Intel has officially replaced its Larson Creek series (311 series) with the Hawley Creek series (313 Series). The 313 series uses 25 nm SLC NAND flash memory and is designed for Ivy Bridge's new 7-series chipset, while maintaining backwards compatibility with current 6-series chipsets. When used as a cache, the 313 series works seamlessly with Intel Core processors, select versions of the 6 and 7 series of Intel Express chipsets, and Intel Rapid Storage Technology drivers (10.5 and newer) to provide a fast caching solution.
With the push by Intel on the Ultrabook side, the 313 series meets or exceeds the Ultrabook Responsiveness Requirements. Featuring Intel Smart Response Technology, the 313 series -- like most other SSDs compared -- will boosts your computer’s responsiveness with faster boot times, quicker application loads and overall snappier system response times. Because SSDs reduce spinning up of your hard drive, the 313 series delivers high performance with low power. This means longer battery life without sacrificing performance.
The 313 series will be available in two capacities (20 GB and 24 GB), along with two form factors (2.5-inch SATA and mSATA) on a SATA 3.0 Gb/s interface. Intel lists the performance of the drives as follows:
| Specification | 20 GB | 24 GB |
|---|---|---|
| Random 4 KB Read (up to) | 36,000 IOPS | 33,000 IOPS |
| Random 4 KB Write (up to) | 3,300 IOPS | 4,000 IOPS |
| Sequential Read (up to) | 220 MB/s | 160 MB/s |
| Sequential Write (up to) | 100 MB/s | 115 MB/s |
| Latency: | ||
| Read | 72 µs (TYP) | 72 µs (TYP) |
| Write | 90 µs (TYP) | 90 µs (TYP) |
| Power On to Ready | 2.0 s (TYP) | 2.0 s (TYP) |
The Intel SSD 313 Series can be found at retailers around the price of $120 for the 20 GB version and $140 for the 24 GB version. Though these drives are designed as cache drive with the benefits of its SLC NAND flash memory, it may be hard to justify a 24 GB drive for $140 for this writer when you can easily find very capable larger capacity MLC NAND flash memory based drives for cheaper.
