Toshiba to make solid-state disk drives

Tokyo-based memory chip maker Toshiba Corp. said today that it would make flash-based solid-state drives for notebook PCs, as it seeks to create new sources of demand for flash memory chips.

The world's No. 2 maker of NAND-type flash memory said that its solid-state drives would range in capacity from 32GB to 128GB and that it will mass-produce the 1.8-in. and 2.5-in. drives in May 2008.

Zippy, quiet and boasting a faster boot time than hard disk drives, solid-state drives are used in portable devices like tablet PCs and ultramobile PCs. But their high price has prevented them from going mainstream in the PC market.

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's biggest memory chip maker, and Toshiba partner SanDisk Corp. already make solid-state drives.

Boise, Idaho-based Micron Technology Inc. has also said it would enter the solid-state drive market, with mass production to start next quarter.