4-Way SSD Round-Up Redux: OCZ, Corsair, PhotoFast

Name: 4-Way SSD Round-Up Redux: OCZ, Corsair, PhotoFast - Page 4
Brand: 4-Way

by Marco Chiappetta — Tuesday, September 01, 2009, 01:00 PM EDT

When the PhotoFast G-Monster-V5 was first shown off at Computex a couple of month ago, the drive generated a bit of buzz due to its claimed 270MB/s read and write speeds. To approach speeds that high, Photofast uses a unique internal configuration, which is nothing like the other drives featured in this article.

256GB PhotoFast G-Monster-V5 SSD

The drive you see pictured above is a $999, 256GB PhotoFast G-Monster-V5. To an OS, the drive appears as a single volume, but internally the drive is comprised of a trio of components--two 128GB SSD modules and an adapter that "converts" the internal drive components in to a RAID 0 array. Each of the SSD modules is equipped with 128GB of Samsung MLC NAND flash memory, 64MB of Elpida DRAM cache memory (128MB total), and its own Indilinx controller.

Photfast G-Monster V5 256

Specifications and Features

Mfgr's part number	V5 256GB
Capacity	256GB
Form Factor	2.5"
Dimensions	Standard 2.5", 100.3(L) x 69.85(W) x 9.5(H)mm
Interface	SATA-2 3.0Gbps
Weight	90g
SLC or MLC?	MLC
Rated Performance	270MB/S read, 270MB/S write, 300MB/S host interface
Enclosure	Metal
Operating Temp range	0 -70C

When connected to a SATA II port, Photofast claims the drive can read and write at a rate of 270MB/s. And like the other drives featured in this article, the G-Monster V5 sports a 2.5" form factor.

Tags: SSD, OCZ, Corsair, Storage, PhotoFast, G-Monster

Marco Chiappetta

Marco's interest in computing and technology dates all the way back to his early childhood. Even before being exposed to the Commodore P.E.T. and later the Commodore 64 in the early ‘80s, he was interested in electricity and electronics, and he still has the modded AFX cars and shop-worn soldering irons to prove it. Once he got his hands on his own Commodore 64, however, computing became Marco's passion. Throughout his academic and professional lives, Marco has worked with virtually every major platform from the TRS-80 and Amiga, to today's high end, multi-core servers. Over the years, he has worked in many fields related to technology and computing, including system design, assembly and sales, professional quality assurance testing, and technical writing. In addition to being the Managing Editor here at HotHardware for close to 15 years, Marco is also a freelance writer whose work has been published in a number of PC and technology related print publications and he is a regular fixture on HotHardware’s own Two and a Half Geeks webcast. - Contact: marco(at)hothardware(dot)com