Ssd............

ok so i know a lot of us have switched to a SSD. but which one is truly the best? it seems a lot of guys here and in the alienware threads have issues with the vertex 3 drives? im in the market to get me one............

so i figure ill get the basics covered.

1. whats the minimum size for windows7 64?
2. whats the best bang for buck drive?
3. is that drive better or worse than another drive out there?
4. will the restore disks sent with my computer be all i need? or should i do the datasafe backup thing too?


thanks guys!!

 

I'd go with an Intel 320-series drive just because SandForce drives (like the Vertex 2 and 3) have a tendency to crap the bed whenever they feel like it.

 

I just installed the 240 GB Vertex 3, and love it. No install issues (remove the CMOS battery and short the contacts to reset the BIOS during install), and good benchmarks. I did not load RST during the clean install.

I didn't use the Restore disk or Dell Data Safe Local Backup. I asked Dell for a Win7 disk after I received the computer and used that, and downloaded all the drivers and utilities from the website and stored them on a new (blindingly fast) 320 GB Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Slim.

 

I'm looking to switch to SSD and I'm eyeing the Crucial M4 64GB

Newegg.com - Crucial M4 CT064M4SSD2 2.5" 64GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

 

Best SSD depends on what you constantly do with your laptop and your budget.

 

well this laptop is MOSTLY used for internet usage.....also mild photo editing, casual Call of duty black ops playing, making dvd's from home movies.

and as for budget, i guess it all depends on really what size ill need? i can use the second HDD bay for all my pics, movies etc....but whats a good size for operating system, and a few programs??


also i was looking into the crucial m4, but hear it has LOTS of system freezes........

 

I mean I don't really see a major benefit for you going to an SSD unless you copy stuff 24/7.

Minimum for OS I would say is 60 GB, 80+ GB recommended, 120GB+ if you can afford it.

Crucial SSDs in general are known to have stuttering/freezing issues.

Intel SSDs are statistically the most reliable brand out there.

 

I've had my M4-256GB since the day after I got my L702x, with zero system freezes.. Running like a champ.

Using the M4 for my C: drive, and a 500GB Seagate for Data..

 

There's little noticable difference between SSD's from around 2009, and the newer SATA3 ones you can get now.
Access times and app loading times are almost the same (obviously both much faster that traditional HDD's).

I tried a Vertex 3, and saw no difference in general operation to an old Corsair P128 I already had (even boot times were an identical 22 seconds).
So you could do yourself a favour and opt for a slightly older SSD (Corsair P series, or a Vertex 2e, for example) to save some money, or get a bigger drive for your money.
The only real benefit you'll get from SATA3 SSD's are higher sequential reads/writes, so unless you're copying to or from the SSD frequently you wont make much use of it (other than the initial install of your OS/apps, which will most likely be a one-off deal anyway).


As for the other info, the restore CD's and some of the drivers on the Dell site will be all you need.

Minimum size for Win764 would be 40GB, but obviously you aren't going to get much else on there. Most people would recommend 90-120GB, especially if you're going to be installing a few modern games/office/etc.
If you currently have everything you need installed, simply look at how much HDD space you're currently using, and use that as your guide.

 

i did go from an Intel 160GB G2 to the Vertex 3 240GB and pure copy of files from one location to the other really was way faster with the vertex.

Everything was faster if looking at the disk, problem is that this compare is a bit wrong because also the laptop changes. And that one is also way faster then what i had before. But that shouldn't really affect the copy..

But all in all i am content with how the Vertex 3 runs now in my system, the overall performance from a 2.2Ghz Dual Core with Intel G2 to the L702x is quite extreme, i think in my tasks its around 3 times faster.

 

Stuttering issues were/are caused by Intel's RST drivers not wanting to cooperate with Windows 7's LPM service. Not the drive's fault at all, and almost every drive has to have the 2 min. registry fix to completely solve the issue.

I'd go with the Intel or Crucial M4. Both are very fast and very reliable. I personally only buy the best and you can see what I have in my sig.

 

From what I see the average SSD Bandwidth has significantly gone up over the last few years. We are now pushing 500MBps with the newer drives. On ther other hand, drives from 2+ years ago pushed 200MBps if they were lucky.

 

Looks like I was a bit off, did a bit more reading, and the random read/writes of the M4 are rather impressive (writes especially).
BUT, it's still beaten by Crucials own C300 in some benchmarks (4k random reads, which are fairly important).

 

I have a 256GB Crucial M4 + 750GB WD Black 7200rpm

It is blazing fast.