Toshiba Memory Europe GmbH today announced the launch of two new series of NVMe PCIe 3.0 Gen3x4 M.2 solid state drives (SSDs), the RD500 and RC500 Series. Both product families feature the company's own state-of-the-art 96-layer TLC (triple-level cell) BiCS FLASH 3D memory.

Toshiba Memory's new SSDs are high-performance solutions for today's mainstream gamers, DIY system builders and upgrade solution seekers. A next-generation PCIe interface enables the RD500 and RC500 Series to provide a more responsive PC experience with shorter storage latency than that of SATA SSDs. Suitable for PC gaming enthusiasts, the RD500 Series offers top-of-class performance thanks to a newly designed 8-channel controller that brings out the full potential of BiCS FLASH. The RD500 Series achieves sequential read and write speed up to 3,400 MB/s and 3,200 MB/s respectively and delivers random read and write performance up to 685,000 IOPS and 625,000 IOPS. The RD500 Series is available in capacities up to 2,000 gigabytes (GB) / 2 terabytes (TB).

Built from the ground up to deliver faster-than-SATA performance, the RC500 Series uses a 4-channel controller that is ideal for users requiring faster solutions for mainstream PCs. Available in capacities up to 1,000 GB / 1 TB in a single-sided module, the RC500 Series realizes top-class random performance.

"With the introduction of the new NVMe/PCIe SSDs, RD500 and RC500 Series, we have created a dedicated range for the Gaming enthusiast and mainstream gamer. This will allow them to enhance speed and performance of their systems for an all-round better gaming experience," comments Paul Rowan, Vice President at Toshiba Memory Europe GmbH. 

The new SSD series will be available in the fourth calendar quarter of this year.

Key features of the RD500 and RC500 include:

• 96-layer TLC BiCS FLASH
• PCIe 3.0 Gen3 x4
• NVMe 1.3c interface specifications supported
• Available in a compact M.2 2280 (22x80mm) form factor for compatibility with desktop and notebook PCs
• SLC cache