Altech gets into solid state with Mtron

Altech Computers has made its first step into the solid-state drive (SSD) market with specialist vendor, Mtron.

Altech marketing manager, Kevin Hartin, said the broad-based distributor had been testing the vendor's product range for a few months as it looks to expand into an emerging product area.

"We were happy with the possible applications for SSDs and felt it was time to get into the market. Applications are limited at this stage, but low noise and power consumption makes them good for mobile and server room applications already," he said.

Altech also carries products from hard drive vendors, Samsung and Hitachi. Hartin expects both vendors will eventually release their own SSD technology, but there would be minimal competition between vendors.

"I expect being an early entrant to the market will help Mtron stay on top and where vendors such as Samsung will likely target the volume end of the market with SSDs, Mtron's technology tends to target specialist verticals," he said.

Hartin said the initial focus was to raise awareness of the brand and technology.

"Mtron may have been used by some local resellers and system integrators, but we're the first step they've taken into the market with broad-based distribution," he said. "We need to let people know the product is available and educate the market on its applications."