In a world focused on mobile consumption, the process of creating photographs still requires some pretty basic tools and methods. Image files, many of considerable size, need to be stored, managed, backed up, and archived. Storage media are still a big issue and a constantly moving target.
Mechanical hard drives (HDDs) have been the data storage medium of choice for several years due to cost and capacity. Yes, optical disks are still around (including M-DISC, which touts permanence as it main attribute), but capacity is the main drawback. Solid state drives (SSDs) have made big inroads lately and have come down significantly in price, the best example being Crucial’s new M500. While this isn’t the first 2.5” 960GB SATA SSD, it’s the least expensive so far at about $600, and it’s already so popular it’s hard to find it in stock anywhere. And early reviews are very positive.
Still on the fence about SSDs? They certainly aren’t the answer for everything, but the benefits in most circumstances are substantial and as the costs continue to drop and capacities rise I expect they’ll become increasingly popular.