You might struggle to recall the name at first, but it’s that brand you recognize the moment you see a black-and-red USB drive—the one you’d rush to buy at a stationery store back in your school days (or even now, as the term 'school days' has become a catch-all for those times).

While famous among general consumers, SanDisk is also virtually irreplaceable among professionals when it comes to SD cards. Their recent Mario and Pokémon collaboration SD cards were adorable, too; SanDisk is, in any case, a fascinating company.

On May 19, SanDisk held a press conference at the Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, to unveil its newly reorganized internal SSD portfolio and branding, along with a massive collection of officially licensed 'FIFA World Cup 2026' products.

Welcome Remarks and Brand Strategy Briefing

The event began with a welcome address by Shim Young-cheol, director of SanDisk Korea. "In an era driven by AI, content creation, and gaming, consumer demand for storage has continuously evolved, and this remains an ongoing process," said Director Shim. "SanDisk will continue to meet these customer needs, particularly in the Korean market—a hub of IT and digital culture—by ensuring users can focus entirely on their work or gaming."

Following this, attendees watched a video briefing by Janet Allgaier, COO of SanDisk's retail business, who introduced the brand's strategy. She shared her personal affection for the SanDisk brand, stating, "The data we save is not just a collection of files; it is a record of our lives and our experiences themselves. SanDisk will continue to provide 'space to hold more,' ensuring that consumers can keep growing their precious memories and creations."

Internal SSDs consolidated under the 'Optimus' brand following integration with WD (Western Digital) products

The most eye-catching reveal was the 'SanDisk Optimus' series, the flagship internal SSD lineup that had been teased at CES 2026.

The lineup is categorized into three tiers: the performance-grade 'SanDisk Optimus' for a balance of speed and value; the 'SanDisk Optimus GX' for gamers who prioritize fast loading, high capacity, and power efficiency; and the 'SanDisk Optimus GX PRO' for hardcore gamers and professionals requiring top-tier performance.

Personally, I liked the old WD SSD color-coded lineup (Green, Blue, Black), but I can see how unifying the lineup is a good strategy to avoid confusing general consumers.

It was also great that they introduced the new products by referencing those currently on the market to avoid confusion. By aligning the numbering of the new Optimus internal SSDs with the legacy WD product numbers, general consumers should find it easy to identify the performance tier. For instance, if you are familiar with the WD_BLACK SN850X, you can think of it as the SanDisk Optimus GX PRO 850X.

The top-of-the-line SanDisk Optimus GX PRO 8100 is powered by PCIe 5 technology, delivering a phenomenal sequential read speed of up to 14900MB/s, with capacities available up to 8TB.

The Era of Convenient Portable SSDs is Here!

We also got a look at the new portable SSD lineup, which features lightweight and user-friendly designs. These products were designed to actively support the increasingly sophisticated workflows of general consumers and professionals living in the age of large files and AI content.

The portable SSDs also consist of three lineups: the cost-effective 'SanDisk Portable SSD' for students and light business use; the 'SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD,' capable of transferring 1k high-resolution photos in under a minute; and the 'SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD,' which supports real-time editing and high-res media work with transfer speeds of 4kMB/s.

'FIFA World Cup 2026' Special Collection for Football Fans Worldwide

They also showcased an officially licensed product collection created in collaboration with the upcoming global sports festival, the 'FIFA World Cup 2026.'

The most unique item was the 'SanDisk USB-C Flash Drive: FIFA World Cup 2026 Edition,' designed to resemble a referee's whistle. While it doesn't actually make a sound, it can be worn around the neck. It’s a design worth commemorating if something memorable happens at this World Cup. SanDisk mentioned that the response from FIFA was very positive. The drive helps manage content between mobile devices and PCs at speeds up to 300MB/s.

The 'SanDisk Portable SSD: FIFA World Cup 2026 Edition,' featuring the tournament's theme colors, was also quite cute. It supports 1TB of capacity and read speeds up to 800MB/s.

Though you don't exactly display them, they also introduced the 'SanDisk CFexpress Type B Card: FIFA World Cup 2026 Edition' and the 'SanDisk SD UHS-II Card: FIFA World Cup 2026 Edition.' Designed to stably support 4K/8K video recording and high-speed burst shooting, these help professionals record important moments quickly and reliably.

In unveiling the FIFA World Cup 2026 editions, SanDisk stated, "Through this collaboration with the FIFA World Cup 2026—a global festival enjoyed by people all over the world—we look forward to reaching even more users with SanDisk products."

Q&A

Q: With product prices rising significantly for general consumers, the market is currently in a slump. Is SanDisk making any specific moves or efforts to address this?

" It is true that the consumer market is being impacted by B2B demand. However, SanDisk is striving to secure products for B2C to ensure they remain accessible to general consumers. We are also operating an official store to minimize any potential negative impact on consumers at the brand level.

Q: As we are in a transitional period between 'USB-A' and 'USB-C,' some products are no longer being released with USB-A. However, USB-A is still widely used in daily life. Will only USB-C interfaces be released in the future.

" While the trend is moving toward USB-C, we are not unaware of the demand for USB-A. I understand that if the market truly reaches a 50:50 split, we are considering adopting a dual-connector form factor that supports both.

Q: Regarding the FIFA World Cup 2026 Edition, is it a limited release? If so, can you share the quantity allocated to Korea?

" As these are seasonal products, it is expected that interest will cool down once the World Cup ends. However, SanDisk's primary goal is not necessarily to push a massive volume of inventory, but rather to raise brand awareness and introduce customers to the work they do. Therefore, there is no specific sales quota, and while there may be fluctuations in demand, the company does not anticipate any supply shortages during the promotional period.

Q: With the integration of internal SSDs into the Optimus lineup, what are the plans for after-sales support for existing products, especially WD products.

" There is absolutely no need to worry. Existing products like WD_BLACK are also products made by SanDisk and fall under the same umbrella, so we will continue to support them in the future.