Specifications, Pricing and Availability

At the time of writing OCZ didn't have its product page up so we're using the specs presented to media in the reviewers guide. So far OCZ has released details on three capacity sizes. Vector is the new flagship in the OCZ SSD product family so we don't expect to see a 64GB model. We don't expect to see anything larger than 512GB either until a move to 20nm flash occurs.

Looking at just the Vector on the provided chart, we see the 128GB is down in performance slightly to the two larger capacity size models. The 256GB and the 512GB share the exact same specs so there isn't a large capacity performance penalty like previous generation products (SandForce, Crucial m4, etc.)

Barefoot 3 is an 8-channel design with an ARM Cortex processor packaged with an OCZ Argon co-processor. Page mapping resides in DDR3, 512MB in the 128GB and 256GB capacity sizes with a large 1GB buffer in the 512GB model. OCZ designed the Vector for sustained performance, the same thing we've preached for over a year here at TweakTown where the performance stays high even after intense use or with significant data on the flash.

Vector is a 7mm drive, OCZ's first flagship to appear in this form factor (although you can purchase a special Vertex 3 in 7mm Z-height at Newegg). Vector ships with a five year warranty and comes with Acronis True Image disk cloning software, another first for OCZ and a very nice feature to include. All of the standard OCZ add-in package goodies are also included, a desktop adapter bracket, screws, paper manual and a new sticker replacing my SSD is better than your HDD sticker.

Expect availability within 48 hours after the reviews go live. The 128GB Vector has an MSRP of $149.99, 256GB for $269.99 and the large 512GB for $559.99. These prices are above the magic $1 per GB, but they are also new and per the spec list the OCZ Vector is the highest performing consumer SSD on the market today. We'll put that claim to test very soon.