After biding its time for a couple of years, memory manufacturer Corsair has now decided that it also wants a share of the solid state disk (SSD) pie. The company has just introduced its first SSD, the S128, which Corsair says is the first in a new range of SSDs.

The S128 is primarily targeted at the mainstream market, and has what appear to be comparatively conservative read and write speeds of 90MB/sec and 70MB/sec respectively. However, Corsair was keen to point out that there’s more than meets the eye when it comes to quoted read and write speeds. Unlike many multi-level cell (MLC) SSDs, not including Intel’s, the S128 features a Samsung controller, as opposed to the often-used JMicron 602 controller.

This could prove to be a very wise decisionon Corsair’s part, as SSDs with the JMicron 602 controller, such as OCZ’s Core series, have proven to write at almost half the speed of drives based on Samsung controllers in some tests, with reports of the controller causing pausing and stuttering when handling random write tasks. This also corresponds with our own tests, in which an OCZ Core SSD failed to live up to OCZ’s quoted write speed of 93MB/sec, dropping down to 32.4MB/sec in our write speed tests.

As such, Corsair is confident that its S128 drive will be able to meet its quoted read and write speeds, although it will cost more than the aforementioned drives based on the JMicron 602 controller. As well as the Samsung controller, the drive will also feature 128GB of specially-selected Samsung NAND chips.

Corsair also promises that faster drives will be on their way in the future, although no details have been revealed as yet. In the meantime, the S128 is now available for pre-order from Scan for £326.54 inc VAT.

Memory-supremo Cosair already has itself a set of blazing-fast tri-channel DDR3 DOMINATOR modules operating at 1,866MHz, but now it's teasing something new...

Officially unveiled today and expected at retail in the "very near future" are a set of mean-looking modules that'll go by the name of DOMINATOR GT.

The kit, pictured below in tri-channel form for Intel's X58 platform, consists of three 2GB modules that'll hit 2,000MHz at just 1.65V with low latencies of 7-8-7-20. That's pretty damn fast, and the low voltageshould leave ample room for pushing these beauties a whole lot further.
We're almost certain to see benchmark-smashing results when these arrive on the scene, and though there's no mention of price just yet, they're likely to make holes in even the thickest of wallets. We'll take a guess and say $650 or more.

Corsair a worldwide leader in high performance computer and flash memory products, announced today that it is launching a full line of DDR3 performance memory products designed for Intel® CoreTM i7 processor.

Corsair will offer memory solutions supporting three different DDR3 memory speeds in triple memory packs: 1333MHz, 1600MHz and 1866MHz. Each memory speed will feature kits of three 1 Gigabyte or 2 Gigabyte modules for a total of 3 Gigabyte or 6 Gigabyte kits. The 1600MHz and 1866MHz DDR3 memory kits will also feature Corsair?s patented Dual-Path Heat Exchange (DHX) technology for maximum performance and reliability.Corsair?s DDR3-1333 part is available immediately in both 3x1GB and 3x2GB densities. With today?s modern programs utilizing more memory than ever before, Corsair recommends 6GB for optimum performance on the Intel CoreTM i7 platform. Next to launch will be the Dominator DDR3-1600MHz kit, with the DDR3-1866MHz kits to follow just before the official launch of the Intel CoreTM i7 processor.

TR3X6G1866C9DF - 6GB Kit, 1866MHz, DOMINATOR with Airflow fan - $475
TR3X3G1866C9D - 3GB Kit, 1866MHz DOMINATOR with Airflow fan - $250
TR3X6G1600C8D - 6GB Kit, 1600MHz DOMINATOR - $300
TR3X3G1600C8D - 3GB Kit, 1600MHz DOMINATOR - $175
TR3X6G1333C9 - 6GB Kit, 1333MHz - $230
TR3X3G1333C9 - 3GB Kit 1333MHz - $120