August 20, 2010, Woodstock, IL -- Other World Computing (OWC®) http://www.macsales.com, a leading zero emissions Mac® and PC technology company, announced today a new 40GB model to its award-winning OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD™ line as the most affordable high performance SandForce®  Processor based Solid State Drive on the market. Designed and made in the U.S. from imported parts, the new OWC Mercury Extreme Pro 40GB SSD’s special introductory pricing of $99.99 makes it the lowest priced SSD on the market to offer three key high performance features:

• Industry leading sustained Read AND Write speeds over 260MB/s (with peak speeds up to 285MB/s).
• Best in class error correction (ECC) and SandForce RAISE™ redundancy with 7% over provisioning.
• SandForce DuraClass™ technology with ultra-efficient Block Management & Wear Leveling for long term durability.

The OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD line, which has won Editor’s choice awards and review comments like “Eye popping speed with consistent performance over time”, “Best write speeds we’ve seen”, and “The fastest SSD to hit our test bench yet” from leading performance testing sites like Tweaktown, Hot Hardware, MacPerformanceGuide, Maximum PC, Storage Review and Benchmark Reviews, is available for immediate ordering in nine configurations from 40GB to 480GB starting at $99.99. All models are Macintosh® and PC compatible and install easily into notebooks, as well as into desktops/towers with an OWC Multi-Mount adapter kit sold separately.

For more information on the OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD line, including Reseller inquiries, visit: http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/internal_storage/Mercury_Extreme_SSD_Sandforce . For more information on the OWC Multi-Mount drive adapter kit useful for securely installing smaller form factor (2.5" & 3.5") hard drives and SSDs into larger sized (3.5" & 5.25") drive bays in Apple Mac Pro, Apple PowerMac, PC desktop, and PC tower computers, visit: http://eshop.macsales.com/owcpages/multimount/multimount.html

Doesn’t Slow Down With Use Like Ordinary SSDs
Ordinary SSDs offer fast read/write performance during first initial uses, but then experience significant write speed degradation over repeated usage. Independent simulation tests by leading drive performance experts (http://macperformanceguide.com/SSD-RealWorld.html) confirm the OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD’s ultra-efficient Block Management & Wear Leveling technologies are able to eliminate virtually any reduction in data transfer speeds over heavy long term usage of the drive and without dependency on less than effective OS TRIM management.

Longer Notebook Battery Runtime
Because the OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD uses as little as 1/3 the power compared to the most power efficient 2.5" hard drives and up to 1/2 less power than other leading brand SSDs without any performance sacrifice, notebook users can now maximize their “unplugged” mobile use time while desktop/tower users can enjoy the benefits of a more energy efficient system.

Video Highlights Performance Gains
The OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD models are an ideal way for typical Mac or PC desktop and/or notebook computer users to dramatically increase the performance of their existing machine. In several side-by-side comparison tests (http://eshop.macsales.com/Video/SSD/Performance_Test) the OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD was able to boot the OS and load six apps up to four times faster than the factory stock configuration. And even older machines equipped with an OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD saw an up to 2.5 times faster performance gain over newer machines with faster processors and more RAM.

“Throughout this revolutionary product’s evolution, it has scored numerous industry achievements,” said Larry O’Connor, Founder and CEO, Other World Computing. “From being initially announced as the fastest SSD on the market, to offering the highest capacity found in a SandForce-based SSD, to now offering the most affordable high performance model available on the market, the OWC Mercury Extreme Pro SSD line continues to make headlines for all the right reasons.”

About Other World Computing (OWC)
Other World Computing (OWC) has been providing quality hardware products and support to the computer industry since 1988 and features one of the largest online catalogs of computer, iPod®, iPhone®, and iPad™ enhancement products through its e-commerce portal www.macsales.com. As a Premiere Level Apple Developer Connection member, OWC also provides extensive US based technical support for Macintosh users around the world as well as Internet access via www.fastermac.net and www.owc.net

OWC’s industry awards and recognition include: Crain’s Chicago Business 2009 “Fast 50” List of 50 Fastest Growing Companies in the Chicago Area; Inc. 5,000 Top 100 Computers & Electronics Companies 2007 to 2009; Reseller Ratings Elite Member 2009 & 2010; Better Business Bureau Top Rating of A+ 2010; Reflex Packaging Commitment to Excellence Recycling Award 2009; Computerworld MagazineTop Green-IT Companies for 2008; and McHenry County Economic Development Corporation 2008 Business Champion Award.

In March 2010, OWC’s corporate campus was awarded LEED Platinum Certification (http://eshop.macsales.com/green/index.html) by the Green Building Certification Institute. Platinum is the highest achievable level of the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Program, which began in 1998. Out of more than 14,000 LEED projects engaged worldwide since the program's inception, OWC is one of less than three hundred to achieve the Platinum standard. On a local level, OWC also became the first privately owned light manufacturing/assembly building in Illinois to obtain LEED Platinum status.
Company Contact:
Bill Herring
512-412-4009
bherring@macsales.com Agency Contact:
Andy Marken
408-986-0100
andy@markencom.com