Last month Intel launched the Optane SSD 905P, a solid state drive based on 3D XPoint technology that offered super-fast read and write speeds.
At the time it was only available in a PCIe card form factor, which meant that you could use an Intel Optane SSD 905P with a desktop computer, but not in a notebook or other small devices.
Now Intel is getting ready to launch an M.2 version of the Optane 905P. The company unveiled the new stick form-factor at Computex.
The M.2 version features 380GB of storage and you can combine up to 4 drives for up to 1.5TB of total storage capacity.
Intel plans to start selling the M.2 variant of the Optane SSD 905P this summer, and you’ll be able to use one to upgrade the storage in your laptop, mini-PC, or any other device that accepts a full-length M.2 card.
Intel hasn’t said how much the new SSD will cost, but the company charges $599 for a 480GB PCIe version, and $1299 for a 960GB variant. I wouldn’t expect the M.2 version to be much cheaper.
I also suspect we’ll eventually see high-end laptops ship with Optane storage pre-installed. But I wouldn’t expect those to be cheap either.
via Intel, TechPowerUp, PCWorld, and AnandTech