The new M550 SSD from Micron - sold at retail under the Crucial brand - is initially available as a 2.5in drive in 64GB (OEM only), 128GB, 256GB, 512GB and 1TB capacities.

It features the Marvell 88SS9189 SSD controller with tight integration between Micron's NAND storage and the firmware, company officials said.

This allows sequential reads and writes to saturate the SATA 6Gbps interface.

The M550 provides better performance and lower power consumption than the M500 introduced by Micron last year.

Other features include "best-in-class" hardware encryption, a sleep mode that draws almost no power yet allows instant response when the device is woken, power loss protection, multiple layers of protection against data corruption, and adaptive thermal management (particularly important when used in very small devices).

"For consumers, the Crucial M550 SSD offers a reliable storage solution from a trustworthy brand," said Micron storage business unit vice president Darren Thomas.

"For OEM customers, the Micron M550 SSD offers a slim, lightweight form factor for ultrathin designs, and advanced features for media and video applications."

The more compact M.2 and mSATA versions of the Crucial M550 will be available later this year. Sample quantities of these devices are already available to OEMs.

Prices start at US$99.99 for the Crucial M550 128GB model.