Anyone have experience with the OWC SSD replacements? Really contemplating going for the 240GB model as a nice little storage upgrade, but I worry about their reliability over time. Anyone have one and care to comment on it?
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Owc ssd
- Thread starter Beaverman3001
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I've got an OWC 240GB in my MBA 11, have had it installed for around 4 months and its been completely reliable.
I keep seeing people talk about reliability problems being reported on other forums, but I've searched and not found them, so I can't say whether they're true or not. Its a really simple upgrade to do, should take no longer than 10 mins.
- Colin
I keep seeing people talk about reliability problems being reported on other forums, but I've searched and not found them, so I can't say whether they're true or not. Its a really simple upgrade to do, should take no longer than 10 mins.
- Colin
Thanks, thats the kind of feedback I was looking for, someone who has used one for a few months. Did you keep your original SSD or sell it? Just curious how it would affect warranty in the future, if it is worth holding onto the old one to pop in incase you have to bring it to a store. It is a big factor in the overall upgrade price if you can sell the old one and not worry about warranty issues.
After only a month, it is too early to expect problems, and naturally, there are none. Exchanging the SSD in a new MBA only takes a few minutes, after which you can simply re-install MacOS from the Apple's recovery stick, or copy the original drive content from an external backup.
I have kept the original SSD in case trouble develops, and I consider buying a USB enclosure for it.
Also, I have signed up for an unlimited online backup at Crashplan.com, which does not cost more than an external drive. I strongly recommend this to anyone, because MBAs and even backup harddrives are easily stolen.
I have kept the original SSD in case trouble develops, and I consider buying a USB enclosure for it.
Also, I have signed up for an unlimited online backup at Crashplan.com, which does not cost more than an external drive. I strongly recommend this to anyone, because MBAs and even backup harddrives are easily stolen.
What enclosure?
I am inclined to swap and sell the old. Problem is, prepping the old for sale. I'll have to swap it back in to format it properly, then out again. An external case will make that easier and I can then sell the case along with the drive.
Can you provide me the link to the exact item you used for your upgrade? Also, once I install it, do I need to use the USB memory stick from Apple to first restore the OS then just use my Time Machine backup to restore to the most recent configuration of my MBA?
Thanks for your help.
This is the link to OWC Macbook air SSD blade.
http://eshop.macsales.com/search/macbook+air+ssd
I will consider upgrading next year, I have the 128SSD but still have 90GB Free. I can probably get by with out it since I have a iMac and external storage along with using the cloud. But the cloud seems so much more usable when you keep a copy on the hard drive, on the other hand that defeats the purpose of saving space.
If you compare the real life performance of Samsung 470 (similar to SM256 that Apple uses) with Sandforce 1200 SSDs, the difference is very small. The Samsung actually beats the Sandforce in certain situations.
Here's my review that compares real world performance of these drives:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=6071&p=2
In my opinion the OWC SSD isn't worth much extra money (assuming it costs more than the Samsung).
On the other hand, Apple can also use the Toshiba controller. The Sandforce will be faster during heavy multi tasking.
Here's my review that compares real world performance of these drives:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=6071&p=2
In my opinion the OWC SSD isn't worth much extra money (assuming it costs more than the Samsung).
On the other hand, Apple can also use the Toshiba controller. The Sandforce will be faster during heavy multi tasking.
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what did you do with your old ssd? also the other who have changed their ts/sm ssd to owc ssd, is it possible to make it an external ssd though it's not worthy because the lack of usb 2.0?
What choice do we have if you already have the 128GB drive and you want to increase the size. I would be happy to pay Apple to upgrade my drive to the 240GB, but I don't think that is an option. I think that OWC is the only option for upgrade on the new MBA?
Other have provided a link. I did a TM backup, swapped the SSD's and re-installed and restored from TM.
One mistake I did do, stupidly, was not shut down the MBA! I installed the OWC SSD and rebooted and it just wouldn't boot. I realised what I'd done, after about 5 mins of thinking OWC had sent me a duff one and reinstalled the old one. When I opened the lid I was back to where I'd left off. Then I shut down and installed the OWC. In all from installing the OWC to being able to log in was about 30-40 minutes.
- Colin