Other World Computing (OWC) announced today its Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 desktop hardware RAID storage line delivers an entirely new level of affordability to high capacity, highly reliable performance data storage with its 8.0TB model now priced at US$979.99. Pre-configured with hardware RAID 5 redundancy to protect against data loss, the Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 has four hot swappable SATA hard drive bays; a “Quad Interface” of FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB 2.0, and eSATA ports for Mac and PC compatibility; and data transfer speeds of up to 300MB/s.
Three Plug and Play Models Starting At $519.99
• 2TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 (500GB x 4 w/64MB cache) & three year warranty – $519.99
• 4TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 (1TB x 4 w/128MB cache) & three year warranty – $649.99
• 8TB OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 (2TB x 4 w/128MB cache) & three year warranty – $979.99
In addition to the three “prosumer” models, three Enterprise Class options and a 0GB (no drives included) option are also available. More information on the complete OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 line here.
Comprehensive “Burn-in” Test Ensures Highest Reliability
OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 solutions undergo a multi-hour, comprehensive “burn in” procedure prior to shipping to ensure each unit will deliver the highest degree of reliable performance. Unlike most other brand solutions that are assembled then shipped with little or no testing, OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 units are put under an extreme multi-hour load test for value added piece of mind confidence that the unit is operating properly and that the installed drives are ready for demanding uses. With its unmatched commitment to quality, OWC backs Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 solutions with up to an industry leading five year warranty.
Built for Demanding Performance-Intensive Applications
The OWC Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 is built for demanding performance-intensive applications such as Audio/Video editing, HD-video, digital photography, professional music, graphics, redundant backup, and any use requiring data storage performance and reliability. Pre-configured in a hardware RAID 5 mode to provide data redundancy to ensure uninterrupted access to stored data, as well as protecting against data loss, the Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 can also be configured to automatically perform one of the other three hardware RAID settings: 0, 1, 10, as well as a Span (NRAID) setting. Selecting and/or visually confirming the RAID setting is performed via a recessed selector switch safely located behind the lockable front panel.
Plug & Play Desktop RAID for Mac & Windows PC
The Mercury Elite-AL Pro Qx2 also offers a variety of convenience features that make adding it to any Mac or PC Plug & Play easy: FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB 2.0, and eSATA interfaces, along with connection cables provide compatibility with multiple operating systems and computers; front panel LEDs give quick, at-a-glance system status; and a removable key lock ensures the installed hard drives and selected RAID mode remain secure.
More info here.
Source: Other World Computing (OWC)
According to Steve Jobs, the people who need such power as this will be the ones driving trucks.
And I remember selling 5MB hard drives for Apple III computers for $5000.00 back in the early 80’s. At $1,000 per MB, 8TB would have run $8,000,000.00. $979.00 sounds like a heck of a deal!
@J.Scott – Back then 8TB would have been the size of two desks and a filing cabinet.
Actually, 8 billion dollars.
@lurker,
8TB would have been MASSIVELY larger than two desks and a file cabinet!
5MB hard drives back then were the size of a VCR or big A/V receiver… It would have taken TWO HUNDRED of them just to make a 1GB drive… A GIGABYTE. So, we’re talking TWO-HUNDRED THOUSAND of them to make a 1TB drive…
So, we’re talking about an entire warehouse full of hard drives, not just a few desks or even an office worth!
Now I have a 32GB iPhone!
Amazing how tech progresses. Nice to see a decently priced competitor to the Drobo, which has worked well for me.
I just bought my first 2TB hard drive. A WD Caviar Green. Interestingly, I bought it from the Dell online store (about $120 including tax and shipping) when they had a special deal. Unfortunately, it must have been a popular deal, because I’m still waiting for shipment and the estimated delivery date is about two weeks from now.
Meanwhile back in Shanghai I’m trying to get the local Seagate guy to replace my 500GB HD, it’s been a month, but no worries there is still almost 2 years of warranty left. Not only the drives fail but so does the service.
4TB OWC looks like the way to go, then couple of HD’s for off site backup.
I just got a woody reading the specs.
another owc ad disguised as news. please jack, stop the bs.