Mushkin has announced a very, very interesting USB 3.0 flash drive. This flash drive, while still being called a 'flash drive' may be seemingly ordinary, the unit is actually powered by a SandForce chip and can manage SSD-esque read and write speeds. The flash drives go by the name "Ventura Ultra."
The SandForce controller that is aboard the unit is one that is also commonly found in SSDs: the SF-2281. This controller, wired up to MLC flash, allows for sustained sequential read speeds of up to 455 MB/s, write speeds of up to 445 MB/s, and 23,500 random read IOPS.
| Header Cell - Column 0 | 60 GB | 120 GB | 240 GB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Read MB/s | 455 | 445 | 450 |
| Write MB/s | 430 | 440 | 445 |
| Read IOPS | 12,000 | 20,000 | 23,500 |
| Write IOPS | 33,500 | 34,000 | 39,000 |
The units feature an aluminum housing, have built-in wear-leveling, and the firmware can be upgraded through the USB connector. It is also backwards compatible with older USB standards, though obviously it won't be running nearly as fast.
There was no word on when the units would be available, nor was there any information on pricing.
