Transcend Introduces JetDrive Lite Expansion Cards Up to 128GB for MacBook Air, Retina Macbook Pro

[66318]

You could easily make OSX see a dual-flash fusion drive with this.

I had the same thought when I saw this. Fusion drive would have the system automatically move the less used files on the system out to the slower SD card. Strange though that it's a bit inverted from the initial intention of a small flash drive and a larger slower spinning platter, but it should work.

Might get one of these to see how it works out in this configuration for my rMBP.

 

[joe-h2o]

Serious? Don't really know much about these types of cards and might consider getting these if they're decent speeds.

That's a pretty decent speed for flash. These are effectively "class 10" rated cards, which tend to have a price premium over the slower ones, but the speed rating is all about guaranteed sustained read and write performance since it is necessary to have a minimum baseline, for example, if you are going to use one to shoot video, or shoot RAW at high frame rates.

Often the burst speeds can be higher, but as a general rule you'll get at the very least the stated speed advertised for the card.

95 MB/s reads and 60 MB/s writes are pretty high up the scale for this sort of thing.

Edit: I should add that I'm using a Transcend high speed SD card in my iMac's seldom-used rear slot. It's a 64 GB version with the same speed rating as the ones in the article, although it's a standard sized one so it sticks out of the socket (but that doesn't matter on the iMac). It makes an *ideal* media drive for iTunes. In terms of performance, since all it does is really read from the disk, I can't tell the difference between having the iTunes library on the card and having it on my boot SSD (which is 120 GB SATA3 and connected via Thunderbolt)

 

[Parasprite]

And I, on the other hand have gone from buying a 64GB iPad the first two times I bought one, to a 32GB iPad Air, because cloud services have made the extra 32GB pretty much a waste of $100 for me.

I on the other hand, still have a 16 GB iPad Air only half filled. Primarily because I don't watch video on it and any of the music I want to listen to I stream.

 

[joe-h2o]

This article reads like a press release... It doesn't even mention this is a simple SD card. Sure, it is fast, but you can get SD cards in the same speed class already. What am I missing here?

You're missing that they designed it specifically for the MBA and rMBP's slot to be flush when installed so you can use it as a permanently attached extra drive which you can do with a normal SD card, except that it sticks out of the side so you risk damaging it or your computer during use.

This design is simply install and forget. Perfect for your iTunes library, or for other large files if you are squeezed for space on your internal SSD.

 

[Wicked1]

Nice! That could make a big difference. Now all we need is for Apple to support splitting the iTunes library across devices. That is audio(music) on one device video on another.

Oh boy I wish that would happen, so frustrating because I want my music on my MBP and my movies etc on an external HDD, no idea why they will not allow it, however with iTunes music downloads dropping and more ways for revenue, I would imagine before long they will allow iTunes to run on other platforms even more so now that they acquired Beats Audio.

 

[Brian Y]

Nice! That could make a big difference. Now all we need is for Apple to support splitting the iTunes library across devices. That is audio(music) on one device video on another.

Just symlink the Music folder to the second drive. Job done. Takes about 5 seconds.

 

[joe-h2o]

They are not compatible with the SD card slot on the iMac?

Electrically they will be compatible, but I don't know how it will fit physically (I'm not sure if the iMac's slot is deeper, making it hard to remove), but if you want one for the iMac then you can just get the regular size SD card from Transcend that has the same speed flash memory in it - I have a 64GB from them in my iMac for just this purpose and I'm very pleased with it.

 

[rdlink]

I'm sure AT&T, Verizon and others appreciate your support. I can never get the "stream everything from the cloud" sentiment ("it's the future" or not) when our connection to the cloud is through ever-tightening tiered data plans by the likes of AT&T or similar. Those who can be in free wifi zones most of the time probably get by just fine. Those streaming meaningful amounts of data over cellular networks are likely streaming extra dollars out of their wallets too.

Personally, I'd much rather sync it to bigger storage and stream sparingly than give the money to AT&T, etc so that I can have ready access to my own media. A solution like this would make it possible to load up a bunch of media for a long trip and rarely burn cellular data for my own media. For example, if I was taking a long vacation, I might load 1+ of these cards with movies to fill the time while traveling. If I went the other way- streaming my media- I'd quickly roll into higher tiers at more cost and it wouldn't take long for that cost to exceed what it costs for 1+ of these cards.

But I'm glad streaming works for you.

And it does. I have 6GB of data shared among 4 devices, and an extra 1GB thrown in for free for life because of a recent activation. I generally use 3-4GB a month, and I only listen to music from iTunes Radio. If I spend $3K on devices, and then another $170 a month on service I don't have the time or desire to spend hooking my devices up to a computer, and then worrying about keeping all of my computers in synch with each other.

Yes, I understand that the carriers are trying to squeeze every dime, but the worm has turned on that, and this too shall pass. There was a time when the carriers metered phone calls and roaming cost money.

 

[knewsom]

This is pretty cool, but the reduced form-factor may make it difficult to use in many other devices, unfortunately... but this is more purpose-built, so I don't really see that as much of a problem.

I have a Sony Vaio S15, and the card-reader, when it has a card it it fits almost perfectly flush with the computer. You can use a standard SD card with 128GB as a secondary storage device anytime you want. ...though since I can actually take apart my computer, I replaced the main HD with a SSD and replaced the optical drive with the 500GB hard disk, giving me plenty of speed and internal storage.

Very interesting the "hacks" that people come up with to do basic things with their macs that users of other machines basically take for granted...

 

[darkslide29]

This is easily achievable, you move the movies folder to "external" storage then create and alias (shortcut) with the same name in the old location of the movies folder. boom.

Nice! That could make a big difference. Now all we need is for Apple to support splitting the iTunes library across devices. That is audio(music) on one device video on another.

I apologize if I am missing something, but if the issue is what I think it is, I can offer what I do as a tip.

I have all of my music on the Mac Mini hard drive, but I have all of my videos on an external NAS. These all show up in my single iTunes library on my computer.

To add videos to my iTunes library, I simple select "Add to Library" and select the video file in my NAS. It now shows up seamlessly in my iTunes library, even though it is across two storage devices. This method should work just fine with this expansion card.

Please note, it is important to turn OFF in the settings the option to copy the media to the iTunes folder on your computer. You don't want that. Let it just keep the media on the external folder and access from there.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

That's great for you rdlink. I'm not sure the masses want to pay $170/month for cellular service even if "it's the future" and even if they want to embrace "stream everything from the cloud". $170/month times 12 months = $2,040. If you had a less costly data plan, you could buy a LOT of these transcend cards or maybe a max capacity iDevice or two and then 1-2 of these transcend cards to (up to) double their on-board storage. 256GB on board would store a lot of that music you stream now in a single (one-time) sync. If that's what burns most of that 3GB-5GB each month, you could save a LOT of money by finding the time to sync once and then stream a bit more miserly.

That said though, time is money. And if the money doesn't matter that much to you, good for you. Myself? I'd rather sync it once and not pay $170/month for streaming. I use that $25 for 1GB for 3months option from AT&T so my annual cellular cost is less or equal to $100. I pay up for max storage iDevices so that I can sync once and have what I want to hear or watch on board. For the $1900 difference, I can buy a lot of other stuff. And I still would love to see a SD card slot in iDevices to make flexible storage expansion a reality (though I doubt that will ever happen).

 

[kazmac]

...

This sounds terrific. Save money on storage when buying a Mac laptop and keep your iTunes off the machine. Nice!

 

[xmichaelp]

Pretty sweet product. Perfect for storage of files and just keep the things you need faster speeds for on the SSD like apps.

 

[caligomez]

Sounds like a good deal, but how reliable are SD cards? I've used them for storage before on cameras and video game consoles (not as extra storage on my laptop) and I've had two crap out in a year or so..

 

[techwhiz]

I don't think personal cameras will be around much to worry about that. The cameras on smart phones are becoming much better and its also widely used. Heck, the iPhone uploads millions of photos a year to online social sites. No camera company (Canon/Nikon) has the same amount of usage anymore.

For professional photographers, it'll be wirelessly sent to their backpack with a storage device there or to a workstation setup if done at a venue.

I haven't used a P&S camera in over 6 years. My iPhone has been my camera since 2007.

Sorry but as good as camera phone are they are lacking.
The sensor is small and the low light performance is bad.
Not to say you can't get decent pictures. In most cases a bad picture is better than no picture.

P&S cameras and larger Micro 4/3, APC-C Samsung and DSLR cameras still sell for those that want to add a real flash and accessories.

 

[Binarymix]

xD Ppl still say this in 2014?

These chips are MLC as stated by transcend, that allows ~10K cycles; Whereas SLC SSD's allow for 10x that, and Hard drives - infinite, until they break.

I'm not saying you can't use it as a boot drive, but it WILL wear out quicker, and it wouldn't really be any faster than a standard 5200 RPM HDD.

And if it is being put in an Air, or other macbook with an SSD it would in fact be several times slower.

 

[dypeterc]

Great idea! It'll be nice to not have that 2-3 mm overhang. I've been using SD cards as my primary storage media format. In fact, I keep a copy of OS X install disk on one in my bag at all times.

Why the 64GB limit on the 13" MBP?

 

[JustinePaula]

I wonder the same about the limit? Does that mean the 13inch retina is a dud product??

 

[techwhiz]

These chips are MLC as stated by transcend, that allows ~10K cycles; Whereas SLC SSD's allow for 10x that, and Hard drives - infinite, until they break.

I'm not saying you can't use it as a boot drive, but it WILL wear out quicker, and it wouldn't really be any faster than a standard 5200 RPM HDD.

And if it is being put in an Air, or other macbook with an SSD it would in fact be several times slower.

They do have lifetime warranty though.

 

[Binarymix]

Great idea! It'll be nice to not have that 2-3 mm overhang. I've been using SD cards as my primary storage media format. In fact, I keep a copy of OS X install disk on one in my bag at all times.

Why the 64GB limit on the 13" MBP?

Because the SD slot is shorter, thus not allowing for 128GB worth of chips on the SD board.

----------

They do have lifetime warranty though.

That's fine, I'm just saying for that posters specific application, it doesn't make sense.

Also, not sure the warranty would cover normal wear and tear (expected lifespan).

 

[Hurda]

Apple, take notice. Don't charge an extra $100 for double the memory on your iPhones.

As long as they make more money with the $100-intervals than with any other, more realistic interval, why should they change the pricing?

 

[dezmen]

Is it possible to install Windows via bootcamp on this card or PNY StorEDGE?

 

[GuardBoy98]

Oh, I don't know ... maybe ...

1) half the price
2) all one piece
3) no removal tool necessary

How is this different from:

Nifty Mini Drive

and

PNY Storedge?

 

[Freyqq]

Could this work to install Windows 7 on the card? If possible that would be a instant buy for me. As much as I like Mac OS, I really need Windows sometimes but for it's partition, I need at least 40gb. And having a 128gb SSD kinda makes that a challenge.

Windows 7 definitely wouldn't work, but windows 8 could potentially work if apple allows booting off a card.

 

[genovelle]

Hello Pegamush,
Our JetDrive Lite expansion cards are designed to be removable by hand without any tools.

Can I also use it with my Mac mini 2013 model?