If you're after speedy, ruggedized portable storage on the go in capacities of up to 256GB, I-O Data combines a couple of much loved technologies with their latest GH-SSDE-U3A Series released today; that being SSD + USB 3.0.

The new drives sport a solid metal casing running dimensions of 79 (W) x 137.5 (D) x 12.5 (H) mm and weighing in at 141 grams. The drives inside use MLC NAND Flash and come in three capacity sizes of 64, 128 and 256GB. Performance wise, I-O Data claim read and write rates of up to 220MB/sec and 180MB/sec respectively.

The GH-SSDE-U3A will hit the Japanese market first later this month and the drives are backed by a 1 year warranty. Pricing info is yet to be disclosed.