Looking for a new SSD

[The Astroman]

Hey folks,

I'm looking for a new 7mm high SSD to replace an HDD in my Lenovo T420s. I've basically narrowed down the list to two choices:

• Crucial m4 SSD 256GB
• Samsung 840 Series 250GB

These fit my budget, and offer what I'm looking for: 250 GB of storage with fast speed. I will gladly take any recommendation for alternatives, but note that my system only supports SATA-II, i.e. 3 Gbit/s throughput.

I'm a bit wary of the Samsung since it is the first to use TLC NAND chips, which supposedly reduces reliability and speed (although they seem to have designed it very well). I have heard good feedback on the Crucial m4, so that's my first choice currently. Any thoughts on those? Thanks

 

[tech savvy]

Hey folks,

I'm looking for a new 7mm high SSD to replace an HDD in my Lenovo T420s. I've basically narrowed down the list to two choices:

• Crucial m4 SSD 256GB
• Samsung 840 Series 250GB

These fit my budget, and offer what I'm looking for: 250 GB of storage with fast speed. I will gladly take any recommendation for alternatives, but note that my system only supports SATA-II, i.e. 3 Gbit/s throughput.

I'm a bit wary of the Samsung since it is the first to use TLC NAND chips, which supposedly reduces reliability and speed (although they seem to have designed it very well). I have heard good feedback on the Crucial m4, so that's my first choice currently. Any thoughts on those? Thanks

SAMSUNG 840 all day. But, since your laptop only support SATA-II, you wont get the full speed that they offer (I believe), so it's kinda pointless to get the fastest one when you can't utilize all the speed.

 

[Aastii]

I wouldn't touch the 840 drives, their write times are abysmal. If you can find an 830 instead, go for it instead but the 840 is a dog.

I would take the Crucial drive, or even go for a G.Skill Phoenix:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231614

Either will be a much more rounded drive than the 840 is

 

[spirit]

I've got the Crucial drive, it's pretty fast. I've also used a SanDisk Extreme, also a fast drive.

 

[voyagerfan99]

If you have a little more room in your budget you could look into Intel 520 drives. They're excellent - I have a 120GB version myself.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167088

 

[tech savvy]

I wouldn't touch the 840 drives, their write times are abysmal. If you can find an 830 instead, go for it instead but the 840 is a dog.

I would take the Crucial drive, or even go for a G.Skill Phoenix:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231614

Either will be a much more rounded drive than the 840 is

According to this, the 840 is faster in 99.9% of the benches.

link- http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/678?vs=355 840 vs M4

I rather have faster reads then writes any day of the week.

 

[wolfeking]

I wouldn't touch the 840 drives, their write times are abysmal. If you can find an 830 instead, go for it instead but the 840 is a dog.

I would take the Crucial drive, or even go for a G.Skill Phoenix:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231614

Either will be a much more rounded drive than the 840 is

840 pro is the better drive. The normal 80 is no better than the sucktastic 830.

 

[Virssagòn]

Don't take the phoenix.
If you want fast write and read, go for the hyperX 3k from Kingston.
Anyway, read is a bit more important and you won't see difference in game,... only when you're copying a big file or something. Reading makes your pc to start very fast and lets programs open in a second. So also the Samsungs are great if you don't mind waiting when you're pasting big files. (It'll be still faster then an hdd though..)

 

[cwizardtx]

Keep in mind there are lot of 9mm drives and only a few 7mm drives. The ones you linked above look like 7mm as you've done your research. The Intel 520 series are also 7mm (remove the plastic black ring).

I highly recommend the Intel 520 series drives.

 

[The Astroman]

Thanks guys for the responses. I went for the Samsung 840 finally, along with an upgrade from 4GB to 8GB RAM, it's rocking my world!