Pliant Rolls Out Low-Cost MLC SSDs

Enterprise Storage Forum content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

Pliant Technology’s latest offering upon the altar of solid state storage comes in the form of two solid state disk (SSD) drives based on multi-level cell (MLC) NAND Flash technology, a lower-cost alternative to the company’s family of SSDs based on single-level cell (SLC) NAND Flash. Pliant expects the cost-per-GB pricing for the MLC SSDs will be about half that of the SLC-based SSDs, according to this report from sister site InfoStor.


“The 2.5-inch 200GB Lightning LB 200M and 400GB LB 400M Enterprise Flash Drives (EFDs) are currently sampling to Pliant’s OEM customers, with availability from the company’s resellers expected next month. Pliant did not release pricing information, which is up to its channel partners and OEMs, but cost-per-GB pricing for the MLC SSDs is expected to be about half of the company’s SLC-based SSDs.

“Unlike most SSDs on the market, Pliant’s drives are based on SAS (3Gbps) interfaces, as opposed to the more common Fibre Channel or SATA interfaces.

“In general, MLC has higher capacity and lower cost than SLC flash, but MLC also has lower performance and endurance (reliability) characteristics.

“Greg Goelz, Pliant’s vice president of marketing says that, in general, SLC flash delivers 3X the performance of MLC flash, yet at about twice the cost. In terms of reliability, Pliant specifies a five-year lifecycle for its MLC-based SSDs, compared to a seven-year lifecycle for its SLC NAND SSDs.

Read the full “Pliant adds MLC SSDs to Lightning lineup” story at InfoStor.

Follow Enterprise Storage Forum on Twitter.

Get the Free Newsletter!
Subscribe to Cloud Insider for top news, trends & analysis
This email address is invalid.
Get the Free Newsletter!
Subscribe to Cloud Insider for top news, trends & analysis
This email address is invalid.

Latest Articles

10 Top Data Storage Certifications

Get up-to-date on the best data storage certifications for 2023. Learn which certifications are best for data storage engineers, administrators, and managers.

6 Best Data Storage Solutions and Software for 2023

Data storage solutions organize and backup enterprise data. Explore the top data storage software and vendors now.

The Top 6 NAS (Network Attached Storage) Devices of 2023

Looking for the best NAS devices for 2023? Compare the top NAS devices from leading manufacturers and find the perfect one for your needs now.