SanDisk: SSD prices will stop tumbling

 

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By Nicole Kobie in Las Vegas

Posted on 10 Jan 2013 at 01:24

SSD pricing is set to level out after sliding over the past year, according to SanDisk.

In November, price analysis showed SSD prices had fallen an average of 24% over the previous year, with prices nearing the €1 per GB mark.

Two months later at CES 2013, SanDisk announced a new drive, the Ultra Plus SSD for consumers to upgrade their systems. It's priced at $75 for a 64GB version, $109 for 128GB, and $219 for a 256GB drive - with the higher capacity drives dipping under $1 per GB.

Sandisk has also given PC Pro UK-specific pricing. The Ultra Plus SSD will set British consumers back £55 for the 64GB version, £72 for the 128GB or £138 for the 256GB option.

Director of product marketing for SSD, Cliff Sun, admitted prices fell significantly last year, but said he expects the changes to be less dramatic in 2013.

Over the past few years, the HDD market has seen consolidation, with only three main players left in the market today. The solid-state drive market will follow that trend, Sun said. "A lot of players try to get market share and try to win by lowering prices, and that means some end up exiting out of the market," he said.

"Those who own the cost of NAND flash have a significant advantage," Sun said, noting that SanDisk produces its own. "Those who own that flash can survive shortages as well as times of declining ASPs [average selling prices]".

SanDisk also released the X110 SSD for OEMs to use in Ultrabooks and tablets and revealed plans to push its SSDs into SMB reseller markets, extending its reach beyond consumers and enterprise customers.