Look, Ma – No Hard Drive!

Larry Magid Tries Out PCs With Solid State Flash Drives

(CBS)  I'm writing this column on a computer that looks and acts pretty much like most other notebook PCs running Microsoft Windows. It has a typical screen and keyboard, it's running Microsoft Office and other standard Windows applications and it's equipped with an Intel processor.

But there is one thing missing. The machine I'm using doesn't have a hard drive. Where the drive would normally be located, there is a 32 gigabyte solid state flash drive. The machine, from a non-disclosed PC vendor, is a prototype that isn't yet on the market.

Samsung, which makes the memory but not the PC, says it will soon offer 64 gigabyte drives. Dell already offers a 32 gigabyte solid state drive as an option, albeit an expensive one, on some of its Latitude notebook PCs.

While even 64 GB is far below the capacity of the hard drives used in many of today's notebook PCs, it's an adequate amount of storage for Windows XP or Vista, numerous applications and typical storage requirements for many business users.

The 32 gigabyte PC I tested had enough room for Windows XP, Microsoft Office and several applications with 12 gigabytes left over for data storage. I wouldn't recommend a drive like this for someone with a lot of video and audio files, but for a road warrior who's interested in web surfing, email and a few gigabytes of data files, it's more than enough capacity.

One of the advantages of solid state storage became evident as soon as I turned on the machine. It booted Windows much faster than a machine with a hard drive. Because memory has no moving parts, there's no need to wait for a drive to spin up and for a mechanical read/write head to reach the right place on the disk.

The machine I tested was also faster in starting and quitting applications, loading data files and even shutting down, again because reading and writing from memory is faster than accessing a mechanical drive.

Even web surfing is faster because the flash drive doesn't have to pull stored (cached) websites off a hard drive. Samsung says that its solid state drives have twice the data read speed as do typical hard drives.

Another advantage is that solid state drives are more energy-efficient than hard drives because there are no moving parts. Samsung estimates that they will yield up to 10% more battery life on mobile PCs.

Solid state drives are also more rugged. Hard drives are probably the least reliable component on a typical PC, especially a notebook PC which is subject to being dropped or at least jolted as it's carried around or placed on a desk.

Shaking or jarring a hard drive while it's writing to a disk can have devastating results. Although no storage technology is 100% reliable, with a solid state drive, you don't have to worry about the read/write head crashing against the drive platters.

Other advantages are that they weigh less and take up less space, generate less heat and are silent. I can hear the hard drive spinning in my own notebook PC but the solid state unit I'm testing makes no sounds at all during normal operations. There is a fan that comes on only when necessary but most of the time it's silent.

Samsung is competing with SanDisk, which also currently offers 32 gigabyte drives and has announced a 64 GB drive for shipment later this year. Right now, SanDisk is selling through Dell.

If you look at drive options on some of Dell's Latitude notebook PCs, you'll see a "32 GB Solid State Drive" for an extra $549. That's $549 more than Dell charges for a basic 60 GB hard drive and $200 more than the cost of a 160 GB hard drive. Another way to look at it is that Dell charges than $17.15 a gigabyte for its solid state drive compared to $5.81 a GB for its largest capacity notebook hard drive.

SanDisk VP of Sales Scott Deutsch expects prices to come down as capacity increases. His company is already working on 128 and 256 GB solid state drives but they'll be very expensive when they first hit the market. As a general rule, capacity of solid state memory increases about 40 to 50% a year.

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A syndicated technology columnist for over two decades, Larry Magid serves as on air Technology Analyst for CBS Radio News. His technology reports can be heard several times a week on the CBS Radio Network. Magid is the author of several books including "The Little PC Book."

[bobnjersey]

who's working on securing the data (for when it fails) that i put on this thing ... is there anybody ... anybody at all. my lost data will screw me just as bad w/ a solid state drive as w/ the spinning one.

what's that you say ... this is much more reliable ... better than that last thing i bought ... much faster ... prices will come down soon?

i'm so effient now ... how can it possibly get any more so.

[emilymhanson]

Bob in New Jersey, that's why you make backups. As any geek should know, there is currently NO 100% safe means of storing data. That may change at some point in the future, but right now, it is the case.

[bobnjersey]

[Bob in New Jersey, that's why you make backups]
[Posted by emilymhanson at 08:58 AM : Jul 17, 2007]

i have layers of backups ... and i still get screwed ... the primary company who's *** me has 70 billion in the bank ... and the guy who runs the company ... he's the richest guy on the planet.

[incog-nito]

Don't just back up to one location. I have two portable USB drives for backup. I like portables because they shut down when the computer goes to sleep mode. Most plugged-in drives stay on all the time. As an extra precaution I also use online backup. Try mozy.com for free 2GB backup.

[boston1954]

I am pretty happy with what I have just now. AND even if I weren't, I can't afford the latest in computers or anything else for that matter.

[bwessels]

i have layers of backups ... and i still get screwed ... the primary company who's *** me has 70 billion in the bank ... and the guy who runs the company ... he's the richest guy on the planet.
[bobnjersey]

When you finally get fed up with keeping caviar on the table for the richest guy on the planet, buy a Macintosh. The next version of Mac OS will feature an always-on, automatic backup called "time machine" that will let you restore data from any time you choose.

Mac OS also supports 99.99% fewer viruses than Windoze.

[duffyn]

I've been talking about this for years and years and it's finally here! It's ALL memory - no moving parts and, oh yes, fast fast fast!

[mullinsme--2008]

So what's new? Owners of older Mac Powerbooks have been doing this for years. A Powerbook 5300 can even boot from a flash drive in the PC card slot, then the regular hard drive can be shut down by dragging its icon to the trash. If an alias of the hard drive is created on the flash drive, you can reactivate the hard drive when needed, to access the more economical storage there.

The military have also used flash storage, because light weight, low power draw, and resistance to shock are more important than the high cost for field use.

[michellem99-2009]

I read some ehere there will have one for the pc I do that as the Brits do as PC is their cops and pc is their home computer. It is a matter of time and the home computer will use it. That day is coming. And I am not a Miss know it all. I read it.

[toolmangler-2009]

When I first started in computers, if you carried a box of 5 1/4 inch floppys you had the newest tech there was, (sigh) now I carry a multi gigabyte flashdrive in my pocket just for show and tell. (double sigh)...

[toolmangler-2009]

Mac OS also supports 99.99% fewer viruses than Windoze.
Posted by sanevoice at 01:56 PM : Jul 17, 2007


Not right, Mac supports all viruses that were written for it as does the PC. ergo more PC's than mac's More PC viruses than Macs viruses. Mac's are just as vulnerable as PC's to viruses but PC's are more abundant.

[GatorOnLine]

Hey everyone, AOL offers 5 gig storage online at
xdrive.com FREE.

Check It Out

[nothappyatall]

That's right, MAC's do not have the problems with virus, worms, executables etc that pc's do.
I've had multiple MACs for the last 10 years, none ever had anti virus software, NONE ever had any problem and I do a LOT on the net.
I've never had a drive failure either, I replace them once a year, back them up to a new drive and archive the removed one away.
I also back everything up to my other machines as well as 2 external drives.