Crucial launches 2.5" M500 SSD starting at $130

Crucial has launched its M500 2.5-inch SSD drives, which are available in a wide variety of capacities with prices starting as low as $129.99. The drive is aimed at those looking for a solid-state drive that outpaces HDDs and doesn't completely break the bank, with Crucial boasting that the M500 can easily take on modern computing and multitasking demands.

The drive is available in 120GB, 240Gb, 480GB, and 960GB capacities, with their respective prices (listed in order) being $129.99, $219.99, $399.99, and $599.99. The SSD uses 20nm MLC NAND Micron flash and a SATA 6GB/s controller, as well as custom firmware, all of this combining to offer an IOPS (input/oupt operations per second) of up to 80,000.

To keep data safe, there's on-board hardware level encryption said to meet both IEEE 1667 and TCG Opal 2.0 standards, depending on software. In addition, the M500 also utilizes thermal management technology and offers power-loss protection. There are advanced recovery features against errors, and a device sleep option for improving battery life, which is reported as offering a 93-percent power improvement over the last Crucial line of SSDs.

Crucial's Senior Worldwide Product Manager Robert Wheadon had this to say: "We designed the Crucial M500 to meet the reliability and performance expectations of today's systems, and are thrilled to offer the first terabyte-class. SSD for under $600. The Crucial M500 is equipped with an impressive new set of features, making it a multifaceted solution for today and tomorrow."

The M500 drives are available now.

[via Global Newswire]