SanDisk and Toshiba announce the next generation of BiCS (Bit Cost Scaling) flash memory-- what the two companies claim is the first 256 gigabit (32GB) 48-layer BiCS 3D NAND flash using 3-bit-per-cell TLC (triple-level cell) technology.

BiCS flash uses a 48-layer stacking process to surpass the storage capacity of current 2D NAND flash while enhancing write/erase reliability, endurance and write speeds. Back in March Toshiba revealed an earlier version of the technology with 128 gigabit (16GB) 48-layer BiCS non-volatile memory chips.

The companies add the 256Gb device is suitable for diverse applications, including consumer SSDs, mobile devices, memory cards and enterprise data centre SSDs.

WD announces the My Passport Cinema 4K UHD "movie storage device"-- essentially a 1TB external HDD designed for users wanting to store and view 4K UHD movies on Vidity-enabled devices such as Samsung SUHD TVs.

Vidity is a technology allowing customers to download high quality (4K UHD resolution with HDR) movies. It comes via the Secure Content Association, an industry team-up involving 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros, Western Digital and Sandisk.

The drive includes a number of preloaded 20th Century Fox movies, and more titles can be downloaded via M-GO and other Vidity retailers.

Intel and Micron create a new memory category, the first since the 1989 introduction of NAND flash-- 3D XPoint, a kind of memory the companies say is up to 1000x faster than NAND and 10x denser than conventional memory.

The result of over a decade of R&D, 3D XPoint memory features a transistor-less cross point architecture built in a "3D checkerboard." Memory cells sit at the intersection of word lines and bit lines, allowing the individual addressing of cells. The result is data written and read in small sizes, leading to faster and more efficient read/write processes.

Samsung launches what it claims are the thinnest and lightest 4TB external HDDs-- the M3 Portable and the P3 Portable, both coming 6.35cm cases less than 2cm thick and weighing just 235g.

The casing is just a little bit thicker than that of existing Samsung 2TB external HDDs. The drives are USB 3.0-powered and are described by the company as "the perfect lightweight drives for notebook computer owners who need to access media collections too large to fit on traditional internal storage options."

Inside each HDD is a Spinpoint M10P drive with 800GB/platter-- meaning 5 platters with admittedly impressive areal density.

"High end/gaming/crazy memory products" maker Avexir adds the "plasma tubes" from the Raiden DRAM modules to flash-based storage as it introduces the Raiden Red Tesla range of glowy SSDs at Taipei Computex 2015.

In a few words, think M.2. and 2.5-inch SSDs with built-in red LEDs, as well an "innovative head spreader"-- namely a heat sink able to shift colour from red to black. Complementing the red LEDs is a red aluminium chassis. Actual specifications are not available, at least as yet.

SanDisk squeezes 128GB of SSD storage in the Ultra Fit, a thumbnail-sized USB 3.0 flash drive ideal for use with tablets and smartphones, as well as PCs, notebooks and any other device in need of extra storage.

Designed as a "plug-and-stay" device, the Ultra Fit acts as an always-present storage option customers can simply plug and leave in their devices. And just as well, since being so small it must be pretty easy to actually misplace. Meanwhile USB 3.0 connectivity promises data speeds up to 10 times faster than USB 2.0.

The drive also includes SecureAccess security software for users wanting to create password-protected private folders complete with 128-bit AES encryption, as well as a free 1-year RescuePRO subscription.

Super Talent Technology announces the USB 3.1 Portable RAIDDrive-- a storage device consisting of a pair of two M.2 SSDs set up in RAID 0, allowing for increased performance within a portable form factor.

The addition of USB 3.1 allows speeds reaching up to 750MB/s read and 700MB/s write. It is also compatible with devices featuring older USB 3.0 and 2.0 ports, if without such gains in data transfer speeds.

Solid-state drives make for a great upgrade for your customers, but research by Seagate chairman Alvil Cox suggests SSDs might pose data loss risks if left unplugged in an environment with varying temperatures.

According to the study, the period of time "some" SSDs retain data when unpowered can be slashed in half for every 5°C rise in ambient temperature. In other words, if an SSD retains data for 2 years if kept at 25°C, that length of time is cut down by half (to 1 year) if the temperature rises to 30°C.

Surprisingly consumer SSDs appear to perform better at this test than enterprise models-- consumer SSDs tend to retain data for around 2 years when held when held in optimal conditions, while the enterprise SSD data retention period clocks at 20 weeks. As a result, a 5°C increase in temperature can drop that period to just 10 weeks. To think that, in some countries, 30°C is not even too high a temperature…