SanDisk Ultra Plus 128GB SSD VS Samsung 840 Series Basic 120GB SSD

Which one you would pick?
SanDisk Ultra Plus 128GB SSD R:530/W:290 2.5" SATA-3 - Kotielektroniikka - CDON.COM
Samsung 840 Series Basic 120GB SSD R:530/W:130 2.5" SATA-3 - Kotielektroniikka - CDON.COM

Seems sandisk has better sequential write speed + 8gb. And in sandisk picture why does it seems that it dont have connection panel ? Does it have cover or something on it?

 

I would pick neither: that 120/128GB capacity is a HUGE turnoff for me. Not to mention that both models are scraping the bottom of the barrel of current SSD standards (with regards to quality of nand, controllers, channel utilization, nand chip interleaving, firmware, etc.)...

And I would not worry about the 8GB difference too much (it is not enough to 'save' this capacity segment for most normal workflows): maximum usable capacity is still only ~119GB for the 128GB model and if you're serious about performance over time; you would leave ~36GB as 'unallocated' capacity anyways - in addition to ~25GB free space for Windows and as much temp capacity as your programs need for optimum performance in your workflows.

Yeah, we're now down to ~55GB maximum real world usable capacity...

Between the two: I would choose the MLC SanDisk Ultra Plus over the TLC Samsung any day though.

But the prices are simply way to high for this level of non-performance to actually say 'buy' though.

This third/fourth tier performance level and low capacity SSD's are worth less than $50CDN max to me (if I could use them at all in my setups).


Hope some of this helps?

Good luck.

 

Using HDD to keep there movies + pictures. SSD would have OS and few games maxium. So I think that ~120GB would be enough for me.

 

Well, if the capacity is adequate (will you fill it to over 80%?) and the price seems fair to you, give it a try.

I have already stated that TLC based drives are last resort options for me...


If you do decide to go this route; please report back with your adventures, ty!

Good luck.

 

I use the Samsung 840 120GB in the X200. I have used the Crucial M4 256GB. No issues with the 840. I only use my Thinkpad X200 for my college assignments and the net. I rarely wrote to the drive. No difference in the user experience. If this is the use case scenario, I have no hesitation asking the OP to go for the 840. Have used it for 5 months with no anomalies, wonky behavior and the like. Rock solid in my opinion.

 

idiot101 - thanks for the input.

Good to hear that TLC can be an option in the right workloads.

Would you still buy it if a higher performing/better quality MLC version was the same price though?

Have you any experience with other SSD's to compare it to?

Just trying to build a complete picture for the OP...

Thanks in advance.

 

There are a few calculations online regarding how long it would take a TLC drive of a certain capacity to die. The data to be written on it is like over 10GB a day for about 5 years. I don't think flash quality is a concern. I chose this drive after trying to find posts of problems using the drive. They are few and far between. My concern is the firmware stability rather than the NAND flash process technology.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6459/samsung-ssd-840-testing-the-endurance-of-tlc-nand
http://uk.hardware.info/reviews/417...0-250gb-tlc-ssd-updated-with-final-conclusion

Anyway, my history with SSDs
Crucial M4 64GB
OCZ Vertex 2 60GB
Crucial M4 256GB

 

Okay, of your previous drives, the M4 256GB model is the only one of interest...

How does the 840 compare to that (performance-wise)?

I do think that TLC nand quality is a concern; they are just too new with too few samples in the real world to simply write off (at this time) this possible issue.

Also; the performance of TLC vs. MLC even at the small capacities is a possible issue too (which is why I am wondering if you can compare/contrast to the M4 256GB model).


...

 

Like I said, unless you run a benchmarking software, you will not realize the type of SSD under the hood. I get about the same boot times, shutdown times, application launch times, etc. I don't use large programs. I do my modeling stuff at the Uni.

I will take a technology that will put the SSD in my hands at a cheaper price barring any issues.

And Samsung would be sued by a whole host of organizations and lose their OEM contracts if their TLC tech fails (bad reputation). Adequate testing must have been done before putting them on the market. Right now, research is being done in increasing the longevity of the drives by making a few changes in the provisioning algorithms. I am interested to see where things will head.