Western Digital has seemingly countered dwindling cloud storage with the unveiling of its SanDisk 8TB SSD prototype portable storage system.
With Google and Apple restricting cloud storage to 15 and 5GB respectively (for free), with higher capacity locked behind monthly subscriptions, Western Digital is looking to counteract this with virtually unlimited physical storage on the go.
The ‘groundbreaking’ portable storage device demonstrates the world’s highest capacity SSD with USB 20Gbps transfer speeds.
Unfortunately, being a prototype, the storage device may not be available for some time.
Luckily Western Digital has also unveiled the all-new 1TB SanDisk Ultra Dual Drive Luxe USB Type-C, expected sometime this quarter.
The dual connector drive will work with both smartphones and laptops, with both USB-C and type A connections.
Designed to fit on a keychain, the tiny form factor of the storage device offers massive capacity on the go, much like the prototype above.
Also launched is Western Digital’s Industry-First WD_Blac P50 Game Drive SSD with SuperSpeed USB 20Gbps.
Designed specifically for PC and console gamers, the new lineup of drives cover all the leading platforms, with two Xbox-licensed drives already available now, along with its PC version.
Included in the lineup is the P10, the D10, P50 and the SN750 NVMe SSD.
Each WD_Blac drive is specified for either PC and/or console gaming, giving players a wide choice for high-speed storage devices.
Also on the books is ibi, a SanDisk brand device for photos and video management using local storage that acts as a personal cloud.
The device will set you back US$129.99.
The software will allow users to aggregate data from multiple networked devices all stored on the ibi app.
David Ellis, vice president, product marketing, Western Digital said the company created the storage client due to the explosion of consumer-generated content.
‘Our top priority is to empower people by giving them complete control of their content, so they have peace of mind that it’s reliably stored and at their fingertips when and where they need it’.
