OWC certifies 480GB Mercury Aura Pro SSD for 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display

The inside of a MacBook Pro certainly isn't for the faint of heart, but if you're willing to pair your recklessness with a side of wild abandon, then you might just have what it takes to upgrade the storage of the Retina-equipped 13-inch model. OWC is more than willing to test your limits with its 480GB Mercury Aura Pro, an SSD module that's now certified for use with Apple's latest laptop. While its $580 price will deter many, the 480GB option compares favorably to the 512GB upgrade from Apple, which rings in at a healthy $800. OWC says that additional capacity sizes will be announced this November, which is reason to remain hopeful if this one has priced you out of the market.

[Source: Engadget]

OWC offers 480GB SSD upgrade for Retina MacBook Pro, requires screwdriver and careful math

Order up a Retina MacBook Pro and you'll likely be confronted with a gravelly message about how the SSD is "built into the computer" and not user-upgradeable. As it turns out, that's not quite true -- so long as you're prepared to ignore a whole bunch of other warnings written inside the chassis itself, iFixit has shown how to remove the factory drive and now OWC has a new SSD to replace it with. The only downside is the cost: at $580, OWC's 480GB Mercury Aura Pro is actually more expensive than Apple's official 512GB upgrade. In an effort to sweeten the deal, OWC is offering those who buy before September 30th a compact USB 3.0 enclosure to make use of the freed-up drive. Alternatively, you may want to wait for prices to drop or for OWC to offer an even bigger capacity with better cost / benefits.

[Source: Engadget]