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JEDEC Solid State Technology Association, the global leader in standards development for the microelectronics industry, today announced the publication of registered outline MO-297 for 1.8” Slim Solid State Drives. These types of SSDs have a range of applications in consumer products, including netbooks and laptops. As the first industry standard to target SSDs, MO-297 is indicative of JEDEC’s leadership in setting comprehensive SSD standards. The document is available for free download at www.jedec.org, as part of JEDEC Publication 95: Registered and Standard Outlines for Solid State and Related Products.

MO-297 defines the dimensions, layout and connector position for 54mm x 39mm solid state drives with a standard SATA connector. Adopting a standard form factor for these types of solid state drives will enable interoperability throughout the supply chain, benefiting drive manufacturers, product designers and consumers. Conforming to a single standard will simplify the product design process, shortening time to market and facilitating a reduction in costs.

The development of SSD standards involves various JEDEC committees as well as numerous external standards organizations. The MO-297 registered outline correlates directly with SFF Committee specification SFF-8156, and also references the Serial ATA International Organization’s (SATA-IO) Revision 2.6 Specification for connector dimension and tolerance.

“MO-297 is the first document to standardize a physical outline for a solid state drive. Adoption of this standard has the potential to deliver significant benefits for the industry by creating a single outline for storage suppliers and systems manufacturers to use and reference,” said Jim Leidy, Business Development Manager for Tyco Electronics and Chairman of the JEDEC Task Group behind the effort. He added, “Consumers will also have the benefit of vendor choice and ease of replacement, since drives adhering to the standard will be interchangeable.”

Mian Quddus, JEDEC Board of Directors’ Chairman said, “I applaud the JC-11 Committee on publication of MO-297, which is an important first step in JEDEC’s delivering a comprehensive set of standards for solid state drives.”

In addition to the efforts of JC-11 and other JEDEC committees, JEDEC’s JC-64.8 Subcommittee for Solid State Drives continues to lead the industry push to develop critical SSD specifications in a timely manner. All interested parties are encouraged to contact the JEDEC office at 703-907-7560 to become involved with SSD standards development.