. There’s also promise of a multitouch panel (1,280 x 720 resolution), 64GB SSD, WiFi, 2GB of RAM, integrated 3G connectivity, Bluetooth, an Ethernet jack, an undisclosed amount of USB sockets, webcam, 3.5mm audio jack, a multi-card reader, a 4- or 6-cell battery and optional GPS. Wilder still, a $200 configuration could very well pop up, and it looks as if (at least initially) Google will sell the device(s) directly through its own website — much like Fusion Garage has done with the Joojoo tablet. ‘Course, it’ll still take some arm twisting to get the low-end crowd to try anything not labeled “Windows,” but if anyone can do it, it’s the company that inexplicably kept Gmail in “beta” for over five years.

Google’s Chrome OS-based netbook specs leak out originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Dec 2009 07:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Netbook News  |  IBTimes  | Email this | Comments

Now that’s a shocker, isn’t it? A gaming laptop that isn’t particularly friendly on your wallet? It’s true, Origin’s Eon18 is not the machine to consider if you’re ready to make the step up from a netbook but aren’t yet willing to step into quadruple-digit price tags. As tested by Laptop, the Eon18 was half-way to five-digits thanks to its $5,952 cost, but that money gets you a an Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9300 chip running at 2.53GHz, dual 160GB SSDs, a pair of GeForce GTX 280M graphics cards, a lovely airbrush job on the lid, and a power brick that on its own, at three pounds, weights more than some of the competition’s machines (no concerns about inadequate juice here). That configuration delivers unbeatable I/O performance but, when it came to the all-important gaming benchmarks, was found to be comparable to Alienware’s M17x, and thus not exactly worth the $1,000 premium — unless you really dig flame jobs.

[Thanks, Mark]

Origin’s Eon18 gaming laptop reviewed, found to be a great performer, not a great value originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 07:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Laptop  | Email this | Comments

We first heard of Seagate’s plans to enter the SSD market way back in mid 2007 and then again in 2008. Here we are in the final days of 2009 and guess what: the first Seagate SSD has been announced. Unfortunately, Seagate’s 2.5-inch SATA Pulsar SSD targets the raised-floor crowd locked away in your corporate data center, not you directly. The SLC-based Pulsar tops out at 200GB and claims a peak performance of 30,000 read IOPS and 25,000 write IOPS and a 240MBps sequential read and 200MBps sequential write — damn quick compared to Samsung’s enterprise-class SSDs released last year clocking 100MBps sequential reads and 80MBps writes. Hopefully, we’ll see Seagate push into the consumer sector once they finish milking corporate IT budgets, or what’s left of ’em.

Seagate’s first Pulsar SSDs ready to blast the enterprise originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Hot Hardware  | Email this | Comments

Seagate may have claimed the rights to the planet’s first SATA 6Gbps hard drive, but it’s Micron claiming the same feat in the SSD realm. The outfit’s new RealSSD C300 is the first of its kind to natively comply with the wicked fast new specification, which will (at least in theory) provide read speeds of up to 355MB/sec and write speeds of up to 215MB/sec. It’s also the first solid state drive to use ONFI 2.1 high-speed synchronous NAND, and while we’re obviously eager to see what real-world benchmarks show, the demonstration vids after the break already have our mouths watering. As for availability? Tthe drive is currently sampling in 1.8- and 2.5-inch sizes, though consumers shouldn’t expect to pick one up (in 128GB or 256GB sizes) until Q1 of next year. Best start saving, bud.

Continue reading Micron RealSSD C300 becomes first SSD to leverage SATA 6Gbps interface

Micron RealSSD C300 becomes first SSD to leverage SATA 6Gbps interface originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Hot Hardware  | Email this | Comments