Solid State drives (SSDs) like the OWC Mercury Extreme Enterprise Class SSD are really great pieces of technology. Since there are no moving parts, they are not only less susceptible to physical shock, but they also allow for faster transfer speeds.
It’s that second feature that has led many power users who have a “need for speed” to look to SSDs as the storage medium of choice when maxing out their computers.
Unfortunately, this speed boost may ultimately prove temporary, especially if you write data to your drive frequently, such as using your SSD as a scratch disk. In a recent article discussing the long-term performance of solid state drives, Lloyd Chambers of Mac Performance Guide, a long-time Mac performance expert, puts it this way:
The honeymoon might feel good, but 3/6/9 months later, you might want a divorce! Many SSDs just don’t hold up with use. They can hold up just fine for casual use (web, email, etc), but become badly degraded in other scenarios.
In his article, Chambers tests the performance of multiple popular SSDs (including the OWC Mercury Extreme) over time, and when I say “tests” I mean “beats them to a bloody pulp.” This is no light usage—we’re talking performance testing simulating long term, high-end use. While the process itself is interesting, the results are what really stands out. As the graph included in the study is quite detailed, we’ve simplified it down to this:
Write speeds over time. (Click image to see full test results)
That graph speaks volumes, buy I think Lloyd summed it up best.
“With an aggressive price, max read performance, and easily superior write performance, the OWC Mercury Extreme is the runaway winner.”
For more performance examples and information, check out this test on our YouTube channel, as well as these articles at Mac Performance Guide.
