Any upcoming developments that will affect NAND/SSD pricing?

[Pandamonium]

I haven't been following the SSD news too much lately. I've read enough to identify what SSD would fit my needs if I had the funds and needed to upgrade right now. I have a 80GB G2, and I would consider only the 320 series since I use an April 2010 Macbook Pro. SATA3 isn't supported and Sandforce sounds like it still has some firmware issues with OS X.

Anyway, I don't think I would buy-in unless it were <= $1.5/GB. Even then, I might need some coaxing to pull the trigger. At $1/GB, I wouldn't hesitate.

So I realize that SSD prices depend largely on NAND pricing, and NAND pricing depends on supply/demand and yield/wafer. About when should the next round of die shrinks result in cheaper SSD street-pricing? Something as vague as 1H/2012 is good enough for me. I just want to know when I should start catching up on SSD news again.

 

[LokutusofBorg]

I don't think it's completely driven by NAND spot pricing. There are several developments in the budget SSD space that will take shape over the next several months that will probably bring solid offerings in that magical price range between $1 and $2 per gigabyte. You can already find sales of existing drives that hit those price points.

Now if you're talking about high-end SSDs hitting those price points, then... I have nothing to offer. I don't see that happening for a couple years here, and it'll probably only happen if another major NAND producer steps into the market, or a NAND replacement shows its face.

 

[Pandamonium]

Yeah I've noticed some of the Kingstons have been hovering near $1.3/GB or so with rebates. My gripe with them is that the capacities are too low to make it a worthwhile upgrade for me. I don't particularly care for the high end. I don't have SATA3, and I'm not willing to pay a premium for it anyway.

Are Kingstons still Intel rebadges? If I see a 160+ GB kingston deal, I might jump on it. I don't need extra performance- I need extra capacity.

Frankly, if some reseller would clear out 160 GB G2s for ~$200, I'd bite. The last I checked, a 160 GB G2 still sells for $400-ish, and a 128 GB C300 clocks in around $200.

 

[LokutusofBorg]

Well, I may get raked over the coals with the sentiment on these forums lately, but I've been running a Vertex 2 at work for like a year now, and have had zero problems. There are definitely some deals out there for the price range you mentioned, and there are more coming on the market. The Agility series as well as the Indilinx stuff that will be coming soon. If you're averse to OCZ like so many then just ignore me.

 

[Pandamonium]

Yeah I've noticed some of the Kingstons have been hovering near $1.3/GB or so with rebates. My gripe with them is that the capacities are too low to make it a worthwhile upgrade for me. I don't particularly care for the high end. I don't have SATA3, and I'm not willing to pay a premium for it anyway.

Are Kingstons still Intel rebadges? If I see a 160+ GB kingston deal, I might jump on it. I don't need extra performance- I need extra capacity.

Frankly, if some reseller would clear out 160 GB G2s for ~$200, I'd bite. The last I checked, a 160 GB G2 still sells for $400-ish, and a 128 GB C300 clocks in around $200.

 

[RU482]

Well, I may get raked over the coals with the sentiment on these forums lately, but I've been running a Vertex 2 at work for like a year now, and have had zero problems. There are definitely some deals out there for the price range you mentioned, and there are more coming on the market. The Agility series as well as the Indilinx stuff that will be coming soon. If you're averse to OCZ like so many then just ignore me.

it's amazing how the masses get all up in arms over loss of their data. On the plus side...At least someone out there hasn't been burned by the O

 

[Pandamonium]

I've seen reports of Sandforce not playing nice with OS X. Frankly, I'd rather not chance anything, since this is my primary (and only) machine. I can't remember if Indilinx had similar problems. All I remember is that the C300/m400 and Intel were the most hassle-free of the bunch.

What I'd really like is if they could mix some normal NAND with the lower rated stuff (the chips they use in thumbdrives and the like), and develop firmware that puts system files on the normal NAND and media on the lower binned NAND. Of course this would only be cool if the $/GB also dropped.