Cooler Master Oracle Air M.2 SSD Enclosure Tested

Ultra fast storage within a well protected shell – Cooler Master’s Oracle Air SSD enclosure is impressive

We all love to have fast storage. There’s a reason why most people now use SSD-based storage within their PCs, and why the latest generation of games consoles have abandoned hard drives in favour of NVMe SSDs. While NAND has been commonplace within portable storage solutions for over a decade, the average USB thumb drive is a terrible solution for file transfers, at least if you want to move data quickly. They are also small and very easy to damage or lose. As such, there is a lot of room in the market for faster, larger, and more robust portable storage solutions. That’s the niche that Cooler Master are filling with their Oracle Air M.2 SSD enclosure.

With its USB 3.2 Gen 2 connectivity, Cooler Master’s Oracle SSD enclosure can deliver speeds of over 1,000 MB/s when used with a fast M.2 SSD. It’s drive-less nature also allows users to choose which SSD they place within their enclosure, allowing them to choose a drive of their preferred size, or preferred manufacturer. Want a portable 8TB SSD? You could build one if you have a Cooler Master Oracle Air enclosure.

While 10 Gbps is plenty fast for a portable storage solution, it is a limiting factor given the speeds that can be delivered by most modern M.2 SSDs. With this in mind, there is certainly room in the market for a faster version of their Oracle Air SSD enclosure, perhaps a USB4 or Thunderbolt 4 model, though it is worth remembering that such a drive/enclosure would only reach its maximum speeds with a compatible PC, and USB4/Thunderbolt 4 remains rare on modern computers. Beyond that, Cooler Master has stated that their Oracle Air is “the inaugural product of its innovative storage enclosure line”, which means that Cooler Master a probably already working on something faster. That said, 10 Gbps over USB Type-C is plenty fast.

As an enclosure, the Oracle Air is easy to use and very robust. Installing a drive is a process that can be finished in seconds, and the Oracle Air’s aluminium shell is sturdy and robust, and unlikely to open unintentionally. Too many SSD enclosure have buttons on the outside that can open the shell in transit, but there are no such risks with Cooler Master’s Oracle Air.

What we have here is a hardy SSD enclosure that looks good and performs well. Aside from the fact that we could not monitor the thermals of SSDs inside the Oracle Air, we have no complaints about the enclosure. It is well built, performs as designed, should act as a solid portable storage solution for anyone who buys one.   

Cooler Master’s Oracle Air M.2 SSD enclosure is now available in the UK for £59.99. The Cooler Master Oracle Air us now available through Overclockers UK and Scan UK.

You can join the discussion on Cooler Master’s Oracle Air M.2 SSD enclosure on the OC3D Forums.