Hardware stub

Crucial MX100 SSD to Operate on 16nm NAND, 16GB Flash

Posted on May 22, 2014

Rumor has it that Crucial is manufacturing an MX100 SSD, likely using Micron's new 16-nm NAND. The MX100 will fall into the spot of the oft-selected M500 in Crucial's SSD lineup, making it the new budget contender in the entry-level arena; the M550 remains as a mid-range option at slightly faster speeds. The MX100 will continue operating on the SATA interface in a 2.5" form factor.

m500-ssd

Crucial is using Micron's new 128Gb (16GB) 16-nm MLC Flash memory; because Micron can fit more chips on a wafer due to the 128Gb capacity and smaller fab process, the die yield per wafer is significantly higher in production. With a higher yield, the Flash manufacturer can increase supply and should theoretically be able to mitigate price further -- hopefully carrying over to device prices in everything that uses the NAND.

We're unsure of what controller the MX100 will be using, but it's likely to have the same eight-channel split that every other modern SSD controller utilizes (eight channels that talk to four dies each - so 32 dies for optimal performance on the controller). It seems plausible to me that 480GB SSDs will continue to proliferate and drop in price as these 16Gb NAND chips are produced; it'd take 32x128Gb dies to build a 480GB SSD (accounting for overprovisioning), which just so happens to be the ideal count of dies for best performance on an eight-channel controller.

The MX100 is due in June.

- Steve "Lelldorianx" Burke.