Dell is now offering a 256 GB solid state drive option in its XPS M1330 and M1730 laptops, currently the largest SSD offered in a notebook computer. The upgrade will cost you, currently running a whopping $400 over the original purchase price of the computer (which would typically ship with a 320 GB SATA hard drive). Dell hopes to offer the drive as an option on other laptop computers as well in the coming weeks.

Solid-state drives typically can retrieve data faster than regular drives. They run more efficiently, are quieter, and since they have no moving parts, you run less of a risk of losing data if you accidentally drop them. The drives are usually very expensive (a 240 GB SSD is usually priced over $1000) which is why we don't see larger SSDs in computers already. Dell is using a Samsung drive in its computers; SanDisk recently announced it would be offering 240 GB drives for $499, which may make them within reach of other laptop makers.

Apple is also offering a 256 GB SSD option for in its latest MacBook Pro line. The drive is much more expensive than Dell's, adding $900 to the purchase price of a 17-inch MacBook, more than double the cost of the same size drive in a Dell.

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