Sooner or later, every user is faced with the need to buy an SSD drive. This is a small but very rewarding investment that will pay for itself dozens, if not hundreds of times over. For relatively little money, you can speed up the work of your computer and installed applications at times. The system turns on faster, games load faster, the computer is less noisy, and is also less vulnerable to damage in transit.
The cost of an SSD is not only affected by the amount of memory. These drives differ in their memory technologies, form factors, and connections. They are often the key factor affecting the price of a disc. Two drives can have the same 120 GB, but one can be several times more expensive than the second. Likewise, a 64GB drive can be much more expensive than a 240GB drive. As with cars, it's all about what's under the hood or under the cover of the SSD.
In general, the cost of a disk is formed on the basis of three parameters:
- Memory type (SLC, MLC, TLC, V-NAND).
- Connection type (PCIe, SATA).
- Drive volume.
What memory is used in an SSD
The cost of an SSD, as well as its characteristics, depend on the layout and type of NAND memory on the carrier board. NAND is built from a large number of cells that "hold" bits of memory. An electrical signal either turns on or off these cells. The information recorded on the SSD creates a layer of enabled and disabled segments. Each type of SSD has its own cell structure. For example, drives with SLC memory contain one bit per cell. These drives are often sold with less memory because the manufacturer needs to fit all the chips on a standard drive board. All cells are single-level, so it is physically impossible to place a large amount of data on such a card. In addition to memory chips, an SSD also has DDR memory (a small amount of volatile memory for caching memory) and a controller on board, and all these components require space. In MLC and TLC, memory levels are double and triple, therefore, the available capacity is larger.
SLC, MLC or TLC - which is better
To understand which type of memory is best and which one will be optimal for you, you need to take a closer look at the principle of operation of SLC, MLC and TLC.
SLC (singlelevelcell- single-level cell, English) received this name because of the structure of the cell, which can be either enabled or disabled (in other words, either 1 or 0). Drives with this type of memory have the highest levels of read and write speeds. In addition, SLC memory is the most durable - each cell can be rewritten up to 100,000 times.
Schemes of the structure of memory of types SLC, MLC and TLC.
SLC SSDs are best suited for the needs of corporate users. You can hardly buy yourself such a drive, since it costs a hell of a lot, and they simply do not sell in ordinary stores.
Pros of SLC memory:
- Long lifecycle of cell rewriting.
- Reliability.
- High speeds.
- Resistant to higher temperatures.
Cons of SLC memory:
- Disks are very expensive and inaccessible to the average user.
- Small volumes.
MLC (multilevelcell- multilevel cell, English). This type of memory stores two bits of information in one cell. The big advantage of MLC SSDs is their low manufacturing cost when compared to SLCs. As a result, MLC discs can be found at any computer hardware store. They are quite popular, affordable, and relatively reliable. True, the number of write / rewrite cycles is somewhere at the level of 10,000 per cell.
MLC discs are well suited for those who want fast download speeds in games and a relatively long-lived disc. It will cost more than TLC, but the benefits are definitely worth it.
Pros of MLC memory:
- Cheaper than SLC, and therefore more affordable.
- Sold on every corner.
- More reliable than TLC.
Cons of MLC memory:
- Not as reliable as SLC drives (minus costs).
TLC (triplelevelcell- three-level cell, English) - there are three bits of information per memory cell. The cheapest type of SSD to manufacture. The variant is exclusively for ordinary consumers and is not suitable for industrial use. The write cycle of such disks is much lower even than MLC and is at the level of 3,000 to 5,000 per cell. In addition, the read and write speed is also not very high.
These SSDs can be purchased as storage media for the operating system. The choice for those who have a very limited budget or do not need to frequently overwrite data. It is also the easiest and cheapest way to upgrade your PC.
Pros of TLC memory:
- Cheaper than SLC, MLC and eMLC combined.
- Much faster than conventional HDDs (about 10 times).
- Inexpensive. You can buy in kilograms.
Cons of TLC memory:
- Fragility. Considerably less tenacious compared to the MLC, not to mention the SLC.
- Relatively low speed works when compared with other types of memory.
V-NAND (verticalnand- "vertical" memory). A separate type of memory, in which the cells are located not horizontally in relation to the board, but vertically (hence the name). These SSDs offer more storage capacity, lower power consumption, and up to 10x faster write / read speeds than conventional linear NAND. Thanks to V-NAND, Samsung was able to release a 4TB SSD in the regular 2.5-inch form factor.
SSD connection type
Solid state drives are connected via either the SATA connector or PCIe. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages.
PCIe vs SATA SSD - which is better
Another parameter that significantly affects the cost is the type of connection. Here manufacturers offer users either a SATA connection or PCIe. The latter is always more expensive, but that doesn't mean you should always choose PCIe.
SATA (SerialATA) appeared back in 2003 and has been updated three times since then (modern SSDs use a SATA3 connection). This means that over 14 years this standard has had enough time to reliably gain a foothold in the market and appear in fact in every computer, whether it is a desktop or laptop. As a result, we get excellent compatibility with almost all computers. If you buy a "satash" disk, then in principle it will work even in ten-year-old computers or laptops. Thus, you can breathe a second life into an old piece of iron.
The downside of the SATA connection is performance. The most advanced and most expensive SATA SSD drive runs into the physical limit of 6 Gb / s (750 MB / s). SATA SSDs often offer no more than 600 MB / s. At the same time, you need to understand that 600 MB / s is still pretty damn fast. This figure will be enough for the vast majority of ordinary users. If you are not, or you need more speed as a matter of principle, then there is nothing you can do about it - you need to buy an SSD with PCIe.
PCIe-connection ( PeripheralComponentInterconnectExpress) achieves a higher speed due to a faster connection to the computer's motherboard. Typically this interface is used to connect video cards or other add-ons that require low latency and high speed. PCIe 3.0 reaches speeds of up to 985 MB / s per lane. Since PCIe can have 1, 4, 8, or 16 lanes, we are talking about a potential speed of up to 15.76 Gb / s.
Does this mean PCIe SSDs are 25 times faster than SATA SSDs? In theory, yes. But you are unlikely to find such a disk in any Citylink or DNS, if you find it in principle. Often PCIe SSDs offer up to 2-4x speed gains over SATA maximum speed about 4 GB / sec.
It is also important to note that the big difference between a SATA SSD and a PCIe SSD will only be noticeable when working with very large files. For example, in video editing, where one file can be up to hundreds of gigabytes in size. If you're buying an SSD just to speed up the system or load games, then SATA and PCIe will perform about the same. Everything here depends on your needs and the specifics of using the disk. Those who buy an SSD in a laptop should also understand that when transferring large files, PCIe drives consume much more battery power and generates much more heat. Sometimes it comes to the point that PCIe drives without cooling radiators start to slow down due to overheating and throttling.
What is M.2 and U.2 SSD
M.2 and U.2 are two separate form factors with their own size, shape, layout and connection. Both standards support both SATA and PCIe. Often, such "sticks" are used in laptops, where space is very limited, but modern motherboards (especially the middle and top segment) for desktop computers are increasingly equipped with M.2 slots, allowing you to plug this SSD into a desktop.
The performance of the M.2 SATA SSD will be the same as the 2.5 ”SATA SSD. PCIe M.2 SSDs are limited to four PCIe lanes, but more than enough for extremely high speeds in general use scenarios.
SSD lifespan
Like all good people in this life, the lifespan of an SSD will come to an end sooner or later. As you already understood from the description above, this parameter directly depends on what type of memory is used in your drive. SLC lasts longer than MLC and MLC lasts longer than TLC.
Often, the manufacturer himself indicates how much his product can work out. This indicator can be calculated in hours or terabytes of rewritten information. Experience shows that consumer SSDs operate in the range of 700TB to 1PTB. The more "mileage", the more memory the drive starts to lose. For reference: 1 PTB is 15 384 GTA V installations.
For the average user, an SSD with MLC or TLC memory will last for several years in the worst case. Everything will depend on how actively you overwrite information on it. So that the failure of the disk does not become an unpleasant surprise for you, you can always monitor its condition and diagnose the SSD using the appropriate programs.
SSD controller
An SSD disk controller is such a small computer that is responsible for the operation of memory cells. Sometimes it happens that a poor-quality controller becomes the reason for the failure of an SSD drive with normal memory... If possible, we advise you to pay attention to this parameter of the SSD, but everything is not so simple here. If in stores you can filter the available offers by type, volume or interface, you will no longer be able to select a disk by the controller you are using. Here you need to choose your preferred model, and then go to the manufacturer's website and look at the controller model in the specifications. True, you may face the fact that some manufacturers keep information about the controller used in secret. Others are free to talk about it and even use it as a marketing ploy. Why not brag that a Kingston drive uses a quality Phison S10 controller? A good chip will provide a high-quality and long-lasting SSD drive even from little-known manufacturers, while a popular OEM with a low-quality controller can easily die before the end of the warranty period.
We hope this information will help you navigate a little better in the large sea of various SSD drives, and you will be able to choose for yourself a model that will not only be productive, but also durable, and also optimal in terms of price / quality ratio.
Today, there is a huge variety of SSD drives on the PC hardware market, which are becoming more and more popular. Considering the parameters, they are much better than the usual HDD disks, thanks to which they have earned their reputation. And in this article, we will talk about how to choose an SSD drive for a laptop or computer? After all, there are a huge variety of them from a variety of manufacturers! This is what we will talk about in our article.
First of all, you need to determine why you need an SSD drive? For what purpose? And how do you know which SSD is right for your computer? And, based on this, start choosing.
- Pick up a few options and make a comparison. Rely not only on price, but also on performance and functionality. Choose from the latest models - they are the most up to date.
- The price depends entirely on its volume. Moreover, the larger it is, the faster it works. For example, if you do not have the opportunity to purchase an expensive device, it is recommended to give preference to a drive with a capacity of up to 120-240 Gb. Such drives are not only affordable, but also provide high-speed performance and provide a sufficient amount of free space.
- When choosing a solid-state drive for a laptop Asus, Lenovo or some other, it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of the motherboard, because the operation of the disk depends on its technical parameters. That is, if you purchase a ssd with support SATA interface 3 (6 Gb / s) and the laptop motherboard only supports SATA 2 (3 Gb / s), then your SSD will only run at half speed. And in this case, there is no point in overpaying for an expensive SSD, of course, if you are not going to change the board in the near future.
- In certain situations, it is advisable to buy 2 SSD drives with small volumes. By installing programs and saving data on different disks, we simplify our work. For example, one for games, the second for other programs. In addition, the risk of instantly losing existing data will be reduced if the device fails and cannot be restored in any way.
- When choosing an SSD for a laptop, rely on its size, and always keep one thing in mind. The performance of some of these components is significantly reduced after less than 25% of free space remains.
Important parameters to pay attention to
Note that there is a built-in function self-removal"Garbage", i.e. unnecessary information. Choose a TRIM-enabled drive. Of course, the manufacturing company is of great importance. You should not chase savings, you need to give preference to only proven brands. Today these include:
- Samsung- the devices produced by this company are the fastest.
- Intel- reliable devices, but the most expensive ones.
- Kingston- popular and budget disks.
- Plextor- high quality and speed of work.
- Crucial- a good and at the same time budget option from the Marvell company.
However, there are other firms, such as KingFast, KingSpec, KingDian and others. They are all originally from China, but despite this, their rating is excellent. And if you have a limited budget and have never used solid state drives, then in this case, you can think about choosing one of them, after reading the reviews for each model.
Also, when choosing, you need to rely on:
- Controller- give preference to drives with controllers from Intel, SandForce, MDX, Marvell.
- From factor- When buying a solid-state drive for a laptop, choose 2.5 "models, in some cases M2, and PCIe, 2.5" and 3.5 "inches are suitable for a computer.
- IOPS- affects the speed of work. The higher the indicator, the better and more expensive it is.
- Power consumption- When choosing an SSD for a laptop, be sure to take this parameter into account and choose the device with the lowest performance to save battery power.
- Memory type- there are only 3 types: TLC, MLC, SLC. The latter is much more expensive than the other two, but its life will be more than 10 times longer. Separately, I would like to say that on average, an SSD with a TLC memory type is enough for 4-6 years, while an MLC for 10-12 years. The lifespan depends on how much information you are going to record on it every day.
Let's summarize:
So which SSD is the best for you? If you have a limited budget, the motherboard only supports SATA II and at the same time you want to purchase an SSD drive of sufficient capacity (from 120 gigabytes), feel free to choose one of the Chinese manufacturers KingFast, KingSpec and KingDian, in terms of price / quality, they have earned the trust of many users ...
If you are an advanced user, you want to be sure of the quality and the computer board works with SATA III, then it is better to choose from leading manufacturers with the MLC memory type. These drives will have even better performance, speed and long service life.
KingFast SSD review
Drives for testing were provided by the company "Regard ", Where there is always a wide choiceSSDat favorable prices
Flash-based solid state drives have become an integral part of our lives. They provide high speed access to data - which is why they are used today in a significant proportion of personal computers. In fact, any modern productive configuration implies the presence of an SSD with a volume sufficient at least to install the operating system and basic programs.
However, prices for flash-based drives remain high enough to completely replace classic hard drives... A flash drive with a volume of 2 TB, for example, will have to spend about $ 800, and an HDD of the same volume will cost 6-7 times cheaper. Therefore, to date, the unspoken standard has become a two-tier organization of the disk subsystem, which implies the simultaneous presence of a high-speed solid-state drive of a small volume and a capacious mechanical hard disk. In this combination, the SSD is assigned the role of the system disk, and the HDD is intended to store user files and a multimedia library.
More recently, users who decided to join SSD were guided by this particular scheme and purchased mainly solid-state drives with a volume of 60 to 128 GB, which could only fit the operating system and a couple of the most actively used programs. And sometimes even Intel's Smart Response technology was used, allowing using an SSD small volume organize caching of any calls to a relatively slow HDD. That is, due to the high prices for solid state drives, users had to go to certain tricks and try to get by with the SSD as small as possible.
However, for recent times the situation has changed somewhat. Improvements in the design of flash memory chips, the development of new technological processes, and increased competition among SSD manufacturers have had a very large impact on the prices of consumer SSD models. Since the beginning of 2015, the cost of popular models of client flash drives has fallen by more than one and a half times. And this naturally changed the preferences of the buyers. Of course, in most cases, it has not yet been possible to get away from the two-tier disk subsystem, but rather capacious models are often used in the role of system drives, which allow saving not only operating system and basic software packages, but also a number of games. Therefore, it is not surprising that 256GB models have become the best-selling SSDs today. Actually, it is for this reason that our laboratory devotes special attention to SSD tests with such a capacity: we almost always get acquainted with the performance of new products on the example of 256 GB modifications.
However, this does not mean that 128GB SSDs have become completely unpopular overnight. In fact, their sales are only marginally behind sales of twice as large drives. And this is understandable: for inexpensive configurations, 128 GB SSDs are more affordable, and many users simply do not need high-speed storage devices with higher capacities. Therefore, our readers often turn to us for advice: which of the modern SSDs is better to buy, if you have to choose from a number of proposals with a volume of 128 GB.
Unfortunately, our regular tests of drives with a volume of 256 GB or more do not allow us to give an unambiguous answer to the question of how SSDs with a capacity of 128 GB behave in real life. The fact is that such models differ from their older counterparts in internal architecture - and this inevitably affects their performance. A relatively small 128GB flash array requires fewer NAND devices than usual, resulting in less parallelism across the entire NAND array within the drive. And this not only makes 128 GB SSD noticeably slower than larger offerings - along the way, the load on the controller is also reduced, which somewhat smooths out the differences between performance and budget SSD platforms. In sum, all this means that in small drives, the speed of the used flash memory has a primary impact on the final performance, while a powerful controller is not required to get good performance. Therefore, when comparing SSDs with a capacity of 128 GB, the leaders may not be at all those models that are usually considered flagship solutions. And therefore, the question of the optimal choice of drives of this size is by no means idle.
With all that said, our lab decided to turn to the performance study of 128GB SATA SSDs and did a lot of joint testing that should unequivocally answer the question of which small solid state drives make sense to buy today. It should be noted that this testing is valuable not only because we have tested a large number of different models SSD. A separate advantage of the research performed is that it was carried out simultaneously. That is, all performance indicators are taken in an unchanged test system from the very latest version operating system Windows 10 with the most recent drivers and the most recent firmware versions. Moreover, all the drives in the comparison were taken from the retail sale just before the tests, that is, the results obtained characterize exactly those SSD versions that can be bought in the store at the present time.
Summary of tested SSDs
ADATA Premier SP550 120 GB
ADATA is renowned for its love of experimentation with SSDs. There are very rare combinations of controller and memory in its product line, and the new Premier SP550 is just one such product that has no analogues among the offerings of other manufacturers. The fact is that ADATA decided to be one of the first to try out the new Silicon Motion SM2256 controller, which is the next version of the popular SM2246EN controller with an added hardware error correction algorithm based on LDPC ECC (Low Density Code). This algorithm is more efficient than the commonly used BCH ECC, which allows you to combine a rather capricious TLC NAND with the new controller and at the same time guarantee a level of data storage reliability acceptable for client SSDs.
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The ADATA Premier SP550 is made exactly according to this scheme. In it, the SM2256 chip works with SK Hynix's 16nm TLC NAND. The flash storage array of this drive consists of eight NAND devices connected to the controller via four channels. And this means that the Premier SP550 is a budget solution with relatively low performance.
However, the SP550 implements special technologies aimed at masking the low speed of the flash memory array. So, it provides SLC caching technology for write operations. This means that a small part of the memory array is switched to fast SLC mode and serves as a Write-Back cache. The effective size of this area in the 120 GB version of the SP550 is about 2.5 GB.
There are no complaints about the declared reliability: the SP550 comes with a standard three-year warranty, and its declared endurance is 90 TB of records.
ADATA Premier SP610 128 GB
The older sibling of the previous drive, Premier SP610, is based on the older Silicon Motion SM2246EN controller, which does not have TLC NAND support. Therefore, the SP610 belongs to a higher class - it uses a full-fledged MLC NAND, manufactured by Micron using a 20-nm process technology.
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However, despite this, the SP610 is still an inexpensive solution. The SM2246EN controller is a typical budget chip: it has a single-core design and RISC architecture, and communicates with flash memory via four channels. In addition, the Premier SP610 uses 128 Gigabit MLC NAND devices. Consequently, the ADATA Premier SP610's flash array parallelism is relatively low, and this significantly limits performance. this decision especially on write operations.
ADATA Premier Pro SP920 128 GB
The ADATA Premier Pro SP920 model has been on the market for a long time, nevertheless, it continues to enjoy steady demand and therefore is in no hurry to move into the category of outdated products. The secret of its popularity lies in the use of the Marvell 88SS9189 controller, which won the title of one of best platforms for SATA SSD. It is a complete and powerful 8-channel controller that most advanced solid state drives are typically based on.
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But Premier Pro SP920 still cannot be called a flagship product. The fact is that in fact it is produced by Micron, and ADATA only distributes it through its channels. Micron, on the other hand, did not create with its own hands competitors similar in characteristics for its own Crucial MX100 / MX200 series, but offered to use its own MLC NAND in the Premier Pro SP920, produced according to the old 20-nm process technology. Moreover, the capacity of flash memory devices that fall into the SP920 is 128 Gbit, that is, the degree of parallelism of the memory array is not too high - only one NAND device is connected to each controller channel.
As a result, the ADATA Premier Pro SP920 can only claim to be a mid-range offering. However, his noble birth allows you to hope for high reliability. For example, although this SSD only comes with a three-year warranty, it claims a relatively good 72TB write capacity. Besides, electrical circuit Premier Pro SP920 includes hardware-based protection of the address translation table against power surges, which is usually not implemented in consumer offerings.
ADATA XPG SX930 120 GB
XPG SX930 is one of the most original drives from ADATA. And it's not just that it uses the rare JMicron JMF670H controller. It is much more interesting that, having made a bet on this budgetary four-channel platform, ADATA engineers tried to create a product out of it that could look worthy on a par with the flagship SATA SSDs.
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To solve this problem, two different methods were used at once. The reliability of the ADATA XPG SX930 has been increased by using a special flash memory, which the manufacturer calls the MLC + term. In fact, this is an almost ordinary 16nm MLC NAND manufactured by Micron, but with an important addition in the form of FortisFlash technology. This technology extends the lifespan of flash memory cells through the use of intelligent algorithms for their management and special software settings of the controller. Unfortunately, ADATA does not disclose specific details regarding the effectiveness of using the FortisFlash MLC, however, the XPG SX930, unlike all other drives from this manufacturer, is given a full five-year warranty.
The second method to improve drive performance is pseudo-SLC caching. Usually this strategy is typical for drives using TLC NAND, but in the case of the XPG SX930, a similar approach is used for SSDs based on MLC memory. And here it is quite appropriate, because the level of parallelism of the memory array of this SSD is minimal, since the NAND devices used in the XPG SX930 have 128 Gigabit capacity, and the JMicron JMF670H controller works with the flash memory array only on four channels. The effective size of the SLC cache in the 128 GB version of the XPG SX930, according to our estimates, is about 3 GB, and its presence allows ADATA to indicate sufficiently high performance indicators for this drive in the specifications.
Crucial BX100 120GB
Under the Crucial brand, two lines of solid state drives are traditionally supplied: the senior, MX, and the youngest, BX. However, in a volume of 120 GB, there are only cheap Crucial BX100 drives, while the flagship MX200 series has a minimum capacity of 250 GB. This is due to the fact that the company Micron, which owns the Crucial brand, puts flash memory with a core size of 128 Gbit in its modern SSDs. Accordingly, the memory array in the 120-gigabyte modification of the drive receives a low level of parallelism, and it makes little sense to use a powerful hardware platform with it.
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Crucial BX100 120 GB is a typical budget SSD, which is based on a four-channel, single-core Silicon Motion SM2246EN controller. It works with an array of flash memory, which is assembled from Micron chips manufactured using 16nm technology. And this means that in terms of hardware, the BX100 is very similar to many other similar SSDs, for example, the same ADATA Premier SP610.
However, there is one important difference. Micron has a strong engineering team, so the Crucial BX100 is not built to the reference design provided by the controller designers. It has its own layout and firmware optimized by Micron engineers to improve performance over most SM2246EN SSDs.
Intel SSD 535 120 GB
Intel has long since ceased to be one of the leading manufacturers of consumer-grade SSDs. Now it is almost entirely focused on the server segment and offers only slightly adapted server models for ordinary users. With one exception, which is the Intel SSD 535 and earlier versions. However, the SSD 535 is produced by Intel rather by inertia, well, simply because many buyers pay attention to Intel SSDs for old memory. In fact, this is a modern variation of the Intel SSD 520, an ancient Intel drive that was released at the very beginning of 2012.
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In other words, Intel SSD 535 is almost the only current drive that uses the ever-memorable SandForce SF-2281 controller. And this is a very unflattering characteristic, since, firstly, the SF-2281 is outdated, and secondly, it has a lot of problems, starting with a low speed when working with poorly compressible data and ending with performance degradation over time. However, Intel engineers developed their own firmware for the SF-2281 and were able to significantly improve the efficiency of this hardware platform. Of course, this did not make the SF-2281 controller modern or flagship, but at least Intel SSDs of the five hundredth series are by far the best embodiment of the SandForce platform.
As for memory, the Intel SSD 535 uses SK Hynix's inexpensive 16nm MLC NAND chips. Moreover, the capacity of these chips is 128 Gbit, and due to the low level of parallelism of the flash memory array, the Intel SSD 535 is clearly slower than the original Intel SSD 520. However, to compensate negative impact large NAND cores for performance, the developers implemented an accelerated pseudo-SLC write mode in the SSD 535, and as a result, the Intel SSD 535 manages to compete almost on equal terms with modern budget drives from other manufacturers.
Nevertheless, the Intel SSD 535 is far from being a flagship, but, on the contrary, a solution with rather mediocre performance parameters and an unreasonably high price. There is only one consolation in this situation: the Intel SSD 535 has not lost its vaunted Intel reliability and inherited a full five-year warranty from its predecessors.
Kingston SSDNow V300 120 GB
Apparently, Kingston SSDNow V300 can be classified as one of the most popular solid state drives. However, he managed to become so not at all due to technological superiority. The secret of the popularity of SSDNow V300 lies in the low price and marketing policy of its manufacturer.
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To begin with, the Kingston SSDNow V300 is based on the outdated SandForce SF-2281 controller with a host of unsolved problems: performance degradation and low speed when working with poorly compressible data. But on the other hand, it is cheap and, provided it is equipped with high-quality flash memory, it can compete with modern four-channel controllers in the lower price range.
Actually, initially the fast MLC NAND was installed in the SSDNow V300, which allowed it to gain a reputation as a solution that is quite attractive in terms of price and performance ratio. However, about a year ago, Kingston changed the hardware without any warning. this drive, and the place of good flash memory was taken by less good one. As a result, today's SSDNow V300 uses Micron's 20nm MLC flash memory with asynchronous access. It is worth recalling that such memory could be found in cheap solid-state drives a few years ago, but then the industry completely abandoned it. But not Kingston, which for the sake of reducing the price decided to return to using this memory and gave its current drive features, for example, the old Kingston SSDNow V + 200 (if you still remember the existence of such a model).
However, in fairness, it should be said that asynchronous MLC NAND in terms of its operating speed is approximately equal to TLC NAND, so against the background of a new wave of budget solid-state drives based on three-bit memory Kingston SSDNow V300 looks quite normal.
Kingston HyperX Fury 120 GB
Basically, the Kingston HyperX Fury is a redesigned SSDNow V300 sold by the manufacturer under the more prestigious HyperX gaming brand. However, if we talk about the hardware platform, then, just like in the SSDNow V300, it consists of an SF-2281 controller originally from 2011 and an MLC NAND with asynchronous access, produced by Micron using 20-nm technology. The configuration is not fast, but it is extremely cheap, simple and reliable.
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Actually, it is the declared reliability that distinguishes HyperX Fury among ultra-budget solutions. Giving a three-year warranty on this drive, the manufacturer indicates an absolutely fantastic recording resource - 354 TB. This means that Kingston has confidence in the asynchronous MLC NAND of choice for this SSD to withstand at least 3,000 write cycles. And if not for this, then HyperX Fury could be considered a solution of the same order of magnitude with numerous SSDs on TLC memory.
Kingston HyperX Savage 120 GB
Kingston, I must say, is engaged not only in promoting inexpensive solutions - in its lineup there are also quite technological SSDs. One example is the new HyperX Savage drive, which is based on the fairly recent Phison PS3110-S10 controller. This controller is notable for its eight-channel architecture, which is practically not found in inexpensive SSD platforms.
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However, the main advantage of HyperX Savage lies not so much in the controller as in the memory. For this SSD, Kingston chose MLC NAND, manufactured by Toshiba on a second generation 19nm process technology. Such a memory not only can boast a fast front-end Toggle 2.0, but also has 64-gigabit cores. This makes the HyperX Savage flash array parallelism double that of most other 128GB SSDs. Each controller channel has two NAND devices, and this puts HyperX Savage in a slightly more advantageous position among competitors.
As a result, the Kingston HyperX Savage 120 GB is able to perform in the same weight category as the performance drives, even though the Phison PS3110-S10 controller does not belong to the top-level platforms. However, it should be borne in mind that HyperX Savage is still not quite a full-fledged flagship. This Kingston offer is only guaranteed for three years, albeit with a fairly high declared write resource of 113 TB.
OCZ Trion 100 120 GB
Although the Trion 100 bears the name of OCZ, its involvement in the creation of this SSD is minimal. In fact, the Trion 100 is designed and manufactured by Toshiba, which owns OCZ, and OCZ itself is responsible for only the final stages in the production chain - final validation, marketing and warranty service. But this makes the Trion 100 only more interesting, since Toshiba for this drive was able to take not the outdated Barefoot 3 controller, but the new Phison PS3110-S10.
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It should be noted that the Phison PS3110-S10 controller is good for its flexibility - it can work not only with MLC, but also with TLC memory. True, Phison engineers failed to implement error correction based on LDPC ECC, and to ensure the integrity of information when using low-quality memory, solutions based on the PS3110-S10 use the traditional BCH ECC code. But this turns out to be enough, because the parity control is enhanced by the proprietary SmartECC technology, which organizes a RAID-5 array at the level of flash memory pages. As a result, Phison PS3110-S10 turns out to be a perfectly acceptable platform for creating budget TLC drives. Actually, the OCZ Trion 100 is just such an embodiment of this platform.
In the OCZ Trion 100 SSD, Toshiba uses its own TLC NAND, which is manufactured using a second generation 19nm process technology. Yes, this makes the Trion 100 not at all fast, since the TLC memory has a core capacity of 128 Gbit and has an extremely low write speed, but this drive is very inexpensive. The problem with speed is partially solved by the introduction of SLC caching, but the Trion 100's effective cache size is quite small - about 0.5 GB.
As for reliability, the OCZ Trion 100 120GB comes with a three-year warranty and a 30TB recording capacity, which is enough for a modern client SSD that acts as a system drive.
OCZ Arc 100 120 GB
The Arc 100 is, unlike the Trion 100, OCZ's own storage. Therefore, it is based on the Barefoot 3 controller, designed by the Indilinx engineering team, which OCZ acquired in 2011. I must say that by modern standards, the Barefoot 3 cannot be called productive, although it works with an array of flash memory across eight channels. But it effectively implements the technology of accelerated SLC-writing, and due to it, SSDs on Barefoot 3 stand out among competitors with high write speeds. The essence of the technology lies in the fact that free MLC cells are first programmed in one-bit SLC mode, and their transfer to the usual two-bit MLC mode is performed either if necessary or when the drive is idle.
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However, the main advantage of the OCZ Arc 100 is not in its high write speeds, but in the fact that its flash memory array is formed from Toshiba's MLC NAND chips, produced using the second generation 19 nm process technology, which have a capacity of 64 Gbit. This increases the degree of parallelism of the array and allows you to obtain relatively high performance indicators not only for writing, but also for reading data.
At the same time, Arc 100 does not at all pretend to be a top-level solution, since it uses a version of the basic Barefoot 3 M10 controller that is slowed down in frequency. And the terms of the guarantee are not at all typical for the flagship: its term is 3 years, and the recording resource is set at 22 TB, that is, Arc 100 is inferior in declared endurance even to its TLC brother Trion 100.
OCZ Vector 180 120 GB
In simple terms, the Vector 180 is an accelerated version of the Arc 100 with a claim to some elitism. The fundamental differences between these drives are in the frequency of the base controller. The Barefoot 3 M00 processor used in the Vector 180 is overclocked by about 13 percent. Otherwise, there is almost no difference: the memory in Vector 180 is the same - Toshiba A19-nm MLC NAND with 64-gigabit cores.
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But there is one caveat: the Vector 180, unlike the Arc 100 (and all other OCZ SSDs), received a redesigned power circuit. Past OCZ drives have frequently failed due to power outages and address translation table integrity issues. To combat this problem, the supply circuits in the Vector 180 have been strengthened, and in addition, they have a capacitor that can provide energy for the correct completion of work with the translation table. The data that is in processing at the time of a power outage does not save, but it effectively protects the SSD from a complete loss of performance.
As a result, OCZ presents its Vector 180 as a flagship and expensive solution. In accordance with this positioning, the terms of the warranty are also brought: its term for this drive has been extended to five years, and the allowed recording resource is 91 TB.
Plextor M6V 128 GB
Given the gradual decline in prices for consumer solid state drives, manufacturers are forced to look for new approaches to reduce product costs. For example, Plextor, which until recently relied only on cooperation with Marvell for controllers, was forced to switch to cheaper SSD platforms. And the Plextor M6V is the first example of a low-cost platform. This drive uses a four-channel low-cost Silicon Motion SM2246EN controller. However, this is not such a bad choice. Today, this processor can be found in a lot of products, and leading SSD manufacturers do not disdain it.
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The uniqueness of the Plextor M6V lies in the fact that it uses Toshiba's 15nm MLC NAND in tandem with the SM2246EN controller. This is a relatively new flash memory, for the production of which a technological process with advanced standards is used, and the transition to such a technological process has not only led to a near-record level of information storage density, but also made it possible to increase the interface speed of NAND chips. As a result, provided correct optimization firmware and a balanced marketing policy, the Plextor M6V may become one of the fastest and cheapest SSDs based on the Silicon Motion SM2246EN controller.
However, there is no need to expect global performance records from the Plextor M6V. The memory used in it has 128-gigabit cores, which makes the flash memory array of this drive endowed with a relatively low level of parallelism. Naturally, SSDs using 19nm MLC memory with 64 Gigabit cores, or SSDs built on eight-channel controllers, will be faster.
Plextor M6S 128 GB
But the M6S is just an inexpensive Plextor drive of the "old school": it is assembled on the basis of a controller developed by Marvell. However, in this case, the drive is based not on one of the productive platforms, but on an inexpensive solution - a four-channel Marvell 88SS9188 controller. However, this is still a high-quality and solid platform that is capable of delivering good high-speed results, especially in the 128-gigabyte embodiment, where the number of controller channels does not play a very significant role.
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However, unlike other drives based on four-channel controllers, the Plextor M6S has a clear advantage: it uses flash memory with 64 Gbit crystals. More specifically, it contains Toshiba's MLC NAND, manufactured using the second generation 19-nm process technology. As a result, the degree of parallelism of the flash memory array of the M6S is the same as that of the best solutions of the same size, and four NAND devices work in each of the four controller channels. Further reinforcing the M6S is a set of firmware-level technologies implemented by Plextor engineers, such as TrueSpeed, which provides flash garbage collection in non-TRIM environments. In general, we have before us a strong middle peasant, who, although he has a fairly solid age, still does not lose his position.
The only frustrating thing about the M6S is that the start of sales of this SSD was overshadowed by numerous cases of its failure when attempting a regular firmware update. But by now, it seems that the problem has been successfully resolved. And today the Plextor M6S is a product with the usual three-year warranty and a typical level of reliability.
Plextor M6 Pro 128 GB
The M6 Pro is Plextor's flagship drive and uses a full eight-channel Marvell 88SS9187 controller. Moreover, thanks to the choice of such a platform for a 128 GB drive, Plextor came up with a unique solution in many ways. The fact is that other manufacturers dealing with Marvell controllers, such as Crucial or SanDisk, do not use such a powerful filling in a 128 GB SSD. Therefore, the Plextor M6 Pro 128 GB justifiably claims to be one of the fastest SSDs in its weight category.
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It further strengthens the position of this drive and the flash memory chosen for it - the M6 Pro uses fast MLC NAND with 64 Gb cores, manufactured by Toshiba using the second generation 19 nm process technology. Thanks to this, the memory array has the highest possible level of parallelism: there are two NAND devices in each channel of the controller.
The M6 Pro is not without its proprietary Plextor magic - TrueSpeed technology, which allows you to replenish the pool of clean pages of flash memory even in those environments where TRIM technology is not supported. All that remains is a five-year warranty, not limited to any amount of recorded data, and as a result, it turns out that the Plextor M6 Pro is one of the flagship solutions, at least among 128 GB SSDs.
Samsung 850 EVO 120 GB
By offering technologically advanced and high-quality SSDs, Samsung has won nearly 50 percent of the consumer SSD market to date. And the main weapon, thanks to which Samsung was able to quickly achieve such convincing results in its activities, is precisely the 850 EVO. The secret lies in the fact that Samsung drives are completely formed from components that are designed and manufactured in-house. Accordingly, these components are ideally matched to each other and provide end products with an advantageous combination of price and performance.
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The uniqueness of the Samsung 850 EVO also lies in the fact that it uses the proprietary TLC V-NAND, which has no analogues in any flash memory manufacturer yet. Such memory is fundamentally different from conventional TLC: it has not a flat, but a three-dimensional layout with 32 layers and is manufactured using a conservative 40-nm process technology. As a result, Samsung manages to combine both high storage density, that is, low cost, and high reliability in this memory: in terms of endurance, TLC V-NAND is not inferior to conventional planar MLC NAND. This is confirmed by the terms of the guarantee. Its lifespan for the 850 EVO is set at five years, and the write resource is limited to the typical level of 75 TB for MLC drives.
Compared to conventional TLC memory, 3D TLC V-NAND also performs significantly better in terms of performance. Despite the fact that the volume of crystals used in the 850 EVO TLC V-NAND is 128 GB, this drive is positioned as a solid solution of the middle level. To achieve high performance and unleash the full potential of memory, the 850 EVO uses a proprietary eight-channel dual-core Samsung MGX controller, on the basis of which, in addition to standard algorithms, the proprietary TurboWrite technology is also implemented, which further improves the write speed. Its essence lies in caching write operations in a dedicated SLC cache, the effective capacity of which in the 120 GB version of the 850 EVO is about 3 GB.
Samsung 850 Pro 128GB
For those users who find the 850 EVO based on TLC V-NAND not fast enough, not reliable enough or not charismatic enough, Samsung can offer its flagship 850 Pro. This is an even more outstanding solid state drive for personal computers, with a range of features that no competitor has yet been able to surpass.
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The most important Samsung feature 850 Pro is that this SSD is based on proprietary MLC V-NAND - flash memory with a three-dimensional 32-layer structure, in which cells store two bits of information. MLC V-NAND is manufactured using the same process technology with 40nm standards as a similar three-dimensional TLC. Therefore, the speed and reliability of such memory obviously exceeds that of the planar MLC used in SSDs from other manufacturers. At the same time, the capacity of the MLC V-NAND devices used in the 850 Pro is 86 Gb, which gives the flash memory array not a maximum, but a sufficient degree of parallelism to generate the entire bandwidth of the SATA interface.
In principle, to create an advanced Samsung solution, MLC V-NAND alone would be quite enough, but a special high-performance Samsung MEX controller was also developed for the 850 Pro, which is based on three cores with ARM Cortex-R4 architecture and has a flash to communicate with an array -memory eight channels. As a result, the 850 Pro hides a huge power reserve that allows this SSD to be successfully used even under intense workloads not typical for typical personal computers.
Separately, it should be said about the unique conditions of the guarantee. The Samsung 850 Pro has a 10-year warranty, and there are no other 128GB drives on the market with such a generous warranty. As for the allowed recording resource, for the 128 GB model it is 150 TB, which means, for example, the possibility of a daily complete rewriting of this drive for at least three years.
It's worth mentioning that Samsung SSDs (both 850 Pro and 850 EVO), unlike most competitors, offer Microsoft eDrive compatible hardware encryption. This means that the hardware encryption on these SSDs can be managed from the Windows operating system through built-in BitLocker.
SanDisk SSD Plus 120GB
SanDisk, like Crucial, has excluded 120-gigabyte SSDs from the sphere of its direct interests, therefore, in the volume of consumer drives we are interested in, it has only budget models based on TLC memory. SSD Plus, on the other hand, is the youngest of all the options available, and should attract supporters at an exceptionally low cost.
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The design of the SanDisk SSD Plus is imbued with the desire to be simpler and cheaper. To begin with, it is based on the Silicon Motion SM2246XT controller, which is an additionally cut down version of the already budgetary four-channel SM2246EN processor. In the SM2246XT, the DRAM interface has been eliminated, which does not allow SSD based on it to use buffer RAM, which is usually needed to store a quick copy of the address translation table.
As for the flash memory array, it is packed in SSD Plus with 128-gigabit TLC NAND devices, which are manufactured by SanDisk itself at 19 nm. technological process second generation. 3-bit memory is slower than MLC NAND, so usually drives based on it use various SLC caching technologies. But SSD Plus lacks that too.
Thus, under the SSD Plus brand, SanDisk offers an ultra-budget drive with slow memory without SLC cache and DRAM buffer, the performance parameters of which seemed to the manufacturer so depressing that he even hesitated to indicate them on his website. However, actual testing has shown that the SSD Plus is not as hopeless as it seemed at first, and it is by no means the slowest SSD in today's test.
SanDisk Ultra II 120GB
Apart from Samsung, until recently there was only one other manufacturer that was able to mass-produce SSDs based on TLC NAND. SanDisk released its first TLC-drive a year ago - it was the Ultra II. But this SSD is interesting not only because of the use of three-bit memory - it is also intriguing because SanDisk engineers were able to develop it at a time when specialized controllers designed to work with TLC NAND were not yet on the market. For the Ultra II, a Marvell 88SS9190 controller was adapted, for which SanDisk engineers wrote a creatively adapted firmware for TLC. Its key element is the RAID-like Multi Page Recovery (M.P.R) technology introduced at the flash memory page level, designed for enhanced correction. possible mistakes reading.
SanDisk's experience in creating a TLC drive from scrap materials turned out to be very successful: in the year that has passed since the release of this model in the "big voyage", no critical problems were found with it, and SanDisk Ultra II won the title of a fairly good SSD entry level... Moreover, the new generation TLC drives, produced on platforms originally designed for this type of memory, turned out to be no better than the Ultra II.
In the SanDisk Ultra II, the Marvell 88SS9190 controller works with an array of flash memory on four channels, while this array itself is recruited from SanDisk's 128-gigabit TLC NAND devices, which are manufactured using the second-generation 19-nm process technology. However, SanDisk Ultra II also has a special ingredient that makes this SSD faster than all TLC-based drives of the "new wave" - proprietary nCache 2.0 technology. The essence of this technology is quite standard: it adds an additional SLC cache to the drive's operation scheme. but concrete implementation not so simple. Firstly, this cache itself has a relatively large effective volume, reaching a 120 GB SSD 4 GB. Secondly, caching in the framework of nCache 2.0 is two-level, it also uses the DRAM buffer, which in ordinary SSDs is used only to store a copy of the address translation table.
Smartbuy Ignition 4 120 GB
Smartbuy is not the name of another SSD manufacturer, but just a trademark under which the Russian distributor Top Media sells various products of unknown (and not so) Chinese firms. The real author of Smartbuy drives is Phison, a Taiwanese developer and manufacturer of controllers used in budget SSDs. One of Phison's models is to ship fully assembled SSDs to customers on its own platform, and Top Media takes advantage of this by supplementing the drives purchased from Phison with stickers and boxes bearing the Smartbuy logo. That is why a couple of Smartbuy drives were included in our tests, because in fact these are not incomprehensible products of unknown origin, but the most real reference platforms designed by engineers of one of the leading developers SSD controllers consumer level.
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Smartbuy Ignition 4 is an MLC drive based on the latest 8-channel Phison PS3110-S10 controller. In terms of its hardware platform, Ignition 4 could become an analogue of Kingston HyperX Savage, however, it does not have Toshiba high-speed memory, but a slightly slower and cheaper MLC NAND from Micron, which uses the ONFI 3.0 interface, is manufactured using a 16-nm process technology and has a volume cores 128 Gbps. As a result, Ignition 4 is inferior to the Kingston solution in terms of the degree of parallelism of the flash memory array and is positioned as a fairly ordinary mid-range drive.
Smartbuy Revival 120 GB
Smartbuy Revival is one of the cheapest SSDs on the domestic market. The secret to the low price is simple: this drive uses the Phison PS3110-S10 platform, complete with inexpensive TLC memory. This makes the Revival an analogue of, for example, the OCZ Trion 100 or the not yet commercially available Kingston UV300.
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Since Smartbuy Revival is purely a reference platform, everything in it functions exactly as intended by the controller developers. In particular, error correction is performed through BCH ECC algorithms, which are further enhanced by RAID-like SmartECC technology. And SLC caching of write operations is responsible for improving the speed parameters of the TLC memory array. Moreover, Revival's cache has an effective volume of 1 GB, that is, it is twice as large as that of the OCZ Trion 100.
As for the flash memory itself, the Revival is equipped with Toshiba's TLC NAND, released on the second generation 19 nm process technology. I must say that Phison has a very close partnership with Toshiba, so the PS3110-S10 controller contains special optimizations for working with this particular memory. And this allows us to consider that Smartbuy Revival is a completely reliable product, at least capable of competing in its durability with budget drives of real SSD manufacturers. Confirming this is reinforced by the fact that Revival in most stores is given a full three-year warranty without any restrictions on the maximum recording volume.
Transcend SSD370S 128 GB
Transcend's SSD370S is an updated version of the rather popular SSD370 model, the most notable change in which is the appearance of an aluminum case. However, the changes are not limited to this.
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Like its predecessor, the SSD370S is based on the budget four-channel Silicon Motion SM2246EN controller, which can be found in the mass of modern SSDs in the lower price range. However, Transcend's proposal does not completely repeat the reference design - the company's engineers have worked on optimizing the firmware. But the main feature of the SSD370S model lies in the used flash memory: Micron's inexpensive 16nm MLC NAND was lit up in this drive. That is, from the point of view of filling, the Transcend drive has become similar to the Crucial BX100.
The core capacity of the SSD370S flash memory is 128 Gbps, and this is converted into a low degree of parallelism of the MLC NAND array. The four-channel controller, when working with an array of flash memory, uses only two-fold interleaving of devices. However, the use of dual-bit memory puts the Transcend SSD370S one step above the latest generation SSDs based on TLC NAND.
SSD Specification Table
One way to improve the performance of your laptop is to replace the mechanical hard drive with a solid state drive (SSD). Let's try to figure out how to make the right choice of such a storage device.
- High degree of reliability, in particular shock resistance and wide temperature Range work. This is especially true for laptops where cooling conditions are poor;
- Low power consumption;
- High level of performance.
Features of choice
First, you need to decide on the purpose of the SSD, whether it will be used as a system only or will also store large files, modern games of 40-50 GB. If in the first case there will be enough volume of 120 GB, then in the second you need to pay attention to models with a larger capacity. The best choice here can be disks with a size of 240-256 GB.
- Installation instead of an optical drive. To do this, you need a special adapter, when choosing which you need to know the height (usually 12.7 mm). In some cases, you can find a device with 9.5 mm;
- Replacing the main HDD.
After that, you can already make a choice according to the rest of the parameters, which it is advisable to consider further.
Memory type
First of all, when choosing, you need to pay attention to the type of memory used. Three types are known - these are SLC, MLC and TLC, and all the others are their derivatives. The difference is that in the SLC one bit of information is recorded in one cell, and in the MLC and TLC - two and three bits, respectively.
From here, the disk resource is calculated, which depends on the amount of overwritten memory cells. The operating time of the TLC memory is the lowest, but it still depends on the type of controller. At the same time, disks based on such chips show the best read speed results.
Form factor, interface
The most common SSD form factor is 2.5 inches. Also known are mSATA (mini-SATA), PCIe and M.2, which are used in compact laptops and ultrabooks. The main interface through which data reception / transmission operations are carried out is SATA III, where the speed can reach up to 6 Gb / s. In turn, in M.2, information exchange can be carried out using both standard SATA and PCI-Express bus. Moreover, in the second case, the modern NVMe protocol is used, developed specifically for the storage system, with the use of which speeds up to 32 Gb / s are provided. The mSATA, PCIe and M.2 form factor drives are expansion cards and take up little space.
Based on this, we can say that before buying, you need to familiarize yourself with the technical documentation for the laptop on the manufacturer's website and check the presence of the above connectors. For example, if a laptop has an M.2 connector with NVMe support, it is recommended to purchase the corresponding drive, since its data transfer speed will be higher than the SATA controller can provide.
Controller
Such parameters as read / write speed and disk resource depend on the control chip. Manufacturers include Marvell, Samsung, Toshiba OCZ (Indilinx), Silicon Motion, Phison. Moreover, the first two of the list produce controllers with a high level of performance and reliability, so they are mainly used in solutions for the medium and business segment of consumers. Samsung also has a hardware encryption feature.
Silicon Motion and Fison controllers are distinguished by a good combination of price and performance, however, products based on them have such disadvantages as low random write / read rates and a drop in overall operation speed when the disk is full. They are intended mainly for budget and mid-range segments.
There can also be found SSDs on the once very popular chips SandForce, JMicron. In general, they show good results, however, drives based on them have a relatively low resource and are presented mainly in the budget segment of the market.
Drive rating
The main disk manufacturers are Intel, Patriot, Samsung, Plextor, Corsair, SanDisk, Toshiba OCZ, AMD. Consider a few drives that are the best in their category. And as a selection criterion, select the volume.
Note: The list below is based on the average prices at the time of writing: March 2018.
Storage up to 128 GB
Samsung 850 120GB presented in 2.5 ″ /M.2/mSATA form factors. The average price for a disc is 4090 rubles. It features best-in-class performance and a 5-year warranty.
Options:
Sequential reading: 540
MB / s
Sequential Write: 520
MB / s
Wear resistance: 75
TBW
Memory type: Samsung 64L TLC
ADATA Ultimate SU650 120GB It has best price in the classroom, to be precise 2,870 rubles. In it, you can select a unique SLC caching algorithm, for which all the space available to the firmware is allocated. This ensures a good average performance. Models available for all major form factors.
Options:
Sequential reading: 520
MB / s
Sequential Write: 320
MB / s
Wear resistance: 70
TBW
Memory type: TLC 3D NAND
Storage from 128 to 240-256 GB
Samsung 860 EVO (250GB) Is the latest model from the company of the same name for 2.5 ″ /M.2/mSATA. At the start of sales, it costs 6,000 rubles. Tests have shown that the disc has best-in-class durability, which increases with volume.
Options:
Sequential reading: 550
MB / s
Sequential Write: 520
MB / s
Wear resistance: 150
TBW
Memory type: Samsung 64L TLC
SanDisk Ultra II 240GB- despite the fact that the manufacturing company was acquired Western digital, there are often models under this brand on sale. This is the SanDisk Ultra II, which uses a controller from Marvell, which now sells for about 4,600 rubles.
Options:
Sequential reading: 550
MB / s
Sequential Write: 500
MB / s
Wear resistance: 288
TBW
Memory type: TLC ToggleNAND
Drives with a volume of 480 GB or more
Intel SSD 760p 512GB Is a representative of the new line of SSDs from Intel. Available only in M.2 form factor, it features high speed performance. The price is traditionally quite high - 16 845 rubles.
Options:
Sequential reading: 3200
MB / s
Sequential Write: 1670
MB / s
Wear resistance: 288
TBW
Memory type: Intel 64L 3D TLC
Price for SSD Crucial MX500 1 TB is 15 200 rubles, which makes it the most affordable disc in this category. V this moment is available only in the SATA 2.5 ″ form factor, but the manufacturer has already announced models for M.2.
Options:
Sequential reading: 560
MB / s
Sequential Write: 510
MB / s
Wear resistance: 288
TBW
Memory type: 3D TCL NAND
Output
Thus, we examined the criteria for choosing an SSD for a laptop, got acquainted with several models that are on the market today. In general, installing a system on an SSD has a good effect on its performance and reliability. The fastest are the M.2 form factor drives, but attention should be paid to whether the laptop has such a connector. Despite the fact that almost all new models are built on TLC chips, it is recommended to consider also models with MLC memory, which have a significantly higher resource. This is especially true when choosing a system drive.
The first SSD, or solid state drives using flash memory, appeared in 1995, and were used exclusively in the military and aerospace fields. The huge cost at that time was compensated by the unique characteristics that allowed the operation of such discs in aggressive environments at a wide temperature range.
In the mass market, storage devices SSD appeared not so long ago, but quickly became popular, as they are a modern alternative to a standard hard disk ( HDD ). Let's figure out by what parameters you need to choose a solid-state drive, and what it is all about.
Device
Out of habit SSD is called a "disk", but it can rather be called " solid parallelepiped", Because there are no moving parts in it, and nothing similar in shape to a disk - too. The memory in it is based on the physical properties of the conductivity of semiconductors, so that SSD- a semiconductor (or solid-state) device, whereas a conventional hard disk can be called an electro-mechanical device.
Abbreviation SSD just means “ solid-state drive ", That is, literally," solid state drive". It consists of a controller and memory chips.
Controller- the most important part of the device, which links the memory to the computer. Main characteristics SSD- data exchange rate, power consumption, etc., depend on it. The controller has its own microprocessor, which works according to a preinstalled program, and can perform the functions of correcting code errors, preventing wear, cleaning from debris.
Memory in drives can be both non-volatile ( NAND) and volatile ( RAM).
NAND memory at first beat HDD only in the speed of access to arbitrary blocks of memory, and only since 2012 the speed of reading / writing has also grown many times over. Now in the mass market there are drives SSD are represented by models with a non-volatile NAND-memory.
RAM the memory is distinguished by super-fast read and write speeds, and is built on the principles of computer RAM. Such memory is volatile - in the absence of power, the data disappears. It is usually used in specific areas, such as speeding up work with databases, it is difficult to find on sale.
Differences between SSD and HDD
SSD distinguishes from HDD first of all, physical device... Thanks to this, it can boast of some advantages, but it also has a number of serious disadvantages.
Main advantages:
· High-speed performance. Even according to the technical characteristics, it is clear that the read / write speed of SSD several times higher, but in practice the performance may vary by 50-100 times.
· No moving parts and therefore no noise. It also means high resistance to mechanical stress.
· The speed of random access to memory is much higher. As a result, the speed of work does not depend on the location of the files and their fragmentation.
· Much less vulnerability to electromagnetic fields.
· Small size and weight, low power consumption.
Disadvantages:
· Limiting the resource by rewriting cycles. It means that you can overwrite a single cell a certain number of times - on average, this indicator varies from 1,000 to 100,000 times.
The cost of a gigabyte of volume is still quite high, and exceeds the cost of the usual HDD several times. However, this disadvantage will disappear over time.
Difficulty or even impossibility of recovering deleted or lost data associated with the hardware command used by the drive TRIM, and with a high sensitivity to power supply voltage drops: with such damage to memory chips, information from them is lost irretrievably.
In general, solid-state drives have a number of advantages that standard hard drives do not have - in cases where performance, access speed, size and resistance to mechanical stress play the main role, SDD persistently displaces HDD.
How much SSD will you need?
The first thing to look for when choosing SSD- its volume. There are models on sale with capacities from 32 to 2000 GB.The solution depends on the use case - you can install only the operating system on the drive, and limit the amount SSD 60-128 GB, which will be quite enough for Windows and installation of basic programs.
The second option is to use SSD as the main media library, but then you need a disk with a capacity of 500-1000 GB, which will be quite expensive. This only makes sense if you are working with a large number of files that need to be accessed really quickly. As applied to an ordinary user, it is not a very rational price / speed ratio.
But there is another property of solid-state drives - depending on the size, the write speed can vary greatly. The larger the disc size, the higher the write speed, as a rule. This is due to the fact that SSD is able to use several memory crystals in parallel, and the number of crystals grows with the volume. That is, in the same models SSD with different capacities of 128 and 480 GB, the difference in speed can differ by about 3 times.
Given this feature, we can say that now the most optimal choice in terms of price / speed can be called 120-240 GB SSD models, they are enough for installing the system and the most important software, and maybe for several games.
Interface and form factor
2.5 "SSD
The most common form factor SSD is the 2.5-inch format. It is a "bar" with dimensions of about 100x70x7mm, they may differ slightly from different manufacturers (± 1mm). The interface of 2.5 ”drives, as a rule, SATA3(6 Gbps).Advantages of the 2.5 "format:
- Market prevalence, any volume available
- Convenience and ease of use, compatible with any motherboard
- Affordable price
- Relatively low speed among ssd - up to a maximum of 600 Mb / s per channel, versus, for example, 1 Gb / s for the PCIe interface
- AHCI controllers that were designed for classic hard drives
mSATA SSD
There is a more compact form factor - mSATA, dimensions 30x51x4 mm. It makes sense to use it in laptops and any other compact devices, where the installation of a conventional 2.5 ”drive is impractical. If they, of course, have a connector mSATA... In terms of speed, it's still the same specification. SATA3(6 Gbps), and does not differ from 2.5 ".
M.2 SSD
There is one more, the most compact form factor M.2 gradually replacing mSATA... Designed primarily for laptops. Dimensions - 3.5x22x42 (60.80) mm. There are three different lengths of planks - 42, 60 and 80 mm, please note compatibility when installing in your system. Modern motherboards offer at least one U.2 slot for M.2 format.M.2 can be either SATA or PCIe. The difference between these interface options is in speed, and at the same time is quite large - SATA drives can boast speeds of 550 Mb / s on average, while PCIe, depending on the generation, can offer 500 Mb / s per lane for PCI-E 2.0. and speeds up to 985 Mb / s per PCI-E 3.0 lane. Thus, a solid-state drive installed in a PCIe x4 slot (with four lanes) can transfer data at speeds up to 2 Gb / s in the case of PCI Express 2.0 and up to almost 4 Gb / s in the case of PCI Express Gen 3.
At the same time, the price differences are significant; an M.2 drive with a PCIe interface will cost on average twice as much as a SATA interface with the same volume.
The form factor has a U.2 connector, which may have different connectors keys- special "cutouts" in them. There are keys B and as well B&M... Differ in bus speed PCIe: key M will provide speed up to PCIe x4, key M speed up to PCIe х2 like the combined key B&M.
B- the connector is incompatible with M-connector, M-connector, respectively, with B-connector, and B&M the connector is compatible with any. Be careful when purchasing a format M.2, since the motherboard, laptop or tablet must have a suitable connector.
PCI-E SSD
Finally, the last existing form factor - like an expansion board PCI-E... Mounted, respectively, in the slot PCI-E, have the highest speed, of the order 2000 MB / s read, and 1000 MB / s write... Such speeds will be very expensive for you: it is obvious that choosing such a drive is worth it for professional tasks. 
NVM Express
There are also SSD having a new logical interface NVM Express designed specifically for solid state drives. It differs from the old AHCI in even lower access delays and high parallelism of memory chips due to a new set of hardware algorithms.There are models on the market both with a connector M.2 and in PCIe... The only drawback of PCIe is that it will take up an important slot, which can be useful for another card.
Since the standard NVMe designed specifically for flash memory, it takes into account its features, while AHCI still only a compromise. That's why, NVMe- the future of solid state drives, and over time it will only get optimized.
What's the best type of memory in an SSD?
Understanding memory types SSD... This is one of the main characteristics SSD, determining the resource of rewriting cells and speed.MLC (Multi-Level Cell) is the most popular type of memory. Cells contain 2 bits, in contrast to the 1st bit in the old type SLC , which is almost not for sale anymore. Thanks to this, a larger volume, which means a lower cost. Recording resource from 2000 to 5000 rewriting cycles. In this case, "overwrite" means overwriting each cell of the disc. Therefore, for a 240 GB model, for example, you can store at least 480 TB of information. So, such a resource SSD even with constant intensive use, it should be enough for 5-10 years (for which it will become very outdated anyway). And for home use, it will last even for 20 years, so the limited rewrite cycles can be ignored at all. MLC Is the best combination of reliability / price.
TLC (Triple-Level Cell)- from the name it follows that here 3 data bits are stored in one cell at once. The recording density is here compared to MLC higher by whole 50% , which means that the rewriting resource is less - only from 1000 cycles. The access speed is also lower due to the higher density. The cost is now not much different from MLC... It has long been widely used in flash drives. The service life is also sufficient for home solution, but the susceptibility to irreparable errors and "death" of memory cells is noticeably higher, and during the entire service life.
3D NAND- it is more a form of memory organization, and not a new type of it. Exists as MLC and TLC 3D NAND... Such memory has vertically arranged memory cells, and a separate memory crystal in it has several levels of cells. It turns out that the cell has a third spatial coordinate, hence the prefix "3D" in the name of the memory - 3D NAND... It features a very low number of errors and high endurance due to a larger process technology of 30-40nM.
The manufacturer's warranty for some models reaches 10 years of use, but the cost is high. The most reliable memory type available.
Differences between cheap SSDs and expensive ones
Discs of the same size can differ greatly in price even from the same manufacturer. A cheap SSD can differ from an expensive one in the following points:· Cheaper type of memory. Ascending cost / reliability, conventionally: TLC≥ MLC ≥ 3D NAND.
· Cheaper controller. Also affects the read / write speed.
· Clipboard. The cheapest SSDs may not have a clipboard at all, this does not greatly reduce the cost of them, but significantly reduces the performance.
· Protection systems. For example, in expensive models there is protection against power interruption in the form of backup capacitors, which allow to correctly complete the write operation and not lose data.
· Brand. Of course, the more popular brand will be more expensive, which does not always mean technical superiority.
Output. What is more profitable to buy?
It is safe to say that modern SSD the drives are quite reliable. Fear of data loss and negative attitudes towards solid state drives, as a class, at the moment are already completely unjustified. If we talk about more or less popular brands, then even cheap TLC memory is suitable for budget home use, and its resource will be enough for you at least for several years. Many manufacturers also provide a 3-year warranty.So, if you are limited in funds, then your choice is a capacity of 60-128 GB to install the system and frequently used applications. Memory type is not so critical for home use - TLC it will be or MLC, the disk will become obsolete before the resource is used up. Other things being equal, of course, it is worth choosing MLC.
If you are ready to look into the mid-price segment and value reliability, then it is better to consider SSD MLC 200-500 GB... For older models, you will have to pay about 12 thousand rubles. At the same time, the volume is enough for you for almost everything that should work quickly on a home PC. You can also take models of even higher reliability with memory crystals 3D NAND .
If your fear of flash memory wear and tear reaches panic levels, then it is worth looking at new (and expensive) technologies in the form of storage formats. 3D NAND... And if it's no joke, then this is the future SSD- high speed and high reliability are combined here. Such a drive is suitable even for important server databases, since the write resource here reaches petabyte, and the number of errors is minimal.
I would like to allocate drives with an interface into a separate group PCI-E... They have a high read and write speed ( 1000-2000 Mb / s), and on average more expensive than other categories. If performance is at the forefront, then this the best choice... Disadvantage - it takes up a universal PCIe slot; motherboards of compact formats can have only one PCIe slot.
Out of competition - SSD with logical NVMe interface, the read speed of which exceeds 2000 MB / s. Compared to the trade-off logic for an SSD AHCI, has much greater queue depth and concurrency. High value on the market and best performance is the choice of enthusiasts or professionals.
