Tag Archives: letter-ap-top

Historically, the DRAM market has been the most volatile of the major IC product segments. Figure 1 reinforces that statement by showing that the average selling price (ASP) for DRAM has more than doubled in just one year. In fact, the September Update to The McClean Report will discuss IC Insights’ forecast that the 2017 price per bit of DRAM will register a greater than 40% jump, its largest annual increase ever!

Just one year ago, DRAM buyers took full advantage of the oversupply (excess capacity) portion of the cycle and negotiated the lowest price possible with the DRAM manufacturers, regardless of whether the DRAM suppliers lost money on the deal. Now, with tight capacity in the market, DRAM suppliers are getting their “payback” and charging whatever the market will bear, regardless of whether the price increases hurt the users’ electronic system sales or causes it to lose money.

Figure 1

Figure 1

The three remaining major DRAM suppliers—Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron—are each currently enjoying record profits from their memory sales.  For example, Micron reported net income of $1.65 billion on $5.57 billion in sales—a 30% profit margin—in its fiscal 3Q17 (ending in May 2017).  In contrast, the company lost $170 million in its fiscal 4Q16 (ending August 2016).  A similar turnaround has occurred at SK Hynix.  In 2Q17, SK Hynix had a net profit of $2.19 billion on sales of $5.94 billion—a 37% profit margin.  In contrast, SK Hynix had a net profit of only $246 million on $3.39 billion in sales one year ago in 2Q16.

Previously, when DRAM capacity was tight and suppliers were enjoying record profits, one or more suppliers eventually would break rank and begin adding additional DRAM capacity to capture additional sales and marketshare. At that time, there were six, eight, or a dozen DRAM suppliers.  If the supplier was equipping an existing fab shell, new capacity could be brought on-line relatively quickly (i.e., six months).  A greenfield wafer fab—one constructed on a new site—took about two years to reach high-volume production.  Will the same situation play out with only three DRAM suppliers left to serve the market?

Recently, Micron stated that it does not intend to add DRAM wafer capacity in the foreseeable future. Instead, it will attempt to increase its DRAM output by reducing feature size that, in turn, reduces die size.   Eventually, as the company moves down the learning curve, it will be able to ship an increasing number of good die per wafer.  However, SK Hynix, in its 2Q17 financial analyst conference call, stated that it plans to begin adding DRAM wafer capacity since it is not able to meet increasing demand by technology advancements alone.  Samsung has been less forthcoming in its plans for future DRAM production capacity.

Although Samsung and Micron may tolerate SK Hynix’s DRAM expansion efforts for a short while, IC Insights believes that both companies will eventually step up and add DRAM wafer start capacity to protect their marketshare—and DRAM ASPs will begin to fall.  As the old saying goes, it only takes two companies to engage in a price war—and there are still three major DRAM suppliers left.

The latest update to the World Fab Forecast report, published on September 5, 2017 by SEMI, again reveals record spending for fab equipment. Out of the 296 Front End facilities and lines tracked by SEMI, the report shows 30 facilities and lines with over $500 million in fab equipment spending.  2017 fab equipment spending (new and refurbished) is expected to increase by 37 percent, reaching a new annual spending record of about US$55 billion. The SEMI World Fab Forecast also forecasts that in 2018, fab equipment spending will increase even more, another 5 percent, for another record high of about $58 billion. The last record spending was in 2011 with about $40 billion. The spending in 2017 is now expected to top that by about $15 billion.

fab equipment spending

Figure 1: Fab equipment spending (new and refurbished) for Front End facilities

Examining 2017 spending by region, SEMI reports that the largest equipment spending region is Korea, which increases to about $19.5 billion in spending for 2017 from the $8.5 billion reported in 2016. This represents 130 percent growth year-over-year. In 2018, the World Fab Forecast report predicts that Korea will remain the largest spending region, while China will move up to second place with $12.5 billion (66 percent growth YoY) in equipment spending. Double-digit growth is also projected for Americas, Japan, and Europe/Mideast, while other regions growth is projected to remain below 10 percent.

The World Fab Forecast report estimates that Samsung is expected to more than double its fab equipment spending in 2017, to $16-$17 billion for Front End equipment, with another $15 billion in spending for 2018. Other memory companies are also forecast to make major spending increases, accounting for a total of $30 billion in memory-related spending for the year. Other market segments, such as Foundry ($17.8 billion), MPU ($3 billion), Logic ($1.8 billion), and Discrete with Power and LED ($1.8 billion), will also invest huge amounts on equipment. These same product segments also dominate spending into 2018.

In both 2017 and 2018, Samsung will drive the largest level in fab spending the industry has ever seen. While a single company can dominate spending trends, SEMI’s World Fab Forecast report also shows that a single region, China, can surge ahead and significantly impact spending. Worldwide, the World Fab Forecast tracks 62 active construction projects in 2017 and 42 projects for 2018, with many of these in China.

For insight into semiconductor manufacturing in 2017 and 2018 with more details about capex for construction projects, fab equipping, technology levels, and products, visit the SEMI Fab Database webpage (www.semi.org/en/MarketInfo/FabDatabase) and order the SEMI World Fab Forecast Report. The report, in Excel format, tracks spending and capacities for over 1,200 facilities including over 80 future facilities, across industry segments from Analog, Power, Logic, MPU, Memory, and Foundry to MEMS and LEDs facilities.

Lam Research Corporation (Nasdaq:LRCX), a global supplier of innovative wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry, announced that it has completed the acquisition of Coventor, Inc., a provider of simulation and modeling solutions for semiconductor process technology, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), and the Internet of Things (IoT). The combination of Lam and Coventor supports Lam’s advanced process control vision and is expected to accelerate process integration simulation to increase the value of virtual processing, further enabling chipmakers to address some of their most significant technical challenges.

“We see a strong synergy between our modeling capability and Lam’s desire to enable virtual experimentation of process development for customers and within its business units,” said Mike Jamiolkowski, president and CEO of Coventor. “We believe that our combination will increase the value we can deliver to our customers by providing more capability and improving their time to market.”

Customers rely on Coventor software and expertise to help predict the structures and behavior of designs before committing to time-consuming and costly wafer fabrication. This fast and accurate “virtual fabrication” allows technology developers and manufacturers to understand process variation effects early in the development timeframe and reduce the number of silicon learning cycles required to bring a successful product to market.

“We are looking forward to Coventor being a part of Lam and increasing the value and contribution we jointly provide to our customers,” said Rick Gottscho, executive vice president and corporate chief technical officer of Lam Research. “To keep pace with future design requirements, new technologies such as virtual fabrication and processing will be crucial to improve time to market. Together, our collective goal is to deliver more simulation, more virtual fabrication, and an overall increase in computational techniques to support the development of next-generation transistors, memories, MEMS and IoT devices.”

By Ajit Manocha, president and CEO, SEMI

In my first six months at SEMI, I’ve visited with many member companies and industry leaders.  One theme I hear repeatedly is a concern about our most fundamental source of innovation and productivity – people.

Our industry has a significant need for additional workers and several trends are working against us.

For one, only 11 percent of elementary students in the U.S. indicate an interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education according to the National Science Foundation.  In other regions, recruiting and retaining high-skilled workers remains a constant challenge.

Ironically, the incredible electronics manufacturing technology that we create has enabled many of the new-tech industries in software, social media, internet services and applications that now directly compete for the best and brightest technical talent.  Young engineers have other choices and many are lured to newer growth industries with familiar internet brands.

Today, due to continued industry advancement and robust growth, capital equipment companies, device makers and materials companies collectively have thousands to tens-of-thousands of open unfilled positions. Furthermore, the representation of women in the high-tech workplace remains disproportionately low.

We have long been aware of the need to support a diverse pipeline for high-skilled workers.  In 2001, the SEMI Foundation was established to encourage STEM education and stimulate interest in high-tech careers. SEMI and its Foundation launched the High-Tech U (HTU) program to engage and excite high school students. HTU enlists industry volunteers to work with local high school students in a three-day interactive hands-on curriculum. Young people get a fun and inspirational exposure to binary logic, circuit making, a fab or electronics manufacturing setting and other aspects of professional development.

To date, we’ve delivered 216 HTU programs and reached nearly 7,000 students in 12 states and nine countries.  The results are compelling.  Our 2016 survey of HTU alumni shows that they enter college at five times the national rates and 70 percent that graduated college are employed in a STEM field.   By any measure, the initiative is successful and worthwhile.

However, the talent problem statement has grown. Industry needs are greater and the time has come to redouble our effort to attract and retain talent for our high-skilled manufacturing sector.  Therefore, SEMI is elevating workforce development as a top strategic priority.

The SEMI HTU team is already engaged with key member companies to develop our enhanced roadmap for workforce development including a comprehensive study with Deloitte Consulting to underpin the key problems and solutions in areas of focus for decisive and systematic SEMI action.

Belle Wei, SEMI Foundation Board member and the Carolyn Guidry Chair in Engineering Education and Innovative Learning at San Jose State University said, “It is critical that we work to prepare the future workforce.  This requires a high level of collaboration between industry and higher education.  We appreciate SEMI’s leadership role in this collaboration to further develop the workforce pipeline.”

We have launched a HTU Certified Partner Program (CPP) with the goal of reaching more students through industry partners who commit to long-term participation and independent delivery of High Tech U.  In addition, we are expanding outreach to universities and community colleges and preparing to launch an industry image campaign to better tell the remarkable story of opportunity in our industry.

The capacity to innovate and the skills to manage complex design, engineering and manufacturing processes are essential factors that sustains our high-tech industry – and they are dependent on people.

Finally, as mentioned above, we have already started some new initiatives to enhance our HTU. A SEMI workforce development roadmap and execution plan will be detailed in a future SEMI Global Update article following the upcoming SEMI International Board Meeting.  SEMI welcomes any inputs in addition to your continued support.

This endeavor is increasingly urgent and recruiting the industry’s future innovators is well-aligned with SEMI’s mantra to connect, collaborate, innovate, grow and prosper.

 Yole Développement (Yole) expects the IGBT market to go over US$ 5 billion by 2022 with a major growth coming from IGBT power module. The high performance that SiC and GaN materials can afford is already creating a battlefield with Silicon based IGBT. To overcome this thread, Si IGBT manufacturers need to look for prompt solutions as technologically update their systems for better efficiency or to increase their IGBT portfolio offer.

How is the IGBT market evolving for different applications? How will the IGBT market face the adoption of high performance WBG based devices?… Yole’s power electronics team proposes you today a new technology & market report titled IGBT market and technology trends 2017 report. Yole’s report presents an overview of the IGBT market including detailed forecasts and a new application section focused on energy storage systems. This analysis is also showing the status of the competitive landscape.

Figure 1

Figure 1

The IGBT market represents a very promising bet for the next few years, announces the “More than Moore” market research and strategy consulting company: its analysts invite you to discover the latest IGBT technology trends and market challenges.

“The IGBT industry will follow power electronics’ growth pattern, mainly caused by the high volume automotive market, especially for the electrification of powertrains in EV/HEV ”, asserts Dr Ana Villamor, Technology & Market Analyst, Power Electronics at Yole Développement.

The EV/HEV sector has great growth prospects because it is still an emerging market with tremendous volume potential.

Another big sector for IGBT is clearly motor drives, which keep on growing, thanks to aggressive regulation targets. Yole Développement forecasts a 4.6% CAGR for motor drives from 2016 to 2022. Photovoltaics and wind are very dynamic markets with growth from huge installations being installed during the last few years. It is worth to say that China led the solar panel implementation in 2016, with an impressive 35 GW installed.

“There will be applications for SiC which will impact the IGBT market, for example it is highly possible that it will take over the automotive market”, comments Dr Ana Villamor. “However, we forecast that IGBTs will keep a significant market share in the power electronics industry and will not be replaced completely.”

In fact, even if the IGBT has almost reached its technological limit, new designs and new materials can still be used to improve system performance to overcome the WBG devices arrival. In coming years, there will be new IGBT designs from Infineon, Fuji or ABB coming into the market. Packages are being improved by different manufacturers to decrease parasitics and improve system efficiency. A clear example is the introduction of the embedded techniques for discrete IGBTs and overmolded solutions for IGBT modules to reduce size or increase functional density.

Currently, IGBT manufacturers can have wide voltage ranges in their portfolios, going from 400 V to 6.5k V. The 400 V IGBTs will directly compete with MOSFETs, whereas IGBTs with voltages higher than 600 V will compete with SJ MOSFETs and WBG devices, which exhibit advantages over IGBTs. Lower voltage IGBTs will not be developed since they do not show any advantage compared with MOSFETs.

As IGBTs is a mature technology, the supply chain is well established, with strong partnerships and companies well positioned in each level.

“Therefore, the main IGBT manufacturers that we included in our 2015 report are still in the IGBT best sellers, except ON Semiconductor, which has become one of the top five IGBT vendors after the acquisition of Fairchild at the end of 2016”, explains Dr Ana Villamor. “However, more companies are entering the IGBT market in order to capture added value, like Littelfuse, who just announced the agreement on the acquisition of IXYS Corporation.”

Following a substantial increase in semiconductor capital expenditures during the first half of this year, IC Insights raised its annual semiconductor capex forecast to a record high of $80.9 billion for 2017, a 20% increase from $67.3 billion in 2016. Previously, 2017 semiconductor capex was expected to grow 12% in 2017 to $75.6 billion.

A little over half of 2017 capex spending is forecast for wafer foundries (28%) and upgrades for NAND flash memory (24%), as shown in Figure 1. With a projected 53% increase in 2017, the DRAM/SRAM segment is expected to display the largest percentage growth in capital expenditures of the major product types this year. With DRAM prices surging since the third quarter of 2016, DRAM manufacturers are once again stepping up spending in this segment. Although the majority of this spending is going towards technology advancement, DRAM producer SK Hynix recently admitted that it can no longer keep up with demand by technology advancements alone and needs to begin adding wafer start capacity.

Figure 1

Figure 1

Even with a DRAM spending surge this year, capital spending for flash memory in 2017 ($19.0 billion) is still expected to be significantly higher than spending allocated to the DRAM/SRAM category ($13.0 billion). Overall, IC Insights believes that essentially all of the spending for flash memory in 2017 will be dedicated to 3D NAND process technology, including production of 3D NAND at Samsung’s giant new fab in Pyeongtaek, South Korea.

Overall, capital spending for the flash memory segment is forecast to register a 33% surge in 2017 after a strong 23% increase in 2016. However, historical precedent in the memory market shows that too much spending usually leads to overcapacity and subsequent pricing weakness. With Samsung, SK Hynix, Micron, Intel, Toshiba/Western Digital/SanDisk, and XMC/Yangtze River Storage Technology all planning to significantly ramp up 3D NAND flash capacity over the next couple of years (and new Chinese producers possibly entering the market), IC Insights believes that the future risk for overshooting 3D NAND flash market demand is high and growing.

IC Insights has revised its outlook for semiconductor industry capital spending and presented its new findings in the August Update to The McClean Report 2017.  IC Insights’ latest forecast is for semiconductor industry capital spending to climb 20% this year.

Figure 1 shows the steep upward trend of quarterly capital spending in the semiconductor industry since 1Q16. Although there was a slight pause in the upward trajectory in 1Q17, 2Q17 set a new record for quarterly spending outlays.   Moreover, 1H17 semiconductor industry spending was 48% greater than in 1H16.  IC Insights believes that whether industry-wide capital spending in the second half of 2017 can match the first half of the year is greatly dependent upon the level of Samsung’s 2H17 spending outlays.

Not only has Samsung Semiconductor been on a tear with regard to its semiconductor sales, surging into the number one ranking in 2Q17, but the company has also been on a tremendous capital spending spree for its semiconductor division this year.  As depicted in Figure 2, Samsung spent a whopping $11.0 billion in capital outlays for its semiconductor group in 1H17, more than 3x greater than the company spent in 1H16 and only $300 million less than the company spent in all of 2016!   In fact, Samsung’s capital expenditures in 1H17 represented 25% of the total semiconductor industry capital spending and 28% of the outlays in 2Q17.

While the company has publicly reported that it spent $11.0 billion in capital outlays for its semiconductor division in 1H17 (a $22.0 billion annual run-rate), Samsung has been very secretive about revealing its full-year 2017 budget for its semiconductor group (it might be afraid of shocking the industry with such a big number!).  In 2012, the year of Samsung’s previous first half spending surge before 1H17, the company cut its second half capital outlays by more than 50%, from $8.5 billion in 1H12 to $3.7 billion in 2H12.  Will the company follow the same pattern in 2017?  At this point, it is impossible to tell.  IC Insights believes that Samsung’s full-year 2017 capital expenditures could range from $15.0 billion to $22.0 billion!

Figure 1

Figure 1

If Samsung spends $22.0 billion in capital outlays this year, total semiconductor industry capital spending could reach $85.4 billion, which would represent a 27% increase over the $67.3 billion the industry spent in 2016.

It is interesting to note that two of the major spenders, TSMC and Intel, are expected to move in opposite directions with regard to their 2H17 capital spending plans. TSMC spent about $6.8 billion in capital outlays in 1H17. If it sticks to its $10.0 billion budget this year, which it reiterated in its second quarter results, it would only spend about $3.2 billion in 2H17, less than half its outlays in 1H17. In contrast, Intel spent only about $4.7 billion in 1H17, leaving the company to spend about $7.3 billion in 2H17 in order to reach its stated full-year 2017 spending budget of $12.0 billion.

Figure 2

Figure 2

TowerJazz, the global specialty foundry, and Tacoma Technology Ltd and Tacoma (Nanjing) Semiconductor Technology Co., Ltd (collectively known as “Tacoma”) announced today that Tower has received a first payment of $18 million net, rendering phase one of the framework agreement with Tacoma binding. This agreement maps the establishment of a new 8-inch semiconductor fabrication facility in Nanjing, China. According to the terms of the framework agreement, TowerJazz will provide technological expertise together with operational and integration consultation, for which the Company shall receive additional payments based on milestones during the next few years, subject to a definitive agreement specifying all terms and conditions.

In addition, from the start of production at the facility, TowerJazz will be entitled to capacity allocation of up to 50% of the targeted 40,000 wafer per month fab capacity, which it may decide to use at its discretion. This capacity will provide TowerJazz with additional manufacturing capability and flexibility to address its growing global demand.

Tacoma will be responsible to source funds for all activities, milestones and deliverables of the entire project, including the construction, commissioning and ramp of this facility, with the project being fully supported by Nanjing Economic and Technology Development Zone through its Administration Committee, Credito Capital as well as through potential funding from other third party investors and entities.

“This agreement with Tacoma is in line with our business strategy to focus on growing markets such as China. The fabless business in China has grown rapidly in the past years. The new 8-inch fabrication facility in Nanjing will provide us with a strategic footprint in China and the opportunity to extend our offerings in advanced specialty process technologies by enabling customers in China to optimize their product performance and time to market,” said Dr. Itzhak Edrei, TowerJazz President.

Russell Ellwanger, TowerJazz Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are exploring multiple opportunities in China, and determined this agreement with Tacoma to be a good fit for TowerJazz, providing a roadmap for a meaningful long-term strategic partnership. China’s focus to develop its domestic semiconductor industry with full infrastructure presents additional opportunities for TowerJazz, as a global analog leader, to expand our served markets and geographic presence. This partnership will enable us to further fulfill our customers’ needs through additional available capacity as well as to be an active player in the growing Chinese market.”

Joseph Lee, Tacoma Chairman, stated: “Deeply engraved in the corporate culture of both Tacoma and TowerJazz is the core belief in working ‘SMART’ with ‘PASSION.’ Our people are committed to contributing to our business partners, the global semiconductor industry and society with the best endeavor and integrity. Tacoma will fully fund this project together with Credito Capital and other entities. This venture will become a dominant player in Asia and will raise the standard in the semiconductor industry to another level.”

A groundbreaking and signing ceremony took place in Nanjing, China, attended by TowerJazz Chairman Mr. Amir Elstein, President Dr. Itzhak Edrei, Business Development Vice President Mr. Erez Imberman, as well as the then Israeli Ambassador to China the Honorable Mr. Matan Vilnai. Pictured, the signing between Tacoma Chairman, Mr. Joseph Lee and TowerJazz CEO Mr. Russell Ellwanger, with among others the above cited attendees.

By Lara Chamness, SEMI

This is an exciting year to be in the semiconductor industry as Ajit Manocha, president and CEO of SEMI highlighted at SEMICON West; semiconductor-related companies are trading at all-time highs, and record device shipments and revenues as well as equipment revenues are expected (see Figure 1). This growth is primarily fueled by demand drivers such as Automotive Electronics, Medical Electronics, Mobile Phones, and Industrial Electronics. With this recent growth spurt and the proliferation of end-market applications that consume ever increasing numbers of semiconductors, it is tempting to conclude that the industry has seen the end of cycles.

VacuumSubsystem2

At the annual SEMI/Gartner, Bulls & Bears Industry Outlook symposium, Stifel’s Patrick Ho, asserted that “Gone are the days of your grandfather’s cycles.” Robert Marie of Semiconductor Advisors, maintained that “Cycle shape has changed due to demand drivers, consolidation, maturation and other factors.”

However, Gartner’s Bob Johnson was quick to assert, “Whenever people say that cycles are over and that the industry is going to grow forever ─ the industry is at a peak.” He noted that Gartner expects semiconductor revenues to surpass $400 billion this year, increase two percent next year, but  decline in 2019. He indicated that Memory is driving this year’s market expansion but will drag down market growth next year as pricing gains achieved will be lost beginning in the fourth quarter of this year. The softness in 2018 is expected to have a detrimental impact on the industry’s spending plans. Gartner predicts that capital spending will shrink to just under one percent next year and contract 7 percent in 2019.

In addition to softer memory pricing in the near term, Gartner does not anticipate that China will invest significant amounts until 2020/2021. SEMI on the other hand is currently modeling an increase of 9 percent in fab equipment expenditures in 2018, which is largely driven by China. China is expected to have an even greater impact on global fab capital expenditures, claiming the top position in 2019, according to SEMI.

Looking at demand drivers, more specifically the “Internet of Things”, it is clear that the explosion of connected “things” is fundamentally reshaping our industry. The fragmented nature of these markets require niche applications and device architectures with the majority of these devices being commoditized MEMS and other solid-state sensors. Growing market revenue does not necessarily translate into industry profitability as the declining average selling price in Figure 2 shows.

Market-Trend-Image-3

So how can the industry benefit from all of this connectivity? Dr. Sam Wang from Gartner discussed how the Internet of Things has made AI practical, and how artificial intelligence brings out the value of IoT. He noted that AI:

  • Drives the demand for advanced wafer process technologies
  • Encourages the adoption of HMC, HBM, eDRAM, ReRAM, PCM, STT-MRAM, memristors processing in memory
  • Incorporates ADC within sensors and computing in sensors
  • Increases the use of 2.5D, 3D, TSV and SiP technologies
  • Enables chip design flow optimization in EDA
  • Fuels the need of new ATE testers for testing complex AI chips
  • Prompts more start-ups and M&A opportunities

The overwhelming majority of semiconductor devices used in IoT are commodities, creating a renaissance for smaller wafer diameter fabs (200mm and smaller; see related 200mm article). The value of the IoT will come from the ecosystem that supports it, such as data centers and networks that enable connectivity. There are also opportunities for the adoption of new processor technologies, as Gartner’s Werner Goertz pointed out. He stated that the current processors used in IoT processing were designed for very different use cases, and that conditions are now ripe for a disruptive processor supply chain to optimize edge-based AI.

2017 is indeed going to be a great year for the semiconductor industry: device average selling prices have improved dramatically, device manufacturers are investing in new capacity, while stock prices of suppliers throughout the supply chain are trading at elevated levels. 2018 is anticipated by many industry pundits to be another growth year, albeit at more conservative growth levels. Although the Internet of Things literally offers the industry billions of applications, its full impact on the industry remains to be seen. And we’ll definitely keep a close eye on developments in China.

Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. (TAEC) announces the new SG6 series, the latest Toshiba client SSD to feature 64-layer, 3-bit-per-cell TLC (triple-level cell) BiCS FLASH to deliver better transfer speeds and power efficiency. This family of SSDs is designed for mainstream desktops and notebooks, consumer upgrades, as well as applications needing data security.

Toshiba SG6 Series (Photo: Business Wire)

Toshiba SG6 Series (Photo: Business Wire)

With increased performance over the prior generation, SG6 features the latest SATA technology to deliver up to 550 MB/s sequential read and 535 MB/s sequential write, and up to 100,000 and 85,000 random read/write IOPS delivering enhanced application performance. Furthermore, compared to its previous generation, active power consumption was decreased by up to 40% enabling increased battery life for mobile computing.

The SG6 series comes in both M.2 2280 and 2.5-type SATA standardized form factors and includes 256GB, 512GB, and 1024GB capacities. Addressing business applications requiring security, SG6 offers advanced firmware security and self-encrypting drive (SED) models supporting TCG Opal Version 2.01.

“Toshiba is committed to further accelerating the adoption of SSDs in client PCs,” said Neville Ichhaporia, director client and data center SSD marketing at Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. “Our new SG6 SATA SSD series demonstrates that and delivers a cost-effective solution on a mature, proven platform with an excellent balance of power and performance in a variety of form factors and capacities.”

The SG6 series will be showcased at the 2017 Flash Memory Summit in Santa Clara, CA, from August 8 to 10 in booth #407. Samples are currently shipping to customers with general availability later this year.