SFF.Network Mushkin’s Helix SSD Range Announced

Revealed at CES, Mushkin is moving into the realms of SSD, with the "Helix" range to complement their RAM product range. The Helix range currently consists of M.2 SSDs, targeted at the enthusiast and high-end desktop and laptop markets. Featuring 3D MLC NAND (from an unknown source) and a Silicon Motion SM2260 controller, the SSDs promise (according to Muskin) improved performance and endurance over previous generation 3D NAND. The drives take the form of the M.2-2280 form factor, running on a PCIe 3.0 4x bus.

Read more here.
 
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cmyk78

Master of Cramming
Jun 7, 2016
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This could be good for boards like the Z270i ROG strix with two m.2 slots. Have something like a 960 pro for a boot drive and one of these for mass ssd storage.
 

Zerofool

Caliper Novice
Nov 23, 2015
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I think the title is a bit misleading. These were just shown at CES. Just like at CES 2016 the affordable 2TB single-controller Reactor SSD and the twin-controller 4TB Reactor SSD (targeted at sub-500$) were shown but never materialized. I hope the Helix line actually makes it to market.
 

confusis

John Morrison. Founder and Team Leader of SFF.N
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Jun 19, 2015
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It was previewed at CES, the range was announced this week.

This thread is for the discussion of the product, not the choice of title, which has been rectified.
 
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EdZ

Virtual Realist
May 11, 2015
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M.2 in general is confusing. I wonder who's idea it was to generalise multiple keys, interfaces & lengths all in 'M.2'.
m.2 makes perfect sense when you include the slot key and the dimensions, it's their omission that is the problem (like listing a motherboard as "ITX" but failing to mention the socket and chipset).
 
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Dyson Poindexter

If there's empty space, it's too big!
Jun 25, 2015
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I think I ran the numbers once and with all the keying and dimensions there are tens of thousands of m.2 form factors. I suspect we'll see the one of the smaller sizes (2230? 1626?) be used exclusively for Ultrabooks and compact laptops, and 2280 remain the de facto standard for desktops and full size laptops. At least I hope it works that way. I would hate to buy a bunch of 2280's and have the market shift towards using a 2260 or something.
 

EdZ

Virtual Realist
May 11, 2015
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2242 is the common 'mini' m.2 for cache drives in laptops (e.g. used with Intel's RST), and 2230 for things like WiFi cards (there are a handful of 1630 cards, but those fit in the 22mm width sockets directly).
Moving to shorter drives should not be an issue: most boards that support 2280 will have a movable standoff to allow shorter drives (like 2260), and if not you can still use a [bracket](http://i.imgur.com/HXwP4Nd.jpg) to secure it.
The problem would be if a larger format like 22110 became more popular, but this seems unlikely with the establishment of 2280.
 

Phuncz

Lord of the Boards
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May 9, 2015
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To add, the 22110 format has made an appearance in a few enterprise solutions, which makes sense since that market prefers power loss protection often times found on that extra 30mm. I'm not worried we'll see these anytime soon on the consumer market, though I'm glad most consumer brands are gravitating towards 2280 so we can have a pretty uniform support.