IBM (NYSE: IBM) has unveiled the latest data storage array from its long association with LSI (NYSE: LSI), the IBM System Storage DS3500 Express.
The DS3500 is based on the LSI Engenio 2600 RAID array.
Offering a mix of 6Gbps SAS, 8Gb Fibre Channel and 1Gb iSCSI connectivity and up to 96 drives, the DS3500 offers twice the performance and capacity of earlier DS3000 arrays.
It also offers a number of storage management features, such as partitioning, FlashCopy, Volume Copy and remote mirroring via FC host ports.
Harold Pike, midrange product manager for IBM storage, said the DS3500 has “leapfrogged” HP’s (NYSE: HPQ) PS2000 G3.
It’s not yet clear if LSI’s other OEM partners like SGI (NASDAQ: SGI) and Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) will offer the 2600, and there’s been some question as to whether Oracle will continue Sun’s relationship with LSI.
But Pike said IBM typically gets LSI arrays out first because of the more than decade-long relationship between the two companies. “We’re so integrated that we get it out first,” he said. “We debug most of it for their other vendors.”
Pike said IBM doesn’t see a need for 10Gb Ethernet in small and mid-sized businesses just yet, but is ready to add that feature as demand arises. “We don’t find people at this end of the range having 10Gb infrastructures,” he said.
The IBM DS3500 starts at $5,499 for single controller and $8,799 for dual controller. SAS drives are priced from $579 to $989 depending on capacity and performance. The DS3500 accommodates both 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch drives.
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