With the Vertex 3 MI 240GB, OCZ has successfully combined any proven advantages of the 3xnm Toshiba NAND with the advantages of the SandForce 2281 controller. The result was an SSD that can easily compete with any 25nm SSD currently available on the market in terms of performance. Expect sequential reads of 550MB/s and writes of around 500MB/s, which are basically very close to a 'regular' Vertex 3 drive of the same capacity. By bringing the 3x Toshiba NAND to the new version of the Vertex 3, OCZ seems to have maneged to pick up some speed when the SSD is dealing with incompressible data. The IOMeter scores are in a different class, and the Vertex 3 MI 240GB is possibly the fastest SSD we have tested so far, with results miles ahead of the previous range of products.

The SF-2200 controller does its job keeping the drive speedy after heavy use, especially on systems where TRIM is employed. In addition, the 34nm is supposed to have greater longevity expectations than that of a 25nm drive, at least in theory. OCZ estimates the Mean Time Before Failure (MTBF) to be right around 2 million hours.

Currently on Newegg you can get a 25nm 240GB Vertex 3 for $500 vs. $540 for the MAX IOPS drive. In the real world you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between these two, unless you are dealing with s demanding IO situations where the MAX IOPS will show a benefit. So it's up to you whether the MAX IOPS deserves the extra spending.

Summarizing our findings, we believe that the Toshiba 3xNM NAND flash is a worthwhile addition to the OCZ Vertex 3 MAX IOPS 240GB. We also understand that the "Max IOPS" version may sound to you more a marketing branding rather than an actual substance for typical gamers and desktop users. But if you are determined to pay $500 or more for an SSD and you are asking for edge performance, the OCZ Vertex 3 MAX IOPS 240GB is your choice.