Thumb Drives: Introducing 128 GB USB And High-Speed eSATA

8 GB, eSATA/USB: OCZ Throttle eSATA Flash Drive

The OCZ Throttle eSATA Flash Drive is different from the other products, as it actually has a memorable name, we think. “Throttle” is something you will be able to recall, as opposed to just referencing another “USB/eSATA flash thumb drive.” There are 8, 16, and 32 GB capacities available, and the OCZ drive also uses the same JMicron controller as the other devices.

The similarities also extend to the enclosure. The Throttle looks like the other thumb drives, but it clearly utilizes a different flash memory configuration, which becomes obvious by looking at the performance results. OCZ’s product is faster than the Maxell drive, but it cannot outperform Silicon Image except in some I/O benchmark runs.

OCZ specifies up to 90 MB/s read throughput and 30 MB/s writes over eSATA, which we cannot confirm. Our testing resulted in a maximum of 63 MB/s read throughput and up to 26 MB/s writes.

USB 2.0 performance was at 29 MB/s and 21 MB/s for reads and writes, which is still a nice result. The drive showed the quickest read access time, though. Only 0.4 ms over eSATA and 0.8 ms on USB 2.0, which is also quicker than the competition. As with the Maxell and Silicon Image devices, you must use a USB-powered eSATA port to get plug-and-play eSATA connectivity. Otherwise you’ll have to use the included USB cable to provide power to the eSATA-connected Throttle.

Image 1 of 2