Archive for the ‘SuperspeedUsb’ Category

MacBook Air upgrade kit bumps capacity to 256GB, turns old module into USB 3.0 SSD

Sure, the only remotely user-replaceable component on the 11.6-inch MacBook Air are those tiny Toshiba SSDs, but PhotoFast’s got what might be one of the most elegant upgrade solutions we’ve ever seen. The Air USB 3 Adapter gives you not only a brand-spanking-new 256GB module with a Sandforce SF-1200 controller, but a speedy USB 3.0 flash drive too — which smartly doubles as the mechanism by which you move your old files over, as you can just transfer everything through the USB port. Once you’re done swapping modules, the company says you’ll see a 30 percent speed boost over the original drive, with reported transfer rates of 250MB/s on both sequential reads and writes. Shame the Japanese company didn’t specify any sort of estimated release date or price.

MacBook Air upgrade kit bumps capacity to 256GB, turns old module into USB 3.0 SSD originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 27 Oct 2010 04:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Engadget Japanese  |  PhotoFast  | Email this | Comments

USB 3.0 held back by lack of Intel chipset support?

Ruh roh. A senior tech manager at a “top tier PC maker” has come out with some entirely unofficial and equally ominous thoughts on what he (or she) sees as the tough road to proliferation for SuperSpeed USB. Pointing out that the new interconnect “won’t get real traction until it gets integrated in the chip sets,” the source opines that Intel won’t be offering motherboard integration before 2011 — an assertion Intel has declined to comment on. AMD and NVIDIA have been vocal critics of what they see as purposeful delays by the Pentium maker, and if this latest scuttlebutt is accurate, their wild finger-pointing will have been at least somewhat vindicated. Although Intel did release the 3.0 controller spec eventually, this wouldn’t be the first (or probably last) time when it has been seen to drag its feet where doing so is in its interest (eh hem, Light Peak). For our money, plenty of people who’ve been waiting for the new standard to show up in machines before pulling the trigger on an upgrade will be disappointed by such news, especially as 3.0 devices are just beginning to ship.

[Thanks, Jacob]

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops, Peripherals

USB 3.0 held back by lack of Intel chipset support? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments