Western Digital announces the WD Blue 3D NAND SATA SSD and SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD

Western Digital today announced the availability of the WD Blue 3D NAND SATA SSD and SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD in Malaysia. The new SSDs are the world's first client solid state drives built with the company's 64-layer 3D NAND technology.

High Capacity with Enhanced Reliability & Battery Life

The 64-layer 3D NAND technology allows higher capacity storage than the previous generation SSDs. Now the new WD Blue and SanDisk Ultra SSD have up to 2 TB storage capacity. Apart from higher capacity, the new technology also helps to reduce cell-to-cell interference for enhanced reliability at the same time reducing the active power draw up to 25%.

Then, of course, through the SATA interface, it allows up to sequential read and write speed of 560 MB/s and 530 MB/s respectively.

Pricing & Availability

The WD Blue 3D NAND SATA SSDs and SanDisk Ultra 3D SSDs will be available in 2.5-inch (7mm) cased drive form factor with the following storage options:

• 250 GB - RM 620
• 500 GB - RM 1,100
• 1 TB - RM 2,000
• 2 TB - RM 3,800

The WD Blue SanDisk Ultra 3D SSDs also available in single-sided M.2 2280 form factor with the following storage options:

• 250 GB - RM 640
• 500 GB - RM 1,150
• 1 TB - RM 2,100
• 2 TB - RM 3,950

Every WD Blue 3D NAND SATA SSD & SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD comes with a 3-year limited warranty.

Western Digital Announces Four-Bits-Per-Cell Technology on 3D NAND - 50% Capacity Increase Over Three-Bits-Per-Cell Architecture

Western Digital Corp. today announced its successful development of four bits per cell, X4, flash memory architecture offering on 64-layer 3D NAND, BiCS3, technology. Building on its pioneering innovation of X4 for 2D NAND technology and past success in commercializing it, the company has now developed X4 for 3D NAND by leveraging its deep vertical integration capabilities. These include silicon wafer processing, device engineering to provide sixteen distinct data levels in every storage node, and system expertise for overall flash management. BiCS3 X4 technology delivers an industry-leading storage capacity of 768 gigabits on a single chip, a 50 percent increase from the prior 512 gigabit chip that was enabled with the three bits per cell (X3) architecture. Western Digital will showcase removable products and solid-state drives built with BiCS3 X4 and systems capabilities in August at the Flash Memory Summit in Santa Clara, California.

“The implementation of X4 architecture on BiCS3 is a significant development for Western Digital as it demonstrates our continued leadership in NAND flash technology, and it also enables us to offer an expanded choice of storage solutions for our customers,” said Dr. Siva Sivaram, executive vice president, Memory Technology, Western Digital. “The most striking aspect in today’s announcement is the use of innovative techniques in the X4 architecture that allows our BiCS3 X4 to deliver performance attributes comparable to those in BiCS3 X3. The narrowing of the performance gap between the X4 and X3 architectures is an important and differentiating capability for us, and it should help drive broader market acceptance of X4 technology over the next several years.”

This latest achievement follows a nearly three-decade long legacy of industry firsts in flash innovation, including the industry’s multi-level cell (MLC) flash technologies using two bits (X2) and three bits (X3) per cell.

The company expects to productize its 3D NAND X4 technology across multiple end-use applications that can take advantage of the higher capacity points supported by X4. Future generations of 3D NAND technology, including the 96-layer BiCS4, are also expected to feature X4 capabilities.

Western Digital Unveils Its First WD Portable SSD, Price Starts From RM579

Western Digital Corporation today introduced its fastest WD® brand portable driveyet, the My Passport™ SSD. Featuring blazing-fast speeds and award-winning design, the new My Passport SSD compliments the company’s leading portfolio of My Passport palm-sized storage devices. Designed for content creators and tech enthusiasts, the new My Passport SSD combines exceptional speed and portability to manage massive files on the go. 

“The WD brand is focused on delivering fresh, new personal storage devices that offer amazing performance in a beautiful, yet durable design,”said Sven Rathjen, vice president of marketing, Client Solutions, Western Digital. “Our fastest portable drive yet, the My Passport SSD is a powerful solution for people who need to move content quickly and easily wherever life takes them.” 

A New State of Storage 

Featuring speeds of up to 515 MB/s*, the My Passport SSD is the fastest My Passport drive offered by the WD brand. The new, super fast drive is designed for the latest generation of computers with a USB Type-C™ port and is USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10Gb/s) ready with a USB Type-C to Type-C cable and an adapter to use with the more traditional USB Type-A ports found on many computers. Built for PC and compatible with Mac, My Passport SSD offers peace-of-mind with 256-bit AES hardware encryption and password protection, and is also 6.5-foot drop tested for shock-resistance to withstand 1500G of force, to help keep precious data safe. 

My Passport SSD is the perfect storage solution to rapidly manage large photo and video libraries, quickly back up files and important documents, run virtual machines from, or expand your SSD-laptop storage anywhere you take your computer. The new drive is available in 1TB, 512GB and 256GB capacities**, and comes with WD Backup™ software that enables users to automatically back up their stuff. 

Pricing and Availability

The My Passport SSD is backed by a three-year limited warranty, and will be available at select retailers and distributors starting 07 July 2017. The My Passport SSD has a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of RM2,099/1TB, RM1,039/512GB and RM579/256GB, respectively. Western Digital partners online retailer, Lazada with an exclusive launch to offer consumers with a special 2-week promotion starting today until 06 July 2017. For more information on the promotion, please visit http://bit.ly/2rC2aZt. 

For more information of My Passport SSD, including terms of the limited warranty, please visit the company website at https://www.wdc.com/products/portable-storage/my-passport-ssd.html.

Western Digital Now Offers 10TB WD Gold Enterprise-Class Hard Drives

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC), a world leader in storage solutions, today announced a new, high-capacity configuration of up to 10TB for its award-winning WD Gold™ datacenter hard drives. Designed for modern enterprise storage systems, WD Gold 10TB datacenter hard drives feature HelioSeal® helium-technology for high capacity, power efficient storage for datacenter environments.

WD Gold datacenter hard drives are designed for a broad range of applications – including small- to medium-scale enterprise servers and storage, and rack-mount datacenter servers and storage enclosures. WD Gold 10TB datacenter hard drives feature an optimized design over the existing WD Gold 8TB drives that helps reduce TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) of servers and storage systems through an 8 percent operating power reduction while delivering 25 percent more capacity. This benefits IT administrators challenged with keeping up with growing storage demands on limited budgets.

“It is Western Digital’s on-going goal to provide superior reliability and compelling value to the our enterprise customers,” said Brendan Collins, vice president of product marketing, Western Digital. “WD Gold drives are a key component of the overall WD portfolio, providing power efficient, capacity-optimized storage for a wide range of high workload applications. The new 10TB capacity enables customers to efficiently deploy higher density storage solutions.” 

WD Gold 10TB datacenter hard drives provide: 

• Improved power efficiency – HelioSeal Technology delivers lower power with an increase in capacity. Power efficiency (watts/TB) during operation is improved up to 26 percent over the WD Gold 8TB drive. 
• Better performance – Up to 21 percent sequential performance improvement over WD Gold 8TB datacenter drives 
• High reliability – WD Gold drives incorporate best-of-breed design, manufacturing and test processes to achieve one of the highest reliability ratings in the industry – 2.5 million hours MTBF (8TB and 10TB offerings) 
• Dedicated Premium Support Line – Western Digital offers a 24/7 premium support line for WD Gold drive customers and can be reached at U.S.: (855) 559-3733; International: +80055593733. 

WD Gold 10TB hard drives (model number WD101KRYZ) are currently available at select retailers and distributed by Eternal Asia (M) Sdn Bhd in Malaysia. The Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) for the WD Gold 10TB is RM3,499.00. More information about the WD Gold hard drives and terms of the limited warranty may be found on the company website at www.wd.com.

Western Digital Expands Storage Capacity Of Several Drives In The My Passport® Line Up To 4tb Providing New Capacity For The Industry’s Iconic Brand

Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) today announced the launch of its My Passport® Ultra, and upcoming My Passport for Mac portable hard drives, with up to 4TB capacity, filling the need for people to physically carry massive personal collections of videos, photos and other content with them, in a device roughly the size of a smartphone. The perfect blend of style and functionality, these My Passport® portable hard drives meet the needs of today’s consumers with features people love like easy-to-use backup software, password protection and portable style in multiple colors, coupled with USB 3.0 connectivity. 

Perfect for students, business people and general consumers on-the-go who prefer to carry their device with them, these My Passport portable hard drives are dependable, with easy-to-use WD Backup™ automatic backup software with cloud-ready Dropbox™ integration and 256-bit AES hardware encryption with password protection to help safeguard against unauthorized drive access. With these My Passport drives, it's now easier than ever to have a content protection plan that fits everyone’s busy life.

“The increasingly mobile lifestyle has consumers capturing their lives with smartphones and high-resolution cameras, growing their personal content collections and creating demand for even more storage capacity,” says Sven Rathjen, vice president of marketing, content solutions, Western Digital. “At WD, we’re committed to providing our consumers with space to take their digital lives with them through high-capacity and high-quality devices.”

Pricing and Availability

My Passport Ultra 4TB portable hard drives have a 3-year limited warranty and are available at select retailers and distributed by Eternal Asia (M) Sdn Bhd in Malaysia. The Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) for the My Passport Ultra 4TB is RM699.00.

Western Digital Announces World’s First 64 Layer 3d Nand Technology

Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC) today announced that it has successfully developed its next generation 3D NAND technology, BiCS3, with 64 layers of vertical storage capability. Pilot production of the new technology has commenced in the Yokkaichi, Japan joint venture facilities and initial output is expected later this year. Western Digital expects meaningful commercial volumes of BiCS3 in the first half of calendar 2017.

“The launch of the next generation 3D NAND technology based on our industry-leading 64 layer architecture reinforces our leadership in NAND flash technology,” said Dr. Siva Sivaram, executive vice president, memory technology, Western Digital. “BiCS3 will feature the use of 3-bits-per-cell technology along with advances in high aspect ratio semiconductor processing to deliver higher capacity, superior performance and reliability at an attractive cost. Together with BiCS2, our 3D NAND portfolio has broadened significantly, enhancing our ability to address a full spectrum of customer applications in retail, mobile and data center.”

BiCS3, which has been developed jointly with Western Digital’s technology and manufacturing partner Toshiba, will be initially deployed in 256 gigabit capacity and will be available in a range of capacities up to half a terabit on a single chip. Western Digital expects volume shipments of BiCS3 for the retail market in the fourth calendar quarter of 2016 and to begin OEM sampling this quarter. Shipments of the company’s previous generation 3D NAND technology, BiCS2, continue to customers in retail and OEM.