Western Digital has launched two new solid state drive (SSD) lines dubbed as WD Blue and WD Green. The consumer SSDs are being branded as high-performance products that will be immediately sold to select customers around the world through the company's website.
Western Digital has already launched an initial foray into the SSD scene back in 2010. The result was disappointing enough that it took several years before the company entered the market again. With the Blue and Green lines, the company is now poised to launch a permanent entry into the market.
"We are very proud to have developed and launched WD Blue and WD Green SSDs, and believe they'll provide the instant-on, reliability and capacity benefits our customers have been demanding," Eyal Bek, senior director at Western Digital, said in an official statement.
The WD Blue SSD, which comes in 250 GB, 500 GB and 1 TB capacities, is being marketed toward customers looking for enhanced performance. This product is designed to perform well in multitasking and resource-heavy computing processes. According to PC Gamer, this model demonstrates a capability of sequential read and write times of up to 540 MB per second.
The WD Green SSD, on the other hand, seems perfect for the average consumer. It is capable of what Western Digital called as essential-class performance. This SSD is only available in 120 GB and 240 GB variants. It can also be perfect for laptops due to its ultra-low power draw, ensuring longer battery life.
Both the Blue and Green SSD will ship with the WD SSD Dashboard software. They also have a 30-day money back guarantee and a three-year limited warranty.
While Western Digital has not confirmed any pricing information for the WD Green, it has stated that WD Blue is on sale from $79 to $299.
Industry observers have already expected the launch of Western Digital SSDs after the company acquired SanDisk early this year. Indeed, some of the SanDisk technology can now be seen in the Blue and Green SSD. For instance, the former sports the same hardware found in SanDisk's X400.
Western Digital also launched a set of redesigned external hard drives alongside the WD Blue and WD Green, the My Passport and My Book lines. They now come in different colors and have been significantly slimmed down so that they fit in the palm of your hands. My Passport and My Book start retailing for $79.99 and $129.99, respectively.
