Flash memory storage solution provider SanDisk Corp. SNDK recently unveiled a solid state drive ("SSD") — Z400s SSD — that would improve the computing and mobile computing experience for both consumers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Expected to be available worldwide soon, Z400s SSD will boost the company’s SSD product portfolio.
The Z400s SSD will help consumers accelerate the processing speed of notebooks/desktops externally. Apart from this, the drive can be used with applications such as Digital Signage, Point-of-Sale ("POS") and Surveillance Systems.
The company is sampling Z400s with customers in mSATA, 2.5” SATA and M.2 (2242 and 2280) form factors, with 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities. However, it has not disclosed the price of the product yet.
The Z400s SSD targets OEMs that can embed it into their upcoming notebook/desktop line-ups. SanDisk believes that the drive offers utmost speed, quick response system and energy efficient features.
According to the company, the Z400s drive is 5 times more reliable and 20 times faster than the traditional HDDs. Moreover, per a published report at www.computerworld.com HDDs are three times more likely to fail than SSDs. Therefore, this drive will not only help PC makers to enhance their product performance but also overall customer satisfaction.
Additionally, SanDisk believes that its SSDs can provide major benefits over HDDs in areas of digital signage, security surveillance, POS or kiosk environments, especially in applications with short-term storage requirements but high reliability and performance level.
With the launch of Z400s SSD, we expect SanDisk to further strengthen its market position. As per research firm IHS iSuppli, the demand for SSDs will grow over 40% in 2015. Thus, we believe that with continuous enhancement in its product portfolio, SanDisk can capitalize on this opportunity.
Nevertheless, SanDisk’s near-term prospects do not look good. The company started 2015 on a weak note posting lower-than-expected first-quarter results. The company revealed that the results were negatively impacted by some product related issues, weaker-than-expected pricing and supply constraints.
Further, anticipating a significant decline in client SSD revenues due to enormous customer shift, the company issued tepid second-quarter guidance and lowered the full-year 2015 revenue outlook. Also, lower-than-expected demand from both enterprise SATA and SAS led to the weak revenue outlook. Pricing pressure also remains a major headwind.
Currently, SanDisk has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).
Stocks to Consider
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector are Cirrus logic Inc. CRUS, CEVA Inc. CEVA and eMagin Corp. EMAN. All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
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