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Intel (INTC) Ups Ante in Storage with Ruler Shaped 32-TB SSD

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Intel (INTC - Free Report) recently unveiled a new solid state drive (“SSD”) boasting a storage capacity of 32 terabytes (“TB”). The new drive, Intel SSD DC P4500, is developed on the company’s 3D NAND technology. The compact device is claimed to be Intel’s “densest drive ever”.

The new SSD underscores Intel’s growing interest in this highly promising space. It appears that the company is flexing its muscles in the storage space against prominent players, comprising Western Digital (WDC - Free Report) and Seagate among others.

The new drive is almost the size of an old school ruler, with length, breadth and thickness of 12 inches, 1.5 inches, and around 0.33 inch, respectively.

Enhanced Storage & Performance of Data Center: Key Catalyst

In the new drive, the memory cells are stacked “64 layers deep”. Further, in a bid to enhance data center storage, the new SSDs are designed to deliver around one petabyte (“PB”) of storage when lined 32 side-by-side across “1U” server slot.

Per the press release, the new form factor calls for 50% lesser air flow as compared with existing SSDs to remain cool. Moreover, the new SSD is more power efficient and calls for lesser physical space compared with the traditional HDDs. In fact, the new 3D NAND-based SSD requires only 5% of the space and merely 10% of the power in comparison to the older 1 PB HDDs.

The storage market, particularly in data center business, is witnessing a shift from the traditionally hard disk drives (HDDs) which emit substantial heat to more compact and “cooler” SSDs. With this product, Intel aims to provide an efficient solution to aid data centers minimize air conditioning costs considerably.

Based on the advantages of enhanced storage and performance of data centers, the new SSD has already witnessed adoption from notable companies, comprising Microsoft (MSFT - Free Report) , International Business Machines (IBM - Free Report) , Tencent, to name a few.

What The Investors Need to Know?

The emergence of high-end cloud computing, thinner laptops, tablets and demand for fast processing storage devices across data centersof late, has created an ideal market for SSDs.

Per MarketsandMarkets data, the global SSD market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 14.7% to reach $60.22 billion by 2023 from $26.47 billion in 2017.

Robust demand for Optane SSDs for clients and 3D NAND technologies specifically designed to support data centers, are expected to bolsterIntel’s Non-Volatile Memory Solutions Group or NSG revenues.

Notably, NSG contributed 6.4% to total revenues in the secondquarter of fiscal 2018 results. The segment revenues jumped 23.5% year over year and 3.8% sequentially to $1.08 billion on the back of strong demand for data center SSD solutions.

We believe the new product will not only provide Intel with a competitive edge against storage solution providers but also expand its customer base going ahead.

Zacks Rank

Intel flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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