OCZ Vector 180 Solid State Drive Review: Barefoot 3 Optimized

Performance Summary: Consumer-class, 2.5" solid state drives have been bumping up against the limits of the SATA interface for a while now. That trend continues with the OCZ Vector 180, though performance does still differ somewhat between the high-end drives we tested here. Overall, the Vector 180 performed very well. Transfer rates were within striking distance of Samsung’s SSD 850 series drives, access times were among the best we’ve seen, and data compressibility has no impact on performance. The Vector 180 also offered some of the better scores in the 4K transfer tests. In the trace-based PCMark benchmarks, the Vector 180 finished about in the middle of the pack, but the deltas separating the drives were relatively small.

OCZ Vector 180 Series Solid State Drives -- Find Them At Amazon

There will be four drives in OCZ’s initial Vector 180 series line-up, ranging in capacity from 120GB on up to 960GB. Pricing for the drives is as follows:

• 120GB - $89.99 ($0.75 / GB)
• 240GB - $149.99 ($0.62 / GB) 
• 480GB - $269.99 ($0.56 / GB)
• 960GB - $499.99 ($0.52 / GB)

At those prices, the OCZ Vector 180 series is competitive with other high-end, consumer-class solid state drives. Most other drives in this class, however, don’t offer 5-year warranties with advanced replacement or any level of power-loss management, like the Vector 180 offers. OCZ’s new Guru utility is also a worthwhile freebie that gives users plenty of flexibility to tweak and tune their drives, with an easy to use and navigate interface.

Factor everything into the mix and OCZ has another compelling SSD in their line-up. The Vector 180 is fast, flexible, competitively priced, and has a great warranty. That’s a nice mix in our book.

Strong Performance 5 Year Warranty Solid Bundle OCZ Guru Utility	Trailed Samsung 850 Slightly