OCZ Vector 256GB SSD review: Bangin’ Barefoot

OCZ's latest drive, the Vector, utilizes the company's new IndiLinx Barefoot 3 controller in conjunction with 25nm, IMTF (Intel Micron Flash Technologies) MLC NAND. Said NAND is rated for 550-MBps sequential writing and 530-MBps writing, as well as 95,000/100,000, 4KB write/read operations per second. Whatever the numbers, the Vector is fast.

In fact, the Vector was the only model in our December 2012 SSD roundup to give the Samsung 840 Pro a run for its money. The competition was fierce, with the 840 Pro nosing past the Vector's 489.1 MBps combined overall read/write performance by a mere 7.1 MBps.

Test by test, the Vector did well. It wrote our 10GB file/folder mix at 424.5 MBps and read the data back at 406.3 MBps; it wrote our single large 10GB file at 654.3 MBps, and read that back at 471.2 MBps. The drive’s average write performance was a whopping 541.5 MBps, and its average read performance was 438.8 MBps. Each of those transfer rates ranked second or third in the roundup.

OCZ expects the 256GB Vector to fetch $270 at retail ($1.05 per gigabyte), and that’s what it was going for online (as of December 15, 2012); in fact, the drive was selling for more than retail at many online retailers. OCZ ships the drive with a mounting bracket and screws, and if you look in the included manual, you’ll find a serial number for Acronis True Image to aid in cloning your old drive to the Vector.

The OCZ Vector isn't cheap, but it is extremely fast. It also provides 16GB more capacity than its main competitor, the Samsung 840 Pro, and it comes with an equally long five-year warranty.

Note: This review is part of a roundup of seven SSDs. Be sure to read the introduction, where you'll also find a detailed explanation of how SSDs work, as well as links to our reviews of each of the other six drives.