makar0n

As @Yorkie88 has noted, DRAM/SLC-Cache refers to the actual NVMe drive, not the enclosure. DRAM cache, to quote WD paper "(...) dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) was routinely included as a cache for SSDs and to improve drive performance. The DRAM served as cache for writing data to the drive, and for storing the mapping tables that keep record of the location of the data on the SSD to allow access to the data." Kind of a super fast memory that proves very helpful when reading/writing to the drive, especially when dealing with lots of smaller files (i.e. "random"), by often caching the frequently accessed data. Nowadays, there is also another tech emerging, often replacing DRAM, called HMB, which uses host computer RAM memory instead of a built-in one. Mechanical HDD's include similar caching too, but usually much smaller, say 64-512 MB. As for SLC cache - SSD/NVMe drives use NAND memory to actually store the data. There are currently 4 major types, as below: SLC being the fastest and having most endurance (i.e. how much data you can write to it before it starts to degrade), but also limited by capacity (i.e. requiring more cells for the same capacity of the drive), hence ending up being the most expensive. Some early SSDs used that, but its pretty non-existent in consumer space nowadays, with all companies moving first to MLC, and now to TLC - slower, reliable enough, and most importantly cheaper. SLC (or pseudo SLC) cache helps to mitigate the fact that drives use slower TLC based NAND memory, one that would not allow for example for writes at 5000 MB/s. In other words, when you are writing to an NVMe drive, you are actually writing to a very fast SLC cache (provided one exists), and that cache in turn then "distributes" it to a much slower TLC NAND that the NVMe drive is using to store data. Larger the cache, the better, as this means you can write much larger data sizes without losing performance due to writing directly to the TLC NAND. There is an interesting graph in TechPowerUp review of Samsung 990 Pro, which supposedly comes with 226GB of pseudo-SLC cache, that illustrates this: TechPowerUp - Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB Review Tester attempted to fill the drive completely (in one go, i.e. 2TB being written in one operation), note how around 190-200 GB, speeds dropped drastically from just under 5000 MB/s to "just" 1400 MB/s. Reason? The fast SLC cache was filled (and because the write was ongoing and more data coming, it could not "distribute" the data to TLC fast enough to make itself free/available again) and now the data is being written directly to the slower TLC NAND. Hence the bigger SLC cache the better, though of course one in here would be more than enough moving few tens of GB of pictures for example. Nowadays, price difference between DRAM/HMB/SLC-cache-less drives and those that have these is not that big, hence frankly I would not bother with those, unless really on the budget. Good choices are generally (a few major brands, there is of course way more): Samsung 990 Pro TeamGroup MP44 Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus Seagate Firecuda 530R WD Black SN850X I would not bother with PCIe 5.0 drives, these are an overkill even for a desktop PCs, not to mention external storage, where you would not be even able to get PCIe 5.0 speeds due to USB/Thunderbolt limitations. PCIe 4.0 is more than enough. There is a very good database at TechPowerUp, with detailed specs, and often accompanying reviews, including performance in various workflows (photos included) SSD Specs Database - TechPowerUp As for enclosures - yeah, LOTS of garbage out there - plastic, crappy controllers, poor thermal pads, barely any contact area. I generally stick to the below: Sabrent SilverStone Icy Dock (also known as Raidsonic) Akasa Lindy Speaking of SilverStone, I had a further look at their latest 40Gbps USB4 offering, MS12-40, and it is actually enclosure with an active cooling aka fan. Seems they have added it. Quite pricey though, probably due to being USB4. Budget wise Sabrent has quite a good choice (EC-NVME), and to be honest 10Gbps is often more than enough - that will translate to theoretical 1250MB/s (around 1000MB/s in real life), and will do for a normal photo workflow. There are also 20Gbps enclosures out there (like the original MS12), if you need something faster but not yet USB4 speeds. Note that the "amazing" MacBooks will not support that - speed will drop to 10Gbps. These do only 10 or 40. If using a PC these are fine, provided your USB-C port is 3.2 Gen 2x2 or USB4. Now I will stop boring everybody and go dream about some nudis. Or a pile of burning Macbooks ;) And since I cannot resist (yes, yes, I am a horrible human being) :

How to say "I'am living in Australia" without actually saying it 😂 Now (bad) jokes aside, most of NVMe enclosures rely on passive cooling, i.e. enclosure acting as a heatsink. As long as it's semi decent (aluminum and not too much plastic, good thermal pad and large contact area), this is usually enough for a normal usage. Might of course wary in very hot climates, but again, most NVMe drives are rated up to 70 degrees before they start to throttle. There are very few passive cooling enclosures that are really designed well enough to handle full on, constant maximum use of the NVMe drive. But then again, such usage is rather extreme, and is not going to happen by just copying or editing a few pictures. Example would be SilverStone MS12/MS12-40G. Enclosures with active cooling aka fan, can be a better choice in some cases, as active cooling will always be superior, but come at the cost of being quite bulkier, and possibly nosier (small fan). Example would be Icy Box IB-1922MF-C32. Much more important performance wise is not to go for bottom of the barrel DRAM/SLC-cache-less NVMe drives - that will hurt you much more when writing a lot.

Blasphemy! Burn the heretic. Kill the mutant. Purge the unclean! Yeah, USB-C ones are a bit magical, not just a simple cable :) I am normally using Club3D ones (they also make very good Display Port and HDMI cables) - solid and most importantly USB-IF certified. Quality gets even more important when you are planning to use these as power as well, and shoving 240W through, or to run an external monitor. Example below, USB4, 40Gbps, 240W, 8K60Hz https://www.club-3d.com/en/detail/2600/usb4_gen3x2_type_c_bi_directional_usb_if_certified_cable_8k60hz_data_40gbps_pd_240w(48v-5a)_epr_m-m_1m_-_3.28ft/ Even marked as working with Apple. Oh horror 🤣 There is also a crazier one, 80Gbps, 240W, 8K240Hz version: https://www.club-3d.com/en/detail/2675/usb_80gbps_certified_240w_4k540hz_type_cr_1.2m_-_3.94ft_black_cable/

New laptop and a PC one at that (words "MacBook" and "keeping cost down" do not belong in the same sentence), with a USB-C 3.2/4.0 interface, ideally 2 ports minimum. For external drive grab a 4TB NVMe SSD - either "premade" one (like Samsung T7) or DYI e.g. SSD separately + and an enclosure (for example Samsung 990 Pro 4TB and Sabrent EC-NVME (basic but it will do)). Additional benefit will be that these will be more reliable in "on-the-road" environment - hard drives are mechanical devices and do not like shocks and bumps, they will fail sooner or later, rugged or not. Add some small UHS-II card reader (ideally also on USB-C) and you will have copy speeds ~200MB/s - emptying that SD card will take seconds, provided its also a fast one (again, Sabrent makes very good ones, that aren't cost prohibitive and reach 190-200MB/s easy). And you can then work on those images/videos straight on that drive, as it will be fast enough.

Well, for Retra I recommend rigging a car battery 😂 But jokes aside, Sanyo (Eneloop) also carries a 2700mAh battery, HR-3U, but I believe these have even shorter lifespan than Pro. Not sure there is anything better in the AA NiMH world, at least not coupled with a reasonable lifespan/reliability. You would need to consider Lithium, but those, while better in some applications, might not be best suited to be used in flash units, due to quite the heat they produce under certain loads. Below is a very detailed review of a XTAR 4150mWh 2500mAh 1.5V Rechargeable Li-Ion AA: Gough's Tech ZoneMega Review: XTAR 4150mWh 2500mAh 1.5V Rechargeable Li-Io...Around two months ago, XTAR approached me with the opportunity to review their latest, highest-capacity 1.5V Li-Ion Rechargeable AA battery rated at 4150mWh or 2500mAh with a matching L4 USB-C 4-ba… Towards the bottom he has also tried those in a flash: "I did test the batteries in my Yongnuo YN560-II photographic flash unit as it is quite a power hungry device that chews through batteries and found that recycle times were not appreciably better than with Ni-MH and occasionally the unit would just get stuck and need a long time to recharge. Upon opening the battery bay, it smelled hot and a check with the Kaiweets KTI-W01 thermal camera confirmed the converters of the cells being extremely hot." No idea how such would perform in Retra, depends how the battery compartment is designed and if it could perhaps act as a watercooled heatsink maybe. XTAR now offers a 3000mAh variant as well: https://www.xtar.cc/product/xtar-aa-lithium-lr-3000mah-usb-c-battery And let's not forget the good, old HKJ battery website: https://lygte-info.dk/

Hmm so I did just take the LM3 out, and played with it a bit - had to wait for recharge when on full, but on 1/64 it was indeed fine (well during the limited testing). Sequential was a bit weird though - mechanical, 10fps, 1/64, it would fire on the 1st, then around 8-9th again. Sequential silent, 20fps, just the 1st pic would flash. Dunno, I really do not remember how I had it exactly set up, but it was definitely lagging then. Could be indeed it was on full or higher than 1/64 though, something vaguely rings a bell that I had one of the fiber optic cables a bit mangled, hence maybe I kept the power higher (otherwise it would not trigger)? Or there is something wrong with my unit. Either way, good enough as a backup. Do not think it was anything to do with SD cards - using Sabrent UHS-II 256GB ones, both test at around 185-195MB/s write and files on OM1 are generally <20MB. And did not notice any slowdown (write; when taking pics) just now, using the sequential silent mode. Either way, I definitely prefer the mini trigger, and at ~280 of them euro things, I could not refuse ;)

Assuming by "mini flash" you mean the FL-LM3 - Hmm I would go for about the same average shot wise. Do not remember how it was set though so do not want to say it was 1/64 but definitely was changing the battery after 2-3 dives max (each on the longer side). That said there would be still some %% left but felt like I am a bit on the edge so better be safe than sorry was my thinking. Last thing I wanted was a dead camera underwater xD Speed wise - definitely noticed that on some consecutive shots it was sometimes not ready and I had to wait for it to charge. This was on a trip couple years back though, literally the only time I had to use the backup, it just sits there since. With mini trigger - not a single speed "issue" and do not have to worry about battery life at all. Even after 4 long dives, often enough juice left to the point that I could do another few the next day if needs be. Definitely noticeable difference in terms of battery life. Had a similar experience with GH4 built-in flash vs GH4 with Nauticam mini-trigger as well - could also see the difference in recycle time as well as battery life. Maybe I am doing something wrong but definitely prefer the mini trigger 😁

Buy cheap, buy twice or something along those lines xD While the Nauticam/Turtle/UWT triggers might be pricey, its pretty much a one-off purchase, that will last you even decades possibly. Also they do offer two major advantages, at least from my point of view: a) recycle time - FL-LM3 is noticeably slower, even on lowest settings. Very annoying when you want to shoot a couple of pics in a quick succession, only to realize you cannot because the flash is still charging up b) camera battery life - perhaps the biggest advantage - with OM1+FL-LM3, I can kind of a do 2 dives /2h, after that the 3rd dive/hour becomes a bit "risky" depending on how many pictures I've taken during the previous two. With mini-trigger (using Turtle myself), I can do 4 dives/hours, and only have to worry slowly around the 5th one. Major plus when on the boat if I do not have to open the housing and change batteries, or, when doing long dives. Yes, I still keep the FL-LM3 around - it is basically a backup, should anything happen to the main trigger during the trip. And indeed it has saved my bacon once - better slow recycle than no recycle at all 🤣 Speaking of Turtle, they have literally just announced v3 of their trigger, might wanna check it out. This might mean that there could be some good offers on v2 coming.

Finally a user replaceable battery and USB-C, neat! It looks like the LED plug has been improved too - good to see, these were sometimes very hard to unplug.

Right. And Adobe will once again offer their software as a one time purchase.

Europe is not getting better neither. MFO was 425 EUR on Nauticam website, at least in December 2024. Now it shows as 524 EUR. So a lovely 20%+ hike. Off we go to a flying start. Meanwhile 3rd party shops all have it at 449 EUR.

I still go for the MotherF****** Optics (or Optimizer)...it has a certain power emanating charm somehow 🤣

"The company cited “a challenging economic environment" (...)." Yeah because 7.5B USD or thereabout in net profit for 2024 was not enough. Poor, poor Sony. Yup, there it starts.

Spot on. Once the companies have an excuse they will ramp up the prices everywhere. Just look at energy companies behavior in 2022 and their record profits afterwards. So let's enjoy the EU prices while we still can.