Is flash storage = SSD?

[nexus14]

Apple has introduced flash storage to MBA
http://www.apple.com/macbookair/specs.html

My question is, what is flash storage and how is it different from SSD?

What are the performance differences from mechanical hard drives. We know SSDs are fast but how fast is flash storage?

Thank you!

 

[grapes911]

Solid-state drives (SSD) usually use NAND-based flash memory for storage. Flash and SSD are the same.

 

[periopdoc]

Except we now cannot drop in a bigger/ faster drive as they come to market.

- pod

 

[nexus14]

Solid-state drives usually use NAND-based flash memory for storage. Flash and SSD are the same.

Would it be reasonable to say that the flash storage format in MBA is proprietary?

 

[grapes911]

Would it be reasonable to say that the flash storage format in MBA is proprietary?

I haven't ready anything to confirm that, but I would guess so. At least proprietary in the sense that you couldn't easily drop a new drive in to the machine (like you can with a Mac Pro, MacBook, or most other computers). The flash technology itself is not really proprietary as many manufactures make them.

 

[potatis]

It was a 1.8" drive before, so therefore not so many options to exchange it to

 

[mark28]

Flash is not the same as SSD.

I have Flash in my ipod and USB sticks which is clearly not SSD for example.

The low end SSD are based on Flash memory. The fast SSD are on DRAM.

 

[grapes911]

Flash is not the same as SSD.

I have Flash in my ipod and USB sticks which is clearly not SSD for example.

The low end SSD are based on Flash memory. The fast SSD are on DRAM.

I'm under the impression that only the highest end SSD use DRAM and the majority of SSD out there being used are NAND-based flash memory. This is because DRAM SSDs eat more power than flash SSD and thus lose their attractiveness for notebooks and such. Am I way off here?

Also, flash and flash based SSD use the same technology to store data. I should have been more clear.

 

[dacapo]

What about the fact that it's soldered on to the motherboard?

Throughput times from an SSD are usually capped by eSata, no?

I would hope that the flash "drive" being used by the MBA would be faster since it doesn't (necessarily) have to go through an eSata interface.

 

[nexus14]

What about the fact that it's soldered on to the motherboard?

Throughput times from an SSD are usually capped by eSata, no?

I would hope that the flash "drive" being used by the MBA would be faster since it doesn't (necessarily) have to go through an eSata interface.

Is this true? Non-techie person here

 

[miknos]

I was looking for the same answers.

Is a SSD (with a sandforce controller) faster than the Apple memory option?

 

[potatis]

No I don't think Sata is a bottleneck because it allows at least 300mb/s (600mb/s on newer motherboards) so it wouldn't slow down SSD's.

 

[fyrefly]

I was looking for the same answers.

Is a SSD (with a sandforce controller) faster than the Apple memory option?

We're gonna have to wait till some reviewers do Disk Benchmarking on it.

It looked like there was a Toshiba SSD Controller chip on the Prototype Photo from Engadget. So it would be on par with an Indillinx/the Latest SSDs from Apple, which are all Toshiba and decently fast (though maybe not Sandforce fast).

Give it a day or two - someone will have benchmarks.