Should I return MacBook Air for version with higher speed SSD?

gwelmarten · Apr 19, 2011

Hi
I have just read the article at (https://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/17/some-macbook-airs-shipping-with-faster-ssds/) which discusses that the MacBook Air's have just had an increased SSD speed with a new SSD chip made by Samsung instead of Toshiba. Just wondering for an opinion here - is this difference (40MB/s read speed) really going to make that much different to my MacBook Air, and if so, should I return it for a new version (since I only ordered yesterday, it arrived today and has the old SSD in it).

Thanks for the advise - just don't want to be without it for a couple of days if it will make no different.

Regards,

Sam

Hellhammer · Apr 19, 2011

It shouldn't make any difference in day to day usage. Besides, there is no guarantee that the replacement would have the faster SSD in it.

bcaslis · Apr 19, 2011

I've had both and in everyday use you will never see the difference. If your MBA works fine then I would not return it, you could get another with a problem. All these tech sites make it sound like some sort of upgrade, but it's simply Apple using a different supplier. The level of attention this is getting is ridiculous.

zap2 · Apr 19, 2011

I haven't seen any benchmarks for speed differences, but I imagine it will be minimal.

You've already made the best jump for storage, HDD to SDD, no reason to worry too much after that for something so small.

alecgold · Apr 19, 2011

Its nuts to trade it in, the benchmark will hardly be different and edc will absolutely not be different, and btw the 256GB is only available in toshiba iirc.

Hellhammer · Apr 19, 2011

alecgold said:
and btw the 256GB is only available in toshiba iirc.

There have been some 256GB Samsungs, though they are not as common as 128GBs.

DeusEx · Apr 19, 2011

Hellhammer said:
There have been some 256GB Samsungs, though they are not as common as 128GBs.

Does anyone know how common?

ZipZap · Apr 19, 2011

Take it back. Get a current build. You are spending a buch of money you should get one built within the last 2 to 4 weeks.

It will always bother you...so just do it. Make them open it in the store and check unless you can tell the build week from the serial number.

Cheffy Dave · Apr 19, 2011

bcaslis said:
I've had both and in everyday use you will never see the difference. If your MBA works fine then I would not return it, you could get another with a problem. All these tech sites make it sound like some sort of upgrade, but it's simply Apple using a different supplier. The level of attention this is getting is ridiculous.

A voice of reason!

Legion93 · Apr 19, 2011

Ugh, speed difference isn't noticeable in day to day tasks, it would make a difference in benchmarks though. I just don't understand people, Apple has released a new macbook with an additional USB port, quick lets all rush and get the new one - suddenly my macbook becomes "old"...

IngerMan · Apr 19, 2011

No worries on the TS SSD owners. The AJA test has a fault in it for Toshiba drive reading . Your drive is actually faster then you think. More like the Samsung Drive. See the actual AJA result, and the actual list in console from the same test. You have a faster drive then you think

bcaslis · Apr 19, 2011

alecgold said:
Its nuts to trade it in, the benchmark will hardly be different and edc will absolutely not be different, and btw the 256GB is only available in toshiba iirc.

That's not correct. I have a 256GB Samsung.

fs454 · Apr 19, 2011

You will not notice ANY difference, whatsoever.

Just upgrade your SSD blade a year or two down the road with a sandforce-equipped one.

cherry su · Apr 19, 2011

Mathematically speaking, if you don't have to pay a restocking fee and you can bear transferring data, then return and repurchase.

ZipZap · Apr 20, 2011

bcaslis said:
I've had both and in everyday use you will never see the difference. If your MBA works fine then I would not return it, you could get another with a problem. All these tech sites make it sound like some sort of upgrade, but it's simply Apple using a different supplier. The level of attention this is getting is ridiculous.

Cheffy Dave said:
A voice of reason!

If it has better specs its not just a supplier change. Also, worrying about possibly getting a new unit with a problem is a non-sensical argument.

ZipZap · Apr 20, 2011

Legion93 said:
Ugh, speed difference isn't noticeable in day to day tasks, it would make a difference in benchmarks though. I just don't understand people, Apple has released a new macbook with an additional USB port, quick lets all rush and get the new one - suddenly my macbook becomes "old"...

Your USB comment is just not on topic. If you are in your 14 day return, and they have a better spec'd SSD why they heck not insist on getting it. If you dont think its worth your time, fine but a sweeping statement based upon your opinion...well I just dont get people who make such broad statements.

bcaslis · Apr 20, 2011

ZipZap said:
If it has better specs its not just a supplier change. Also, worrying about possibly getting a new unit with a problem is a non-sensical argument.

Nonsense. Whenever you get a different supplier one will have "better" specs than the other. Of course a new unit could have problems like dead pixels or scratches than a perfectly good unit with a Toshiba SSD. Your arguments are more nonsensical recommending exchanging a unit for another when there is no guarantee that the new unit will even have a Samsung SSD and the performance isn't measurable in anything other than benchmarking software.

ZipZap · Apr 20, 2011

bcaslis said:
Nonsense. Whenever you get a different supplier one will have "better" specs than the other. Of course a new unit could have problems like dead pixels or scratches than a perfectly good unit with a Toshiba SSD. Your arguments are more nonsensical recommending exchanging a unit for another when there is no guarantee that the new unit will even have a Samsung SSD and the performance isn't measurable in anything other than benchmarking software.

Rubbish...you make it sound like most MBAs roll off the line defective. Just not true.

AND...Better specs are better specs, not a statistical anomoly.

Perhaps it wont be easy to know if the MBA has the newer chip. Must be able to tell when it was manufactured from the S/N Save bet anything made in March or later has it.

bcaslis · Apr 20, 2011

ZipZap said:
Rubbish...you make it sound like most MBAs roll off the line defective. Just not true.

AND...Better specs are better specs, not a statistical anomoly.

Perhaps it wont be easy to know if the MBA has the newer chip. Must be able to tell when it was manufactured from the S/N Save bet anything made in March or later has it.

This is a silly discussion. There is no evidence that the different SSD shows any visible real world performance difference, and lots of user input saying they can't see the difference (including myself). Additionally, there is no evidence that the Samsung SSD has replaced the Toshiba SSD. It simply appears to be another supplier. Would you recommend he look to see which screen supplier it is for his LCD and return it if it's not the "better" one?

Philflow · Apr 20, 2011

No need to return it. I've had both, differences in day to day usage are too small to notice.

In fact, your Toshiba based SSD may even be faster when it's in a used state. According to Techreport and other reviews the Samsung's performance can degrade quite quickly, while the Toshiba controller maintains performance well (Anandtech Kingston v+ 100 review).

Should I return MacBook Air for version with higher speed SSD?

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