OWC rereleases ThunderBay 4 with new TB5 support and up to 128TB storage

7 hours ago Calvin Liew

Other World Computing (OWC) has introduced a Thunderbolt 5 version of its ThunderBay 4 RAID storage solution, bringing faster connectivity and additional flexibility to its four-bay external storage system. With support for up to 128TB of capacity, the upgraded model is designed for creative professionals, photographers, and production studios handling increasingly demanding storage and media workflows.

The ThunderBay 4 features two Thunderbolt 5 ports, allowing users to connect the system to a host computer while retaining a downstream port for daisy-chaining additional Thunderbolt, USB4, and USB-C devices. This makes it easier to expand a workstation’s connectivity without occupying another port on the computer.

In terms of performance, OWC claims real-world transfer speeds of up to 1,268MB/s with HDD storage configurations and up to 1,703MB/s with SSDs. The system also retains its four-bay aluminum enclosure design, which has been part of the ThunderBay lineup for over a decade.

Data protection is another key feature, with the ThunderBay 4 shipping preconfigured in RAID 5 for protection against a single drive failure. OWC SoftRAID 9 handles RAID configuration and provides continuous drive health monitoring in the background. Additionally, the system supports RAID 0, 1, 4, 5, 6, 6+, 10, and JBOD configurations, giving users more flexibility depending on their storage and redundancy requirements.

OWC has also highlighted remote collaboration capabilities through its partnership with Strada. The integration allows remote teams to browse, preview, and edit media stored on the ThunderBay system without first uploading files to cloud storage.