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OWC Bumps Aftermarket MacBook Air SSDs to 480 GB

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Apr 12, 2001
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Expanding on its line of aftermarket solid state drives (SSDs) for the new MacBook Air, Other World Computing today announced that it has added a new 480 GB option to the mix, up from the previous maximum of 360 GB.
Other World Computing today announced its OWC Mercury Aura Pro Express Solid State Drive is now shipping in an industry largest 480GB capacity for all 2010 Apple MacBook Air models. First announced at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show this past January, the OWC Mercury Aura Pro Express line now offers up to 4X greater capacity and up to 68% faster real-world performance than factory available options.
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Pricing for the new 480 GB drive comes in at a hefty $1579.99, but power users looking for large storage capacities in an extremely portable machine may be interested in the options.

Just yesterday, we noted that Ars Technica had posted an extensive installation walkthrough and review of the OWC drives.

Article Link: OWC Bumps Aftermarket MacBook Air SSDs to 480 GB
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/05/05/owc-bumps-aftermarket-macbook-air-ssds-to-480-gb/
I seriously doubt there are many people willing to pay $1579 for a 480 GB SSD for the MacBook Air. If you're dropping that much money on internal storage, you're probably better served by a MacBook Pro.
 
$1579 for an SATA-II drive? Hopefully a Sandy Bridge MacBook Air will be out soon with SATA-III but that is expensive. I wonder how many OWC will sell.
 
gglockner said:
I seriously doubt there are many people willing to pay $1579 for a 480 GB SSD for the MacBook Air. If you're dropping that much money on internal storage, you're probably better served by a MacBook Pro.
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I really can't figure out the market either. Ignore the money for now. Who needs that kind of space? Boot Camp users who need two full machines? Video editors? I mean, I understand that the Air is a perfectly capable computer -- I want one to replace my MacBook once it gives up the ghost, and I'm a programmer -- but working with anything that big almost necessarily warrants more processor to keep yourself from going mad. Archivists? ;^)

Who needs that kind of space but doesn't mind the work-hampering processor? And who needs the extra 120 Gigs so badly 360 won't do?

Must be preparing for the new Air that comes with 360 bto.
 
I remember being asked the question "who needs that much space" also when I bought my first 486 with a 640 MB hard disk.
 
kool, but hell naw...

WHOA! That's great you can get that much storage capacity but paying $1,579 for it is super steep... like buying another MacBook Air. :eek: I can't imagine there are too many people (if at all) that would shell out hard earned cash for that luxury, unless of course they're wiping their butts with Benjamins all day long.
 
It's not a question of who needs 480GB of space. The question is who needs an MBA with 480GB of internal storage. If you want 480GB of internal storage, you can get a MacBook Pro - a far more powerful computer. If you want an MBA with 480GB of total storage, you can get an external drive - which could be even larger than 480GB. Even if you need 480GB of portable storage, you can get a portable external drive.

All of these alternatives don't involve the risk of voiding your MBA warranty, and they are so much cheaper that you could buy a second Mac with the money you'd save.
 
Yes. This is awesome! It's a little bit out of my price range, but it's good that OWC and whomever they partnered with has the tech to make this.

Don't whine and say "why" when it's out of your (and my) price range. Embrace the Tech! Prices will drop and 480GB SSDs in the Air will be the norm just like 1TB platters in desktops and some laptops.

I remember opting for the 8GB iPhone back in '07 and actually wondering who needed more than 8GB. Now we're all clamoring for 64GB iPhones! It's good to have options out there.
 
MarkMS said:
Yes. This is awesome! It's a little bit out of my price range, but it's good that OWC and whomever they partnered with has the tech to make this.

Don't whine and say "why" when it's out of your (and my) price range. Embrace the Tech! Prices will drop and 480GB SSDs in the Air will be the norm just like 1TB platters in desktops and some laptops.

I remember opting for the 8GB iPhone back in '07 and actually wondering who needed more than 8GB. Now we're all clamoring for 64GB iPhones! It's good to have options out there.
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It makes sense for virtually no one. You're right that the prices will eventually drop, but by the time it comes down to a reasonable level, the MBA will have been replaced by something far more powerful - and potentially incompatible with this specific upgrade from OWC.
 
The bleeding edge technology is always too expensive for the masses, but it triggers lower prices for the tech that used to be unobtainable.

Two years from now, only the poorest college students are going to opt for a laptop without a 500+ GB SSD.

In the mean time, I bet OWC sells thousands of these 480GB SATA-II SSDs. Especially if they are compatible with the upcoming refresh of the Thunderbird/Sandy Bridge MBAs.
 
John.B said:
Two years from now, only the poorest college students are going to opt for a laptop without a 500+ GB SSD.
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Not likely...SSD Gb per $ has been staying high. The only thing thats changed much are IO speeds (most notably on the PCI SS storage). 500 GB SSD are not going to be the nominal equivalent, to current 500GB HDD (conventional), in 2 years. That said, Yes...things will get cheaper and faster as time progresses;)
 
hithere said:
I remember being asked the question "who needs that much space" also when I bought my first 486 with a 640 MB hard disk.
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Those kinds of ridiculous questions seem to never die. People say the same things about RAM and broadband speed. "Who needs that much memory?" "Who needs that much speed?"
 
1TB SATA SSDs now down to only around 3K, so they match this drive.
 
I love the 'Pronouncement From On High' posts about how no one needs such a large SSD in an MBA, only rich people need it, etc. Since the poster doesn't need such an SSD, then no one else should. Geez, what arrogance.:rolleyes:
 
all 480gig upwards ssd,s cost 3x the price of 240 g ssd,s.,if you go to buy a 480 gig vertex or any other brands ,they are all in the 1500-2000^ price range.=yo could get 3x 240 gig ones for the same money,

at least it exists.:cool:
 
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