Products: Studio Network Solutions

Storage costs have plummeted over the past few years, but it can still be pricey to use Fibre Channel technology to control that storage.

That's why it's a good idea to keep your eye on alternate network technologies like iSCSI, which offer speedy throughput at a lower tab. One of the first manufacturers to deliver iSCSI to the production community, Studio Network Solutions (SNS), continues to expand its iSCSI-based globalSAN line with the X-24 system.

At 9.6TB, the globalSAN X-24 now comes with 60 percent more storage for its $29,999 tab; that's about $0.40/GB for a full eight-user SAN.

According to Eric Newbauer, SNS director of operations, the system is spec'd for editing high volumes of offline DV in Final Cut or Avid, and cheaper and simpler to use than Apple's Xsan. www.studionetworksolutions.com