Intel SSD Pro 1500 in 2.5-Inch and M.2 Form Factors, From 80GB to 480GB

Intel Corporation announced the its SSD Professional Family, including the Intel SSD Pro 1500 Series.

The new SSDs are engineered specifically for easy IT deployment and secure manageability, and offer a lower TCO with enhanced performance.

Migrating to SSD-based PCs can improve employee productivity by as much as 13%, according to research by J. Gold Associates Investing in Solid State Drives Offers Significant Cost Advantages, October 2012.

The SSD Pro 1500 Series allows IT departments to increase employee uptime and reduce cost with its manageability and security features. The Intel Stable Image Platform Program ensures that key drivers are in place and makes transitioning to the SSD Pro 1500 Series simple and predictable. The ability to remotely manage assets and diagnose issues at the drive level means fewer deskside visits, so PC maintenance and repairs require less time.

The SSD Pro 1500 Series also protects data from unauthorized access with enterprise-grade security features, including hardware-based 256-bit AES encryption (on select SKUs) and industry-standard Opal key management protocols. It is designed to work with the 4th generation Intel Core processors with Intel vPro technology. Using the Intel Setup and Configuration Software (V9.0), IT managers address problems before they arise by remotely managing devices and extracting drive diagnostics to proactively monitor storage health.

"The modern business employee is increasingly mobile and works in multiple environments," said Rob Crooke, Intel corporate VP and GM for non-volatile memory solutions group. "The Intel SSD Pro 1500 Series ensures employees have the flexibility, battery life and performance they need, while IT has the assurance data is secure and the device can be managed remotely. Tight integration with Intel vPro technology means we are able to deliver a complete solution for corporate business users."

Minimizing downtime among a growing mobile workforce using thin and light mobile computers is critical to increase productivity and reduce IT costs. The SSD Pro 1500 Series addresses this need with new small form factors, such as M.2, featuring low-power modes that reduce idle power by more than 90% compared to HDDs. Smaller form factors and less power enable slimmer device profiles with long battery life, including ultrabooks, 2-in-1 devices and traditional PCs.

"By improving security, manageability and TCO, the Professional Family of Intel SSDs will enable more mobile devices such as vPro technology-powered PCs to further penetrate the enterprise while delivering faster start-up and improved battery life," said Rick Echevarria, VP of PC client group and GM of business client platform division, Intel. "We believe the combination of these SSDs, vPro technology and tools such as Intel Setup and Configuration Software will trigger innovation among ISVs and improve enterprise PCs in the near future."

Intel SSDs offer reliability with annualized failure rates (AFR) well below 1%. The AFRs of other SSDs and HDDs may reach 5% or higher (based on Intel whitepaper Validating the Reliability of Intel SSDs, July 2011). Drive failures are a cost burden to IT departments. The SSD Pro 1500 Series is engineered to reduce such costs and minimize employee downtime as a result of storage-related failures. Intel SSDs undergo quality testing and are backed by its proven warranty and customer support. Intel SSDs also provide driver validation to help enable stable solutions and compatibility with the latest software.

The new SSD Pro 1500 Series as well as other Intel SSDs and solutions were showcased in the Non-Volatile Memory Solutions Group booth at the Intel Developer Forum from September 10-12 at Moscone Center West in San Francisco, CA.