Intel 330 Series specs and positioning

[UHans]

As rumored on various hardware sites earlier this month, the new Intel 330 Series SSDs unofficially hit the streets today. Here are some product and price shots from Akihabara, Tokyo:

http://akiba-pc.watch.impress.co.jp/hotline/20120414/etc_intel.html http://akiba-pc.watch.impress.co.jp/hotline/20120414/etc_intel.html

According to the photos, the drives are equipped with 25nm MLC flash and a Sandforce 2281 controller just like the 520 Series, which raises some questions:

1. The drives are cheaper than the 520 Series, so what compromises/downgrades were made to meet that price?
2. Will the 330 Series replace the 320 Series or will they coexist in the short or long term?

[mmokk]

most of the cost is in the nand, so the 330 probably uses asynchronous or lower endurance nand (this is what kingston did with their new hyperx 3k ssd's), or both.

[UHans]

The 330 Series have now officially launched. And with that comes the authoritative answers:

http://techreport.com/discussions.x/22801 http://techreport.com/discussions.x/22801

So basically as speculated before, it is a significantly cheaper 520 with lower grade flash chips.

According to The Tech Report, it will not replace the 320 Series in the market.