SanDisk has introduced the world's first backup USB flash drive with simple backup software activation at the touch of a button.With capacities up to 64 GB, the SanDisk Ultra Backup USB flash drive is designed to protect computer users' photos, music, videos, personal and business documents, and other types of digital files, with the touch of a button, with no software installation required. The drive protects onboard digital content with a dual layer of security, including password-protected access control and ultra-secure AES hardware-based encryption.

With no cables required or software to install, the new SanDisk Ultra Backup USB flash drive will have U3 Smart technology, developed by SanDisk, which allows applications to run from a SanDisk USB flash drive without having to be installed on a computer. PC-users can download a variety of both free and paid software, games and content by visiting www.u3.com, or byaccessing the SanDisk USB Program Wizard in the U3 Launchpad.

Among other bonus applications available for download is the Veoh Web Player for SanDisk, which enables users to watch, download and share Internet video content.

The SanDisk Ultra Backup drive will be available in April 2009 with a five-year limited warranty, in capacities from 8 GB - 64 GB with MSRPs ranging between $39.99 and $199.99.

SanDisk has announced that the SanDisk Cruzer Enterprise is the first secure USB flash drive to fully support Apple Mac OS X computers. Available now, SanDisk Cruzer Enterprise helps IT professionals more effectively protect information on company-issued secure USB drives in Macintosh environments.
"SanDisk Cruzer Enterprise is ideal for the millions of business users who use Macs at home or in the office," said Yariv Fishman, senior manager, product marketing management, enterprise division, SanDisk. "It combines a simple, user-friendly interfacewith the addition of SanDisk's tough security and ultra-fast transfer speeds. It's the first secure USB flash drive that provides full Mac support by allowing initialization of the drive directly on a Mac platform."

Cruzer Enterprise in Mac OS X and Windows PC environments has the same features and data security- even if used in both environments. The device can be initialized from either a Macintosh or Windows computer, where users can:

* Log in and shut down access to the encrypted storage area
* Change and manage passwords
* Change contact information, language and other preferences
* Launch online support, view current firmware and drive information

Available in 1-, 2-, 4- and 8GB configurations, Cruzer Enterprise supports Apple Macintosh computers running Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" and Mac OS X 10.5 "Leopard." Cruzer Enterprise safeguards all files stored on the drive with advanced hardware-based 256-bit AES USB encryption, which combined with advanced password protection will make it extremely difficult for unauthorized users to access data if the drive is lost or stolen. Existing Cruzer Enterprise users can download a firmware update at http://www.sandisk-enterprise.com/macupdater.No official pricing or time of availability has been released yet.

If solid state drives (SSDs) continue to march into the mainstream market, 2008 might very well one day be looked at as the start of the SSD era. But for that to happen, the performance numbers have to improve and users have to be convinced that the technology can be reliable on a long-term basis. Performance, which is supposed to SSD's strong point, has come under fire amid real-world benchmark comparisons, and as far as SanDisk is concerned, Vista is to blame.

Taking matters into its own hands, SanDisk has developed a new file system, ExtremeFFS, which the company claims has the potential to increase write performance by up to 100 times in SSDs over existing systems."To maximize random write performance, SanDisk developed the ExtremeFFS flash file management system," the company wrote in a press release. "This operates on a page-based algorithm, which means there is no fixed coupling between physical and logical location. When a sector of data is written, the SSD puts it where it is most convenient and efficient. The result is an improvement in random write performance – by up to 100 times – as well as in overall endurance."

ExtremeFFS allows NAND channels to work independently of each other, so while some might be reading data, others can be simultaneously writing. The technology also purports to "learn" user patterns and eventually localize data, which sounds a lot like advanced defragging routines. Admittedly, SanDisk senior VP and GM Rich Heye's concedes that it might not make a difference in benchmarks, but believes "it is the right thing to do for end-users."

In related news, SanDisk has also come up with a performance metric it is calling vRPM, or virtual RPM. The metric has been designed to let users know how fast a typical hard drive would need to spin to match the performance of an SSD, which would also allow for a performance comparison between SSDs.

SanDisk is bringing to market its 16GB microSDHC and Memory Stick Micro (M2) mobile memory cards - the world's largest storage capacity for mobile phones.The fingernail-sized 16GB memory cards allow consumers to "wake up" the many storage-intensive features offered by today's portable handsets such as music and video playback, high-definition digital camera functions, gaming and GPS applications. In addition to the mobile phone, consumers can use the 16 GB microSDHC card in a multitude of other devices, including a video camera, GPS receiver or a MP3 player with a microSD slot such as SanDisk's Sansa players."Handsets have become far more than just phones - they've become mobile jukeboxes, mobile offices, even mobile movie theaters," said Avi Greengart, Research Director for Mobile Devices at Current Analysis. "Flash memory cards have increased in storage capacity, but even an 8GB card may be too small for anyone with GPS map data, a few movies, a game or two, a presentation file and other applications. There is an acute need for more mobile storage capacity. 16GB gives consumers the ability to carry their digital content with them and still have room to do more with their mobile phones."

SanDisk's 16GB micro SDHC card has an MSRP of Rs. 4499 and the 16GB M2 card has an MSRP of Rs. 4999.

SanDisk's 16GB mobile memory cards will be available at Hot Spot Retail chain, Vijay sales and Croma in October with a five-year limited warranty.

As some of you might remember, Pretec launched back at CES one of the world's largest CompactFlash cards, providing 48 GB of storage space. Then, at CeBIT 2008, one of the company's representatives talked to Softpedia about the speed of their cards, which was far superior even to SanDisk's most impressive offerings.

However, that was a long time ago, so Pretec has decided that it was about time to upgrade its offering and launched several new cards, each of them breaking some sort of record, whether we're talking about storage capacity or speed.

First of all, the company released two CF models that offer 64GB and 100GB of storage space, respectively, which officially ranks them as the world's largest Compact Flash memory cards (or memory cards, period). While the access speed is not the main point of attraction of these new cards, it's actually not that bad, namely around 35MB/s (or 233X).But if it's speed you're looking for, then Pretec's got you covered. And that's because the company has also released two new CF cards (a 32GB and a 50GB, respectively), which can attain a maximum read/write speed of 50 MB per second, which makes them just about the fastest CompactFlash memory cards the world has ever seen.

It's also interesting to note that the Pretec CF 233X and 333X CF cards use metal housing and ruggedized construction to provide extensive ruggedness, while the Pretec 64GB CF cards can be configured or reused to make a 256GB SATA, the highest capacity 2.5-inch SSD out there, by using Pretec Q-SATA, a very innovative technology of flexible, scalable and modular SATA/PATA design based on up to 4 CF cards.

The new Pretec 233X 64GB and 333X 32GB CF cards should be available by the end of Photokina 2008, for prices ranging between $399 and $630, depending on the particular model. On the other hand, the 233X 100GB and 333X 50GB are expected to start shipping by the end of 2008.source : softpedia.com

Just as vinyl once gave way to compact discs as the main physical medium for music, could CDs be replaced now by a fingernail-sized memory card?Perhaps not entirely, but SanDisk Corp., four major record labels and retailers Best Buy Co. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. are hoping that albums sold on microSD memory cards will at least provide an additional stream of sales. The companies were expected to unveil plans Monday to sell memory cards loaded with music in the MP3 format, free of copy protections.

Called "slotMusic," the new format is meant to address two intertwined trends. Most albums are still sold in a physical format - 449 million were sold on CDs in 2007, while 50 million were sold digitally, according to Nielsen SoundScan - yet CDs are decreasingly popular. Albums sold on CD dropped almost 19 percent last year.Given this, the record labels - Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group Corp. and EMI Group PLC - are hoping slotMusic can be another physical revenue source - and one that is more versatile than CDs, given the kinds of gadgets people carry around these days.

Unlike when the CD was introduced and people had to buy new players, many people already have the ability to play slotMusic albums, since many cell phones and multimedia players support microSD cards.

These new albums will come with a small USB dongle that lets buyers use them with computers, too.

"Particularly in this kind of economic climate, the idea of being able to use an electronic device you already own to enjoy music rather than going out and buying a dedicated player is pretty compelling," said Daniel Schreiber, who heads the audio-video business unit at SanDisk, which created the microSD card format and is working on the technology behind slotMusic.

Schreiber said slotMusic albums will be sold on 1 gigabyte microSD cards, which means they will be able to hold a full album and related content such as liner notes and cover art. Buyers will be able to use extra space on the cards to hold songs and photos from their own collections.

The cards and dongles will come in boxes similar to current CD packaging, and Schreiber expects the cost of slotMusic releases to be "in the ballpark" of current CD prices.

It's not yet known exactly when - or how many - albums will be initially sold in the format, but Schreiber expects retailers to give a "sizable amount of shelf space" to slotMusic albums. The albums are expected to debut at multiple retailers, including Best Buy and Wal-Mart stores in the U.S., and later in Europe.

Rio Caraeff, executive vice president of Universal Music Group's eLabs digital music unit, said the label will initially release about 30 titles in the slotMusic format. The titles will include old and new albums, such as one by singer Akon.

"We want to provide the benefits of digital music to people who go to physical retail environments," he said.

Asked whether he sees the format taking the place of the CD, Caraeff said, "I think we would certainly hope that would be the case, but I don't think we are so tied to that."

NPD Group entertainment analyst Russ Crupnick sees a potential for slotMusic to emerge as a compelling format. He said the industry needs "desperately" to give people a new reason to head back into the music sections at brick-and-mortar stores.

"Not that we want them out of the gaming section, but once they're done looking at 'Guitar Hero' we want them to come look at the music section," he said.

Consumer electronics giant Samsung also happens to be the world’s premier NAND Flash memory manufacturer. It now aims to further strengthen its position by acquiring flash memory maker SanDisk, if reports in the Korean media are to be trusted. The rationale behind such a move is that an acquisition will not only bolster Samsung’s current flash memory production capacity but also save the company about $350 million annually – the amount Samsung pays SanDisk in royalties.SanDisk has been navigating through some rough financial weather lately, but still is coveted by couple of big companies. Of course, rumors of Seagate making a bid for the company have also been around. A possible acquisition would handover a considerable advantage to Seagate in the SSD market. SanDisk certainly seems to have a few takers.

SanDisk has launched a new line of SD memory cards that they claim can provide users with up to 30 megabytes per second for file transfers and that’s nothing to sneeze at. The new card range is called - SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s Edition line. The new cards, will be available in 4GB, 8GB and 16GB capacities and are designed to deliver peak performance when used with the new digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera, Nikon D90.

The Nikon D90 is the industry’s first DSLR camera to support SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s Edition SDHC cards at increased performance. Featuring a 50-percent speed boost from previous 20MB/s cards, the new SanDisk card makes it possible to record 39 images in continuous shooting mode at 4.5 frames per second with a file size of 6.0 MB.“The high capacities and performance of the SanDisk Extreme III 30MB/s Edition SDHC cards give users the freedom to shoot lots of high-resolution photos and video clips,” said Susan Park, director of consumer product marketing for SanDisk’s performance cards.

Beyond their high capacities and performance levels, all SanDisk Extreme III cards are capable of functioning in temperatures, from -13 to 185 degrees Fahrenheit or -25 to 85 degrees Celsius. The cards also carry a lifetime limited warranty. SanDisk Extreme III SDHC 30MB/s Edition cards, which have a Class 6 performance rating, are fully backwards-compatible; working in any camera, card reader or other device that supports SDHC cards.SanDisk Extreme III SDHC 30MB/s Edition cards are expected to be available in India by October. The manufacturer’s suggested retail price is Rs. 2,499 for the 4GB card, Rs. 4,499 for the 8GB card, and Rs. 8,999 for the 16GB card.

With the all the brouhaha surrounding solid state drives (SSDs), there remains a question of exactly how big of a performance advantage flash memory really holds over today's hard drives. On paper, most SSDs scream ahead in both read and write speeds, but real-world benchmarking paints a different picture. So why the discrepancy? At SandDisk, they're blaming Vista. The company's CEO, Eli Harari, says SSD "performance in the Vista environment falls short of what the market really needs. Vista is not optimized for flash memory solid-state disks."It's not hard to find fault with Vista, but blaming the OS for underperforming SSDs qualifies as a new one that even Apple hasn't yet exploited in its many mocking commercials. To be fair, Harari made the statement as part of a pitch to improve SSDs' next generation controllers, which he says "need to compensate for Vista's shortfalls." Because of this need, the company claims it is behind schedule bringing competitive SSDs to market.

Is SanDisk justified in pointing the finger at Vista?

SanDisk has announced the availability of SanDisk Mobile Ultra, microSD, microSDHC and Memory Stick Micro (M2) flash mobile memory cards. These cards are a part of SanDisk’s “Wake Up Your Phone” series for multimedia. The cards come bundled with a MobileMate Micro Reader that plugs directly into a USB 2.0 port.
“This product launch further proves SanDisk’s ability to anticipate changing user needs and provide the market with the right mobile storage solutions at the right time.” said David Kerr, vice president mobile research, Strategy Analytics.Michael Romero, vice president of Mobile Retail Business, SanDisk, said, “SanDisk’s new Mobile Ultra line will make consumers’ digital lifestyle more manageable by offering them greater ability to quickly transfer photos, maps, music, videos, games and other large file size content wherever they go. These cards are truly the most convenient way for people to store, move and play content using their mobile phones, so we’re excited to introduce this high-performance, premium product to market to meet this need and growing demand.”
The SanDisk Mobile Ultra microSDHC are available in 2GB, 4GB and 8GB capacities and are priced at Rs. 1,492 ($34.99), Rs. 2,558 ($59.99) and Rs. 5,117 ($119.99) respectively. The Mobile Ultra Memory Stick Micro M2 are also available in the same capacities and are priced at Rs. 1,705 ($39.99) for the 2GB, Rs. 2,985 ($69.99) for the 4GB and Rs. 5,543 ($129.99) for the 8GB models. The SanDisk Mobile Ultra cards also come with a 10-year limited warranty.

As the first of a new category of storage media, SanDisk launched the Video HD cards to be available in SDHC (high-capacity) and Memory Stick PRO Duo formats, and will be identified by minutes of recording time as well as by capacity.
"The SanDisk Video HD line takes the mystery out of selecting the proper memory for these new camcorders," said Susan Park, senior product marketing manager for SanDisk's Cards and Accessories Division. "The bright red packaging and the bold labeling of recording times give consumers an easy way to select memory cards for video." The cards are designed to be high performance and optimized for high-definition camcorders, but they can also be used in recording standard video. "Further, the cards work well in point-and-shoot digital still cameras that have video capabilities", she added.The market for flash-enabled camcorders is expected to grow in popularity. Research company IDC predicts that by 2011, some 37 percent of global camcorder shipments will be models that record onto memory cards, and well over half of camcorders will feature HD video capture. "With HD video quickly penetrating the category, it will be critical for vendors to provide seamless recording experiences," said Christopher Chute, research manager of IDC's worldwide digital imaging practice. "The SanDisk Video HD card is well-positioned to service this expanding market by simplifying the memory message for consumers," he added.

The SanDisk Video HD cards are expected to be available starting in March for North America and shortly afterwards for Europe. They will be offered in 60-minute (4GB) and 120-minute (8GB) times – on the HD Standard setting – for both SDHC and Memory Stick PRO Duo formats. Suggested retail prices are $79.99 and $139.99, respectively, for the 4GB and 8GB SDHC cards, and $79.99 and $149.99, respectively, for the Memory Stick PRO Duo cards.