OWC Introduces Mercury Accelsior_E2 PCIe SSD Card

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World Computing introduced the Mercury Accelsior_E2, a Mac and PC-bootable, high-performance
PCIe SSD card that features up to 960GB of SSD capacity, up to
820MB/s of sustained data performance, and further external storage
expansion capability with two 6Gb eSATA interface ports.

Built for needs of
video editing and creative professionals, it offers a
combination of speed, capacity, and connectivity for simultaneous
internal and external storage performance.

Speeds Up Booting, App Launches,
and
Processor Intensive Processes
By utilizing the fast data interface in a Mac Pro or PC – the PCIe slot – the Accelsior_E2
offers nearly 3x the performance vs. an SSD in a 3Gb SATA 2.0 drive
bay with well beyond even 6Gb/s speeds of up to 820MB/s. Owners of
PCs and Mac Pros can stop waiting for I/O-intensive apps like
Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, or Avid Pro Tools to render, capture or
process; as well as experience near instantaneous booting and
application launches.

Adds Faster Than Factory Interface
To Mac Pros
Featuring two 6Gb eSATA expansion
interfaces, the card offers up to 6x faster file transfers and
backups – 600MB/s – than the fastest Mac Pro factory offered interface
of FireWire 800, which offers up to 100MB/s speed. The two eSATA
ports are bootable, and tailored for a variety of application
requirements enabling for up to 32TB or more of additional external
drive capacity.

Use with Laptops Too
The
Accelsior E2 isn’t just for desktop machine use. By utilizing
an external PCIe expansion chassis equipped with Thunderbolt, such as
the Mercury Helios, the performance benefits can also be enjoyed
by customers with Mac or PC laptops that feature the 10Gb/s
Thunderbolt interface.

Connect Single Solutions or Create
RAID Array
Compatible with 1.5Gb, 3Gb, and/or
6Gb external drives, it offers two eSATA storage expansion
interfaces. Each interface can connect to a variety of OWC and
NewerTech single and dual drive RAID solutions and other brand eSATA
interface equipped solutions. By using Apple Disk Utility or SoftRAID
with Macs, or various software RAID applications for PCs, customers
can create a RAID array among two connected drives.

More Efficient
and Reliable
Computing Experience
Boosting data transfer rates is one of
the benefits to the Accelsior E2. With its custom SandForce Driven Mercury SSD blades, the card enables Mac and PC users to enjoy a
responsive and productive computing experience along with cooler,
quieter, and more energy efficient operation compared to standard
HDDs. Those benefits don’t come at the expense of dependable use as
SandForce RAISE technology provides RAID-like data redundancy
protection and reliability.

Boosts Entry Level Server,
Applications and Gaming Too
In addition to video-editing and
multimedia creation/management deployment, the Accelsior_E2 takes
entry-level servers and even gaming to new levels of performance.
With up to 100,000 IOPS, applications like online transaction
processing databases are given a boost. For gamers, the performance
speed reduces game level-loading, object streaming, and save times
for more play time and less waiting.

Upgrade As Capacity Needs Grow
With OWC factory configurations from
120GB (2x60GB) up to 960GB (2x480GB) and the ability to upgrade
to larger blades in the future, the Accelsior_E2 is ready for
growing capacity needs.

User-Friendly, Robust
As easy to install as a memory module,
yet robust enough to handle the rigors of multimedia production
environments, the half-height card is the choice for pro audio and
video studios producing HD-quality work. This upgrade is designed and
built in the U.S. from domestic and imported parts and backed by a
three-year warranty.

Pricing, Availability
The Mercury Accelsior_E2 PCIe SSD card
is available in the following configurations:

• 120GB
  (2 x 64GB for 128GB total flash) $319.99

• 240GB
  (2 x 128GB for 256GB total flash) $479.99

• 480GB
  (2 x 256GB for 512GB total flash) $749.99

• 960GB
  (2 x 512GB for 1.0TB total flash) $1,329.99

The final capacity figures represent
each drive’s useable capacity after the 7% over-provisioning
allocation for wear-leveling and drive management. Mercury brand
SSDs use over-provisioning to ensure reliability over the life of the
drive, as well provide drive longevity and high data performance with
I/O stability.

Trade-In Program For Previous
Accelsior Model To Be Announced
The previous model was introduced at
the 2012 NAB show and did not feature eSATA expansion capability. To
offer owners an upgrade path to the current Accelsior E2, the company
will soon announce a trade-in rebate program. Along with offering
costs savings on the card itself, the original blades are 100%
compatible with the Accelsior E2. Or, the blades can be traded in for
larger capacity modules totaling up to 960GB.

"Mercury Accelsior_E2
completely redefines the concept of a storage upgrade," said
Larry O’Connor, founder and CEO, OWC. "It
completely eclipses any existing internal storage upgrade for the Mac
Pro and then adds an external interface that’s up to 6x faster than
what a Mac Pro offers. It’s truly a remarkable, cost-effective
solution that can even be used with other desktop and notebook
machines that don’t offer an available PCIe slot via an expansion
chassis like the Mercury Helios."