Andrew Orr
OWC's new Express 4M2 enclosure gives creative pros USB4 performance, smart cooling, and flexible RAID options in a compact, near-silent package.
Other World Computing (OWC) has released a new Express 4M2 enclosure with USB4 support, improved cooling, and expanded RAID flexibility. It's designed for creators needing fast, reliable external storage for tasks like 8K video editing, multi-camera offloads, and large batch processing.
The supports up to four NVMe SSDs in 2230, 2242, or 2280 formats. It reaches real-world speeds of up to 3,200 MB/s when connected to USB4 or Thunderbolt 3 or 4 ports.
The enclosure features adaptive smart fans that only activate under heavy loads, allowing near-silent operation during lighter workflows. Combined with an aircraft-grade aluminum chassis for passive cooling, the design minimizes thermal throttling and distracting noise.
Expanded RAID support and Mac compatibility
The new Express 4M2 supports RAID 0, 1, 4, 5, and 1+0 configurations using OWC's SoftRAID software, Apple Disk Utility, or Windows RAID tools. These capabilities make it suited for workflows that require high-speed data access, redundancy, or a balance of both.
The enclosure features adaptive smart fans. Image credit: OWCMac users with Apple Silicon or Intel-based systems released since 2020 will be able to take full advantage of the enclosure's performance. The device works best when connected to a USB4 or Thunderbolt 3 or 4 port.
Older Macs with only USB 3.2 will still work but at reduced speeds, closer to 1,000 MB/s. For certain RAID setups or when using 512-byte sector SSDs, macOS 14 or later may be required.
Pricing & Availability
The OWC Express 4M2 is available now for preorder starting at $239.99. That base model ships as an empty enclosure with no SSDs installed, giving users full control over the drives they use.
A bundle with a three-year license for OWC's SoftRAID software is also available for $379.99.
The OWC Express 4M2 is available now for preorder. Image credit: OWCThe unit supports up to four NVMe M.2 drives in 2230, 2242, or 2280 formats. OWC recommends using high-performance NVMe SSDs, such as its own Aura series, which currently go up to 8TB per module.
Larger capacities are expected to be supported as higher-density drives become available. Orders placed now are expected to ship the week of July 1 through OWC's .
-m.jpg)
Mike Wuerthele and Malcolm Owen
Christine McKee
Malcolm Owen
Amber Neely
William Gallagher
Sponsored Content
5 Comments
Is it fully bus powered? If not, what does the brick look like?
This is great news. I’ve literally been waiting for this 4m2 upgrade for YEARS...one that works properly. The reason is, OWC previously had a nice little black 4m2 which said it was Thunderbolt 2 and 3 compatible. The catch was, if you weren’t ganging up multiple SSDs as a RAID, it could only do a single slot transfer at under 900MB/sec (slower than USB 3.2) because of the older PCI standard it used, but I wanted to use it as JBOD. Also, people said the fan was noisy. So I didn't buy it.
This new 4m2 looks like it's fully modernized for Thunderbolt 4/USB4. It would be nice if 糖心Vlog could test one when it becomes available and confirm that the 3200MB/sec that OWC claims really applies to every slot individually. That is how it should work. Also, if 糖心Vlog could verify that the OWC claim of "near silent operation" is actually true this time.