OCZ Vertex 2 Pro and Vertex 2 EX enterprise SSDs

OCZ officially introduced the Vertex 2 Pro and Vertex 2 Ex, two new enterprise solid state disks with the SandForce SF-1500 controller. The Vertex 2 Pro is a new SATA II model with MLC NAND flash memory, it's available in capacities of 50GB to 400GB and offers read speeds of up to 285MB/s, write speeds of up to 275MB/s and 50,000 IOPS (4KB random write). The Vertex 2 EX on the other hand uses SLC NAND flash memory, it's available in sizes of 50GB to 200GB and promises similar performance as the Vertex 2 Pro model. Additionally, a SAS version will also be made available to clients that require this interface.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:OCZ), a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and flash-based storage as an alternative to hard disk drives (HDDs), unveils the Vertex 2 Pro and Vertex 2 EX Solid State Drive (SSD) Series, high-performance 2.5 inch storage solutions designed for enterprise applications.

Built with the latest SandForce SF-1500 SSD processors, the Vertex 2 Pro/EX series of SSDs addresses the limitations of NAND flash memory in I/O-intensive environments and maximizes endurance and reliability. As a viable enterprise-grade, Multi-Level Cell (MLC) solution, Vertex 2 Pro features transfer rates up to 285MB/s read, 275MB/s write, and 4KB random writes up to 50,000 Input/Output per second (IOPS). Ideal for rigorous applications and workloads, the Vertex 2 EX uses Single-Level Cell (SLC) memory, which has ten times the program/erase (P/E) cycles with the same enhanced performance as the Pro edition. Additionally, a Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) version will be made available to clients making use of the interface in their storage infrastructures.

Vertex 2 Pro/EX SSDs feature several enterprise-specific features not available on the consumer product lines; both series have a built-in supercapacitor that acts as a temporary power backup in the event of sudden power loss, enabling the drive to complete its task ensuring no data loss. Vertex 2 Pro/EX also provides superior ECC protection and unique technology that mimics RAID-like protection and recovery from flash block failures on a single drive.

Furthermore, Vertex 2 Pro/EX increases the longevity of NAND flash memory with intelligent block management and wear-leveling to extend endurance and overall reliability of the device. This feature automatically stores data in an AES-128 encrypted format to prevent data extraction to maintain security of confidential information, a necessity in an enterprise environment.