Intel Corporation and Micron Technology Inc. today introduced a new, finer 20-nanometer (nm) process technology for manufacturing NAND flash memory. The new 20nm process produces an 8-gigabyte (GB) multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash device, providing a high-capacity, small form factor storage option for saving music, video, books and other data on smartphones, tablets and computing solutions such as solid-state drives (SSDs).

The growth in data storage combined with feature enhancements for tablets and smartphones is creating new demands for NAND flash technology, especially greater capacity in smaller designs. The new 20nm 8GB device measures just 118mm2 and enables a 30 to 40 percent reduction in board space (depending on package type) compared to the companies' existing 25nm 8GB NAND device. A reduction in the flash storage layout provides greater system level efficiency as it enables tablet and smartphone manufacturers to use the extra space for end-product improvements such as a bigger battery, larger screen or adding another chip to handle new features.

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Toshiba Corporation today announced the launch of the world's first series of Self-Encrypting Drives (SED) equipped with Wipe Technology, Toshiba's proprietary suite of security functions that bring an unsurpassed level of data protection to IT equipment. Wipe Technology allows users to determine a range of security settings, including invalidation of encryption keys and data invalidation when a drive is removed from its housing or connected to an unauthorized host system.

The five models in the 2.5-type MK6461GSYG family range from 160 gigabytes (GB) to 640GB and are designed for use in copiers, printers, POS systems, PCs and other IT devices. Sampling will start from the end of April with mass production following at the end of June.

IT departments must contend with various security risks, from lost and stolen PC through to compliance with increasingly strict privacy laws and regulations governing data security. These concerns also go beyond PCs. Today, most office copier and printing systems utilize HDD capacity and performance to support productivity and the security of recorded document image data that must be maintained. Furthermore, data invalidation required overwriting for hours or physically disrupting until now.

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Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, announced today its new family of hard disk drives, including two portable drives and a desktop storage station. Supporting the SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface, the new external hard drives can provide data transfer speeds of up to 5 gigabits per second, delivering a maximum 10-fold higher data transfer rate over the USB 2.0, allowing users to transfer a 25-gigabyte full HD movie in just four minutes.

Samsung's portable drives come in two designs, the entry-level M2 Portable and the premium C2 Portable 3.0. The M2 Portable comes with a wave-like matte finish that covers scratches and fingerprints, with curved sides for a comfortable grip. The drives are available in densities of up to 1 terabyte, USB 2.0/3.0 interface, and four colors: Brown Black, Noble Beige, Mist Gray and Clay Orange.

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Today, CDRLabs brings you a review of LG's new two-bay network storage device, the N2A2. While lacking a built in DVD or Blu-ray writer, this consumer oriented NAS makes up for it by offering 2TB of storage, a versatile RAID system and a long list of features including USB device backup, Apple Time Machine support, Torrent file sharing and a built in DLNA media server.