OCZ Also Exhibits SSDs, Uses Next-Gen SandForce and SATA 6.0 Gbps

OWC may have already launched some solid state drives, but OCZ definitely didn't lag behind, having put on show not just Vertex, but also Z-Drive SSDs, the latter designed for the PCI Express interface.

Since solid state drives have been getting more popular and widespread, little by little, it is unsurprising that CES 2011 would be full of them.

With Other World Computing having already launched the Mercury Aura Pro, OCZ stepped up with totally different speed and capacity standards.

What the company revealed are the Vertex 3 and Vertex 3 EX series, as well as the Z-Drive R3.

The first two have the regular 2.5-inch SSD form factor but, unlike most of their peers, operate on the SATA 6.0 Gbps interface.

This was made possible by the SandForce SF-2582 controller, which led to read and write speeds of up to 550 MB/s and 525 MB/s, respectively.

Additionally, the consumer-oriented Vertex 3 is made of MLC (multi-level cell) NAND Flash memory chips and have random 4K writes of 70,000 IOPS, whereas the SLC (single-level cell) Vertex 3 ES achieve 80,000 IOPS.

As for the Z-Drive R3, it is designed to fit into a PCI Express x8 slot and is the truly fast and capacious of the trio, featuring four SF-1565 controllers in a RAID setup.

The collection includes models made of MLC, SLC or eMLC NAND and attains random 4K write rates of up to 135,000 IOPS.

Additionally, reading and writing is accomplished at up to 1,000 MB/s and 950 MB/s, respectively, while capacities are of 150 GB, 300 GB and 600 GB for SLC drives and 300 GB, 600 GB and 1.2 TB for those made of MLC or eMLC.

Finally, the Vertex drives will be available in 50 GB, 100 GB, 200 GB and 400 GB versions, though no prices were made public.