Intel today came out with two new solid state disks, targeted towards laptop and desktop computers. The latest storage disks offers computer buyers "a new level of system responsiveness" in a lightweight, rugged, low-power package that can replace traditional hard disk drives. Both are based on multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash technology, and comes in 1.8-inch (X18-M) and 2.5-inch (X25-M) form factor. With no moving parts, SSDs run cooler and quieter and are a more reliable option than hard drives, and offers several advantages over hard drives including faster overall system response, boot and resume times.

The Intel X18-M and X25-M Mainstream SATA SSDs are available in 80 gigabyte (GB) capacities, with 160GB versions sampling in the fourth quarter of this year. The 80GB drive achieves up to 250MB per second read speeds, up to 70MB per second write speeds and 85-microsecond read latency for fast performance. The 80GB version is priced at $595 for quantities up to 1,000.

These SSDs are available now and end-customer products containing the Intel High-Performance SATA SSDs are expected to begin shipping in the next few weeks.

What's more, the firm is planning to introduce a line of single-level cell (SLC) SSDs for the server, storage and enterprise environments within the next 90 days. Called the Intel X25-E Extreme SATA Solid-State Drive, these products are designed to maximize the Input/Output Operations Per Second (IOPS), which equates to higher performance and lower enterprise costs. Since SSDs lower energy consumption, maintenance, cooling and space costs, an SSD-based data center will reduce overall infrastructure costs while increasing performance-per-square-foot by as much as 50x.