SMART Modular Technologies Announces World's Fastest Multi-Level Cell and Highest Capacity SAS SSD

   SMART Modular Technologies (WWH), Inc. ("SMART" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: SMOD), a leading independent manufacturer of solid-state storage products and memory modules, today announced the Optimus solid-state drive (SSD) for enterprise storage applications. Featuring a native Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) 6Gb/s interface and up to 1.6TB usable capacity, Optimus is the industry's highest capacity and fastest(1) SAS multi-level cell (MLC) SSD. Delivering high performance, endurance, and reliability, the cost-effective Optimus SSD satisfies the demands of I/O intensive, web-facing, and cloud-based applications in today's IT infrastructure.

Optimus was developed using SMART's extensive experience in flash technology, SAS firmware, and enterprise storage. SMART's world-class manufacturing and accomplished enterprise organization ensures that the Optimus SSD, as well as SMART's business and support processes, will meet the needs of the most demanding enterprise storage customers.

Available in 200GB, 400GB, 800GB, and 1.6TB usable capacities, the new 2.5" SAS SSD features industry-leading(1) read/write speeds of 100K/50K random IOPS and 500/500MB/s sustained transfer rates. The Optimus SSD also includes support for wide-port SAS capability, providing up to 1GB/s sustained read performance in applications equipped to support this advanced feature. It is designed to deliver these impressive performance numbers consistently across any data type over the life of the product.

"A product that combines enhanced endurance, high capacity, and high performance at a good value would cause a dramatic shift in how storage is deployed, and it would help to drive the adoption of SSDs in the enterprise," notes Joe Unsworth, Research Director, NAND Flash and SSD, Gartner.

The new Optimus SSD incorporates Guardian technology, a comprehensive suite of innovative proprietary features comprised of FlashGuard™, DataGuard™, and EverGuard™ technologies. FlashGuard technology delivers industry-leading flash management capabilities, ensuring that the Optimus SSD can be used in mainstream, enterprise storage workloads throughout its warranted 5-year period. Incorporating Aggregated Flash Management and Advanced Signal Processing technologies, FlashGuard extracts higher endurance characteristics out of MLC flash, allowing SMART to offer Optimus SSDs with a comprehensive 5-year warranty at usage rates up to 10 full device-writes per day. DataGuard and EverGuard technologies ensure that data integrity and drive reliability are never compromised, satisfying the demanding requirements of Tier-1 enterprise storage applications. Additionally, Optimus features full T10 DIF support and TCG enterprise encryption, resulting in an optimal blend of endurance, performance, reliability, and value.

"The Optimus SSD is a game changer. By leveraging MLC flash memory and SMART's unique IP, we provide the industry's highest performance and highest capacity enterprise-class MLC SSD at a value point that we expect will accelerate SSD adoption in the enterprise," said John Scaramuzzo, SMART's Senior Vice President and General Manager, Storage Business Unit. "Satisfying the needs of an enterprise storage customer takes more than just an industry-leading product, it also requires a seasoned team with experience in the enterprise storage business. SMART is perfectly positioned to satisfy all of these needs."

The SMART Optimus SSD will be featured at the Flash Memory Summit, August 9 through 11, 2011 in Santa Clara, CA in booth #400. The new SSDs will begin sampling in September 2011. For additional information on SMART's new Optimus SSDs, visit www.smartm.com.

Forward-Looking Statements Statements contained in this press release, that are not statements of historical fact, including any statements that use the words "will," "believes," "anticipates," "projects," "estimates," "expects," "intends," "scheduled" or similar words that describe the Company's or its management's future plans, objectives, or goals, are "forward-looking statements" and are made pursuant to the safe-harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include those related to the Company's business strategies and product plans, product performance, reliability, quality, cost savings and customer acceptance, and the market for the Company's products.

Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results of the Company to be materially different from the historical results and/or from any future results or outcomes expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that would cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, production or manufacturing difficulties, competitive factors, new products and technological advancements, difficulties with or delays in the introduction of new products, declines or fluctuations in product prices and raw material costs and availability, dependence upon third-party vendors, customer demand for or acceptance or qualification of products, end user markets, changes in industry standards or release plans, fluctuations in the quarterly effective tax rate and related tax provision, failure to receive continued favorable tax treatment or renewals of exemptions from or benefits relating to certain taxes in foreign countries, higher than anticipated costs from increasing capacity, changes in foreign currency exchange rates, intellectual property disputes, and other risks detailed in the Company's periodic report filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for fiscal 2010, the Company's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the first, second and third quarters of fiscal 2011. Such risk factors as outlined in these reports may not constitute all factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in any forward-looking statement.

The Company operates in a continually changing business environment and new factors emerge from time to time. The Company cannot predict such factors, nor can it assess the impact, if any, from such factors on the Company or its results. Accordingly, our future results may differ materially from projections and investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as a prediction of actual results. These forward-looking statements are made as of today, and the Company does not currently intend, and has no obligation, to revise or update any forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this press release.

About SMART SMART is a leading independent designer, manufacturer and supplier of electronic subsystems to original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs. SMART offers more than 500 standard and custom products to OEMs engaged in the computer, enterprise, industrial, networking, gaming, telecommunications, defense, aerospace and embedded application markets. Taking innovations from the design stage through manufacturing and delivery, SMART has developed a comprehensive memory product line that includes DRAM, SRAM, and Flash memory in various form factors. SMART also offers high performance, high capacity solid state drives, or SSDs, for enterprise, defense, aerospace, industrial automation, medical, and transportation markets. SMART's presence in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Latin America enables it to provide its customers with proven expertise in international logistics, asset management, and supply-chain management worldwide. See www.smartm.com for more information.

(1) Based on performance of 200GB, 400GB, and 1.6TB capacity drives.

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Contact: Joy Donohue SMART Modular Technologies [phone] [e-mail]