14 DAY TRIAL // Since NAND Flash memory is quite a fair bit more expensive to turn into large-capacity storage devices than it would be to make a hard disk drive, 'affordable' SSDs are always a worthy pursuit, one which OCZ seems quite taken with if its Onyx SSD line is anything to go by.
OCZ's Onyx SSD was revealed about half a year ago and was meant as a cheaper solution, though it had the storage capacity of 'only' 32 GB.
For the most part, said solid state drive was meant to act as a boot drive and greatly enhance the performance of the PC.
Now, the same hardware maker has completed two more models, the so-called Onyx 2 line.
Its members have significantly higher capacities and data transfer rates of well over 250 MB/s both when reading and writing.
The newcomers have capacities of 120 GB and 240 GB, respectively, and feature the 2.5-inch compact form factor.
Both are constructed out of MLC (multi-level cell) NAND Flash memory chips and operate on the SATA 3.0 Gbps interface.
They also come with a random 4k write performance of 10,000 IOPS and speeds of 275 MB/s and 265 MB/s when reading and writing, respectively.
Other specifications include TRIM support and a MTBF of 1.5 million hours.
"While we are constantly looking to push the envelope in solid state drive performance, we are also dedicated to making the technology more affordable to consumers," said Ryan Petersen, CEO of the OCZ Technology Group.
"The new Onyx 2 Series SSDs give customers the very best of both worlds when it comes to performance and value, and they are an ideal solution for mobile and desktop users that want to take advantage of all the benefits that SSDs offer over traditional rotational based drives," he added.
Unfortunately, while the official press release did mention a two-year warranty, it failed to disclose the prices of the new 120 GB and 240 GB Onyx 2 SSDs.
UPDATE
Prices have since been revealed to be of roughly $189.99 for the 120GB and $439.99 for the 240 GB model.