IDF: Intel outlines solid state roadmap

Intel has promised to deliver its first solid state drives (SSDs) within the next month.

The X18-M and X-25M drives will initially ship in 1.8in and 2.5in form factors for the laptop and desktop sectors respectively.

They will hold 80GB but Intel intends to offer 160GB versions by the first quarter of 2009.

"We want to make it clear that we are in the solid state business," said Troy Winslow, marketing manager for the NAND group at Intel, at the Intel Developer Forum in San Franciso.

"This is just the first iteration of our roadmap. We will be developing a range of products for a variety of [market] segments."

Winslow claimed that the SSDs delivered between 30 and 34 minutes extra battery life in tests, thanks to better management of activity settings.

The new drives have been designed to work well with existing operating systems, according to Winslow, and Vista performed better than XP on the devices.

Intel will also bring out an SSD aimed at the server sector. The X25-E Extreme will arrive as a 32GB capacity drive in the next three months, and the company plans to release a 64GB version by the first quarter of 2009.