Western Digital exits SSD market, shifts focus to hard drives as SanDisk takes over NAND operations

The big picture: Western Digital, a titan in the storage industry long renowned for its hard disk drives and solid-state drives, has officially separated its NAND flash memory business, effectively ending the company's direct involvement in SSD production and sales. Western Digital's exit from the market leaves behind a legacy of innovation and quality that has significantly impacted the PC gaming community. This move, which had been in development for some time, was finalized last week. The SSD division has been fully spun off into SanDisk, leaving Western Digital to focus exclusively on hard disk drive technology. This separation marks a pivotal moment for the company, which has been a household name in both HDD and SSD markets, competing alongside industry giants like Samsung and Crucial. For PC gaming enthusiasts, who have increasingly gravitated toward SSDs for their superior speed and performance, this development represents a bittersweet moment. Western Digital has produced so ... Read full article.