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OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 1:10 pm
by Apoptosis
OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive, an Innovative Bootable PCI-Express SSD Solution for Enterprise Applications

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San Jose, Calif.—September 16, 2009—OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and flash-based storage as an alternative to hard disk drives (HDDs), today unveiled the Z-Drive, a PCI-Express Solid State Drive (SSD) designed to meet the stringent demands of enterprise computing clients. Unlike other solutions, the Z-Drive provides a cost-effective formula of performance, reliability, and upkeep for enterprise customers and their applications which require the benefits of solid state drive technology, but have previously been hesitant to adopt competing products due to the sheer cost of implementation.

“Traditional enterprise storage technology typically requires overly complex infrastructure as well costly maintenance, and is often unable to deliver the level of performance required by OEM applications,” said Ryan Petersen, CEO of the OCZ Technology Group. “The new OCZ Z-Drive is an all-in-one high performance plug-and-play bootable PCI-E solid state drive that addresses these challenges head on, and meets the demands of the complete range of enterprise storage and data access requirements. The Z-Drive is designed not only to be higher performing and more reliable than conventional solutions, but also to significantly reduce both the maintenance and overall TCO for our clients.”

The Z-Drive is the result of the latest breakthroughs at OCZ and builds on the company’s expertise in flash-based storage. This proprietary SSD is bootable and takes the SATA bottleneck out of the equation by employing a high-speed PCI-Express architecture coupled with a compact enterprise-grade RAID array. With 8 PCI-E lanes and an internal four-way RAID 0 configuration, the Z-Drive delivers exceptional performance that translates to professional-class data storage in a complete, all-in-one form factor. Additionally, OCZ offers unique customization options for OEM clients that may require tailored hardware or firmware solutions for their business.

To accommodate a wide range of professional applications, the Z-Drive is available in multi-level cell (MLC) and single-level cell (SLC) models referred to consecutively as p84 and e84. Z-Drive pushes the envelope in storage performance versus competing traditional and flash based solutions:



In addition, these impressive speeds are achieved all while providing lower power consumption, superior durability, and shock resistance compared to traditional rotational-based drives, translating into exceptional energy savings and reduced maintenance costs.

An ideal solution for enterprise clients that put a premium on both performance and maximum storage capacity including servers, storage arrays, supercomputing, professional media, and industrial electronics, the Z-Drive is available in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB (p84 only) capacities to offer ample room for the complete spectrum of applications. The Z-Drive comes backed by a leading 3-year warranty and dedicated technical support, ensuring unparalleled peace of mind.

For more information on the OCZ Z-Drive solutions, please visit our product pages here.

About OCZ Technology
OCZ Technology Group, a member of JEDEC, designs, develops, and manufactures ground-breaking, high performance memory and premium computer components, including solid state drives and computer power supplies. OCZ products are the first choice for users needing high-reliability, enthusiast-grade solutions. OCZ’s continually invests in R&D to continuously push the limits of performance, speed, and value for consumers, system integrators, and OEM clients. All of OCZ Technology Group's products are available through its worldwide network of distributors, online resellers and retail stores. For more information visit our website at www.ocztechnology.com

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 2:08 pm
by gwolfman
Oh my =P~ Finally bootable! :supz: Any news on speeds?

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 2:11 pm
by gwolfman
Found it posted: http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/s ... xpress_ssd
Available in 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB (1024GB) capacities*
256MB Local Cache
Onboard RAID Controller
PCI-Express interface (x8)
For use as primary boot drive or data storage
195mm x 32mm x 127mm
(L x W x H)
Weight ~ 500g
Operating Temp: +5ºC ~ +55ºC
Storage Temp: -20ºC ~ +80ºC
MTBF 900,000 hours
3 year warranty
Compatible with Windows XP 32/64, Vista 32/64,
Windows 7 32/64, Linux, Mac OS X 10 and Above

256GB Max Performance
Read: Up to 770MB/s
Write: Up to 640MB/s
Sustained Write: Up to 600MB/s
Max IOPS (4k random): 10,000

512GB Max Performance
Read: Up to 870MB/s
Write: Up to 760MB/s
Sustained Write: Up to 600MB/s
Max IOPS (4k random): 10,000

1TB Max Performance
Read: Up to 870MB/s
Write: Up to 780MB/s
Sustained Write: Up to 600MB/s
Max IOPS (4k random): 10,000

Part Numbers
250GB -
OCZSSDPCIE-ZDP84256G
500GB -
OCZSSDPCIE-ZDP84512G
1TB -
OCZSSDPCIE-ZDP841T

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Wed Sep 16, 2009 5:14 pm
by FZ1
Doesn't matter unless you have SEVERALTHOUSAND dollars to spend.

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Sat Oct 03, 2009 11:30 am
by burke
hi, when will this drive be reviewed? I am pretty much going to buy it if it gets a good review from you guys.

Speicifcally if and when you do the review, can you clarify the following:

1. Will it work as a primary drive with a Dell XPS 730x our of the box as plug and play?
2. If not plug and play, how complicated is it to set up as a primary drive (excluding the OS install)? Do you have to load something onto the bios for it to work? Is there any additional power cables required etc?
3. Can i continue to use my traditional hard drives via the standard motherboard sata for storage?
4. Will it support trim commands from windows 7? If not, how much of a performance degradtion will there be if wiper is not used periodically.
5. If only garbage collection is available, can this be run within windows if the drive is being used as the primary drive.

Thanks!

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Sat Oct 03, 2009 11:34 am
by burke
FZ1 wrote:Doesn't matter unless you have SEVERALTHOUSAND dollars to spend.
actually I can buy it for 1100 euros. Not too expensive in comparison to what i thought it would be.... (if i bought PCI raid card and 4 drives it would prob be more expensive with no garuntee of hitting those kinda speeds)

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Sat Oct 03, 2009 3:55 pm
by FZ1
burke wrote:hi, when will this drive be reviewed? I am pretty much going to buy it if it gets a good review from you guys.

Speicifcally if and when you do the review, can you clarify the following:

1. Will it work as a primary drive with a Dell XPS 730x our of the box as plug and play?
2. If not plug and play, how complicated is it to set up as a primary drive (excluding the OS install)? Do you have to load something onto the bios for it to work? Is there any additional power cables required etc?
3. Can i continue to use my traditional hard drives via the standard motherboard sata for storage?
4. Will it support trim commands from windows 7? If not, how much of a performance degradtion will there be if wiper is not used periodically.
5. If only garbage collection is available, can this be run within windows if the drive is being used as the primary drive.

Thanks!
Those are questions you'll have to ask OCZ. All we know is what was in the press release and available on their site.

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Sun Oct 04, 2009 7:43 am
by burke
I have on thier forums and and also from the resellers but got no real firm answer from either, (OCZ based on thier forum feedback think there will be no trim and use manual periodic garbage collection but no data to back it up and very fuzzy on the details as it relates to setting it up as a primary drive) which is why i am asking here as to when the review is due as legit reviews are typically one of the first sites to review OCZ SSD drives..... as a trusted media/review outlet if OCZ announce immediate availability and then provide no info to anyone for a drive that costs from 1100 to 6000 euro, then i can only rely on review sites such as these to review and confirm such things as ease of set up and performance degradation performance over time.....

Is that not the purpose of reading the reviews when you cant get and/or cant trust the official info/performance data from the company? a neutral opinion on how good a piece of kit is with some data to back it up...

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Sun Oct 04, 2009 1:35 pm
by Apoptosis
let me see what I can dig up for you on monday!

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Sun Oct 04, 2009 2:08 pm
by burke
Apoptosis wrote:let me see what I can dig up for you on monday!
Thank you, Really appreciate it.

Re: OCZ Announces Immediate Availability of the Z-Drive SSD

Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 5:43 pm
by burke
Hi by the way, might be a scoop for your site.... OCZ just posted that they have cheaper mainstream Z drives.....

http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/s ... xpress_ssd

the Max IOPS (4k random) is missing from the mainstream drives, so my guess is that this prob suffers the most, but the max read speeds are pretty much consistent with the performance z drives...


By the way any luck with finding anything out about the P series of the z drives for me?