OCZ Vertex 3 240GB SATA 3 SSD Review – PCMark Vantage Comparison Testing

PCMARK VANTAGE x64 HDD SUITE

The SSD Review uses benchmark software called PCMark Vantage x64 HDD Suite to create testing scenarios that might be used in the typical user experience.  There are eight tests in all and the tests performed record the speed of data movement in MB/s to which they are then given a numerical score after all of the tests are complete.  The simulations are as follows:

• Windows Defender In Use
• Streaming Data from storage in games such as Alan Wake which allows for massive worlds and riveting non-stop action
• Importing digital photos into Windows Photo Gallery
• Starting the Vista Operating System
• Home Video editing with Movie Maker which can be very time consuming
• Media Center which can handle video recording, time shifting and streaming from Windows media center to an extender such as XBox
• Cataloging a music library
• Starting applications

If you are new to testing and considering benchmark software, this is the best you can get because the program goes well beyond the results of simulated testing as we have already done.  In comparing SATA 2.0 SSDs, we have reached the bandwidth limit and the performance of most new SATA 2 SSDs is as high as it can get with typical high sequential access speeds in the area of  270MB/s read and 270MB/s write.

We needed a way to differentiate these drives and to find a method that can actually put one drive above another and this is exactly what Vantage testing does.  Its tests combined can provide an accurate comparison between drives and its tests individually can assist a smart shopper in finding the best SSD for their needs.

Although we have yet to reach SATA 3 bandwidth max, there will be a number of manufacturers introducing SATA 3 drives in the next few months.  Next to actual ‘true to life’ testing which can take an insurmountable length of time, PCMark Vantage is the only program that can compare any SSD, side by side, regardless of SATA interface or controller in use.

OCZ VERTEX 240GB SATA 3 SSD VANTAGE X64 RESULTS

The OCZ Vertex 3 surpassed each and every other SSD we had previously tested, given exception to the Revo x2. We have done extensive testing of SSDs in RAID 0 mode and the Vertex 3 even surpassed our RAID 0 testing of 4 SSDs and went one further to also better our recent testing of the OCZ Revo RAID 0 SSD.  The total point calculation shown through Vantage was 70624 and the highest we had ever previously seen through a standard SSD, including SATA 3 SSDs, was 47956 points.  Even the RevoDrive pulled off just over 63000 points.

At first, OZC might frown upon our comparison of two of their drives to display our point but can you really complain when you have the 3 fastest SSDs available in the consumer market?  We have to wonder what the next generation RevoDrive is going to look like when they simply switch off the SF-1200 for the new SF-2281?  Is it inconceivable that we will be seeing a consumer available RevoDrive with 1500MB/s parallel read/write performance?

PG1 – INTRODUCTION & SPECIFICATIONS

PG2 – BENCH CONFIGURATION AND TESTING PROTOCOL

PG3 – INITIAL BENCHMARKS

PG4 – CRYSTAL DISKMARK, AS SSD, HDTACH & WIN7 EXPERIENCE INDEX

PG5 – HDTUNE BENCHMARK TESTING

PG6 – PCMARK VANTAGE COMPARISON TESTING

PG7 – CONCLUSIONS

DISCUSS THE REVIEW HERE!