The OWC Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD was designed to maximize the performance of Mac and PC devices that utilize Thunderbolt 5, Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3, and USB4. The Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 has claimed speeds that exceed 6000MB/s, making it up to twice as fast as Thunderbolt 4 and USB4. This drive, which was originally announced way back in September 2024, is stated to set a new benchmark when it comes to external SSD drives.
Key features
- Faster than Fast – Revolutionary speed over 6000MB/s…up to 2x faster than Thunderbolt 4 and USB4.
- Machine Maximizing – Gets the most speed possible from Thunderbolt 5, Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3, and USB4 machines.
- Ready for Anything – Easily handle daily data needs to pro-level creative projects while matching internal storage performance.
- Versatile – Works with Macs, PCs, iPad Pros, Chromebooks, and Surface devices.
- Rugged – Water-resistant, dust-resistant, and crushproof.
- Convenient – Bus-powered with built-in Thunderbolt cable.
- Silent – Fanless, heat-dissipating aluminum design.
“Intel’s innovative Thunderbolt 5 technology sets a new standard for performance and simple connectivity, and OWC’s Envoy Ultra SSD is a perfect example of how this technology can be harnessed to meet the needs of today’s most demanding users. OWC continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible, delivering a solution that not only leverages the full potential of Thunderbolt 5 but also opens up new possibilities for professionals and creatives alike.”
Larry O’Connor, Founder and CEO, Other World Computing (OWC)
OWC Drive Guide
The SSD comes with OWC Drive Guide, which is a simple way to set-up and configure your drive.
Speed
OWC claims that the Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD has speeds that exceed 6000MB/s.
This claimed speed of up to 6000MB/s sequential read/write (max) performance was based on OWC testing a 2.0TB OWC Aura Pro IV equipped Envoy Ultra connected to a Windows 11 PC equipped with an Intel Core i9-14900HX 2200 MHz 24 Core processor and 32GB 5600MHz RAM running AJA System Test (4K-Full resolution, 64GB file size, 16bit RGB codec, single file test).
Now, while the initial data rates are over 6000MB/s for continuous data write, longer data write sessions will have much reduced sustained write speeds of 1350MB/s (2TB) and 1700MB/s (4TB). The read speeds are consistently over 6000MB/s end-to-end.
Above, you can see the claimed speeds when working with various different interfaces.
I decided to do my own speed tests to see how fast the drive was.
Above you can see the results for the Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD with the stress set to 5GB. According to my test which was done on an Apple M4 Mac Mini Pro it was able to sustain write speeds of 5295.8 MB/s and a read speed of 5232.9 MB/s. The drive is more than capable of handing 12K DCI 60 in ProRes 422HQ or Blackmagic RAW.
This is by far the fastest external bus powered SD I have ever tested, and by a considerable margin.
I also tested the drive card using the AJA System Test Lite software with the test conditions set to 4K DCI, the test file size at 64GB and the codec at 16bit RGB to see what the read and write speeds were. The drive gave me an average write speed of 3219MB/s and an average read speed of 5849MB/s.
The maximum write speed I got during this test was 5451MB/s, and the minimum was 1077 MB/s.
Above you can see how many frames per second the OWC could support if you were using it to record 4K DCI ProRes 422HQ. The drive had an average of a whopping 740fps.
Ok, so now let’s run those tests again, but this time I am going to load the drive up so that it is almost completely full to see how it effects the performance.
Even with the drive almost completely full, the The drive gave me an average write speed of 3131MB/s and an average read speed of 5896MB/s. The average write speed was just 88MB/s less than the 3219MB/s it recorded when it was empty. This was very impressive.
Above you can see the same test run with the Blackmagic Disk Speed Test. Again, it was almost identical to the results obtained when the drive was empty.
Versatility
It is always good to have drives that are backward compatible with a wide array of interfaces. As the drive will work with USB-C 3, USB-C-4, Thunderbolt 3, Thunderbolt 4, and Thunderbolt 5 you can use it on lots of differnt devices.
Build Quality
The casing of the Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD is made of aluminum. It is crushproof, dustproof, and waterproof IP67 rated. It is very solidly constructed and robust. It also comes with a 5-Year OWC Limited Warranty.
OWC has always excelled when it comes to thermal management. Even though the Envoy Ultra is bus powered, and completely sealed with no fan you might expect to see thermal throttling that can lead to drastic decreases in performance, but as you will see further down in the review, this wasn’t the case.
The Envoy Ultra has a captive cable, so you don’t have to hunt around for a connection cable. The encapsulated cable enables Envoy Ultra to be waterproof (30 minutes at < 1 meter) and allows for specific tuning of the flash storage. The only caveat with having an in-built cable is that if it breaks, you can’t use the drive. In saying that, OWC states that in the unlikely event the integrated cable must be replaced, it is a user-serviceable item.
The drive can work in the following ambient temperatures:
- Operating: 41°F to 95°F (5°C to 35°C)
- Non-Operating: 68°F to 140°F (20°C to 60°C)
Size & Weight
The Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD has physical dimensions of 2.0cm / 0.8 in x 13.0 cm / 5.1 in x 7.5 cm / 3.0 in (H x L x W). It tips the scales at 341.0g / 0.75 lbs. This does make it quite large and heavy for a 2TB SSD. As a comparison, the competing LaCie 2TB Rugged SSD Pro5 Thunderbolt 5 External SSD weighs 150g / 0.33 lbs.
The length of the captive cable is 23.3cm / 9.2 in.
Caveats?
The Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD will not mount with an Apple M4 MacMini16,11 if connected as the third bus-powered device.
OWC’s MacDrive
You can use the Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD in a mixed Mac and Windows environment with the addition of OWC’s MacDrive (sold separately for $49.99 USD). This software runs in the background, so there is nothing to launch or learn. You just plug in the drive and not only do you have instant-read access, but full write access. MacDrive also includes features that enable you to format and partition drives and repair fundamental disk issues.
Price & Availability
The new Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD is available in 2.0TB and 4.0TB capacities for $399.99 USD and $599.99 USD, respectively.
Competition
Competition comes in the form of the LaCie 2TB Rugged SSD Pro5 Thunderbolt 5 External SSD ($349.99 USD)
Thoughts
The Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD is certainly a very fast drive that is more than capable of handling just about anything you can throw at it. It would make for a good option for editing, color grading, or when you ned to transfer data fast. It would also work well as a backup drive in the field, but you could also make a case that it is overkill depending on what type of media you are recording to and what the speed of the card reader is.
I have been using OWC drives for a very long time, dating all the way back to their Firewire versions! I have always found themt to be rock solid and that is why I keep buying them. The Envoy Ultra Thunderbolt 5 SSD certainly follows i those same footsteps and it comes highly recommended.
