Is it round? Pear? Square? Wavy? Hard to say, but one thing is certain, 2014 has been an active year for the flash market. Just take a look at some of the changes that have been seen this year alone.
- WD (HGST) purchased Skyera
- EMC Acquired DSSD
- Seagate picked up LSI’s flash business and Avago
- SanDisk bought Fusion-IO
- Oracle brought Greenbytes into the fold
- Violin sold to Korean SK Kynix
This leaves EMC, Pure and IBM at the head of the pack for now. EMC recently released a special IDC reporting comparing capacity and dollars shipping in all flash arrays and it shows two varying views. On the sales front, EMC leads over all others in the space, while in capacity shipped, IBM has a significant lead. It is clear that IT Directors and VP’s are hearing the flash message loud and clear and are ready to move. What isn’t clear is who’s technology will win out. The three major players all have advantages and disadvantages to consider, and you’d be wise to take the time to understand them well. Let’s also not forget about the hybrid players out there like Nimble. They continue to drive consideration from the smaller enterprises and their low entry point is very attractive for even the smallest shops.
Digital IRL 