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    Add an mSATA for OS if I already have an SSD and HDD?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Oarsman05, Aug 21, 2014.

  1. Oarsman05

    Oarsman05 Newbie

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    I'm looking at a new laptop (a Sager NP8258-S), and while I've pretty much decided on most of the components, I'm unsure about an mSATA drive. I've read conflicting opinions on if I should add one to use as for boot/OS or if I should just get a larger regular SSD. If I add the mSATA I'd just use the regular SSD as a dedicated Steam/Origin drive, otherwise the games would share C: with the OS. I'm completely new to mSATA; any suggestions?

    Definitely getting storage:
    - 1TB 5400RPM (w/ 8GB SSD Memory) Seagate Hybrid 64MB Cache [SATA III - 6GB/s] (SKU - HDD092)
    - 512GB Samsung 840 Pro Series SSD [SSD2 - SATA III] (SKU - SSD089)

    mSATA options:
    120GB Crucial M500 mSATA SSD - Preconfigured as an OS Drive ( Operating System – Drive C: )
    120GB Samsung 840 EVO Series mSATA SSD - Preconfigured as an OS Drive ( Operating System – Drive C: )



    Rest of the specs, if relevant:
    - 15.6” FHD 16:9 LED Backlit Wide screen (1920x1080) Super Clear Matte Type Sager Screen (SKU - SSC005)
    - Sager - 4th Generation Intel® Haswell Core™ i7-4810MQ (2.8GHz - 3.8GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache) (SKU – SPU401)
    - FREE! - IC Diamond Thermal Compound - CPU + GPU
    - NVIDIA® GeForce™ GTX 880M (8.0GB) GDDR5 PCI-Express DX11 [User Upgradeable] (SKU – GPU02X)
    - COPPER COOLING UPGRADE - Extra Cooling Copper Heatsinks Applied to the Heatsink/Heatpipes (XPC Service - requires shipment to XOTIC PC: will add to build time)
    - 16GB DDR3 1600MHz [2x8GB] Dual Channel Memory (SKU - RAM04S)
    - 6X Blu-Ray Reader + 8X DVDRW/CDRW Super Multi Combo Drive (Sager) (SKU - ODD084)
    - No Operating System [Drivers & Utility Software Only (Windows 7 & 8.1)]
     
    Oarsman05, Aug 21, 2014
    #1
  2. tijo

    tijo Sacred Blame

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    mSATA basically behaves like any other SATA port. If it's a SATA 6 Gbps port, then I don't see why not.
     
    tijo, Aug 21, 2014
    #2
  3. Oarsman05

    Oarsman05 Newbie

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    Chat support on Xotic PC says they're running at the SATA III equivalent 6Gb/s.
     
    Oarsman05, Aug 21, 2014
    #3
  4. chukwe

    chukwe Notebook Evangelist

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    Instead of buying an mSATA, use the money for mSATA plus the money for 512GB SSD to buy a 1TB SSD. I think it makes more sense
     
    chukwe, Aug 21, 2014
    #4
  5. Oarsman05

    Oarsman05 Newbie

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    That's a bit more of a price jump than I'd like. Would the single larger drive give improved performance over the mSATA/SSD combo?
     
    Oarsman05, Aug 21, 2014
    #5
  6. HTWingNut

    HTWingNut Potato

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    If you get ANY SSD, get at least a 240-256GB drive. Typically the smaller drives don't have the performance of the larger versions. I would get a 256GB for mSATA for OS and at least a 512GB SSD for the 2.5". If that's too much for you then get the 512GB SSD and add an mSATA later when you can afford it.
     
    HTWingNut, Aug 22, 2014
    #6
    Bullrun likes this.
  7. Bullrun

    Bullrun Notebook Deity

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    The M500 240GB also suffers a performance hit. It's physical, 128GB die size and a loss of parallelism. In that model line the 480GB was the sweet spot.
     
    Bullrun, Aug 22, 2014
    #7
  8. JOSEA

    JOSEA NONE

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    OP nice machine, I would look into any possible issues with overheating when an mSATA drive is used from actual owners, I have seen posts about this for other models
     
    JOSEA, Aug 22, 2014
    #8
  9. Oarsman05

    Oarsman05 Newbie

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    I'm checking into it now. Not seeing anything for the Samsung model (the one I'm leaning towards at this point) but I will keep looking for a bit. If you have a link to somebody talking about it, please post it.
     
    Oarsman05, Aug 22, 2014
    #9
  10. Oarsman05

    Oarsman05 Newbie

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    It'd be $60 to go from the 120GB to the 250GB Samsung mSATA, so that's probably worth it. I decided to bump the main SSD from the Pro down to the regular Evo so I'll have a bit more flexibility.
     
    Oarsman05, Aug 22, 2014
    #10
  11. TomJGX

    TomJGX I HATE BGA!

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    Any reason for buying now? Maxwell/Tonga will be out soon so why not wait for them? The 880M is a massive turd...
     
    TomJGX, Aug 23, 2014
    #11
  12. Oarsman05

    Oarsman05 Newbie

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    My old laptop died and I need a replacement now. Waiting a few months is not an option.
     
    Oarsman05, Aug 24, 2014
    #12