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Re: Interesting changes in hard drive options these days
Posted: Sat Jul 15, 2017 10:41 pm
by mhschmieder
Nope, I think I read right, as data transfer speed should be what we care about. Here's the TrueDock specs. Not sure why I would waste $275 on an external PCIe host if I can do better with an external dock for my SATA III drives, which perform better this way than in the 2010 MacPro.
Features
Model TD-2535U3
2.5” / 3.5” SSD & SATA Docking Station
Supports SATA III 6 Gb/s
Supports UASP (USB Attached SCSI Protocol)
Up to 5 Gb/s Data Transfer Rate w/ USB 3.0
Expand Storage Capacity to Any System
Plug & Play
Re: Interesting changes in hard drive options these days
Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 5:13 pm
by mikehalloran
mhschmieder wrote:Ah, this description makes clear that there's a lot of shorthand terminology going around, and that the two specs are completely unrelated:
"The Accelsior E2 utilizes the PCIe slot in Mac Pros and PC towers, the fastest data interface available, to deliver up to 820MB/s of blistering performance. That's nearly 3x faster than an SSD equipped Mac Pro 3Gb/s drive bay, and well beyond 6Gb/s drive speeds."
Even so, I think the TrueDock (under $25) is rated at higher transfer speed than the Mercury PCIe enclosure, but I'll have to read their specs one more time to see if I can find the right ones.
The only way to get those data transfer speeds is with a RAID array on the other end—and it has to be the right flavors.
Re: Interesting changes in hard drive options these days
Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 11:27 pm
by mhschmieder
That's what I figured, but I'm curious why it's so hard to get real-world comparisons.
I wrote back to OWC asking them what they know about this specific scenario of a STA III drive hosted by an external dock vs. their own PCIe SSD hosted by their own Thunderbolt enclosure.
I've never had any problem with transparency when it comes to OWC's advice; they are very good about not trying to manipulate people into buying the more expensive option, or OWC brand.