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t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
My 120gb ssd just bit the dust. Received my base 15" yesterday and put the SSD in which was from my 2010 mbp into my new mac. Installed SL using the disc and everything was moving along great. Just a couple of hours ago, the system froze and I had to restart. Dreaded flashing folder and disk utility couldnt detect the ssd at all. I guess that's it right? 6 months is a little too quick isn't it?

I have my TM backups and the ssd is still under warranty but I just can't believe it went just like that. Any clues as to what had gone wrong?
 

un.titled

macrumors regular
Jan 2, 2011
156
0
Any clues as to what had gone wrong?

New technology. HDD's have been perfected through a large time scale. Eventually SSD's will be there. There seems to be a lot of defects with SSD's, considering some people have zero problems, and others go through 2-3.
 

awer25

macrumors 65816
Apr 30, 2011
1,100
327
Could it have been because of the system swap? It seems like it would be a big coincidence otherwise (i.e. works fine for 6 months, switch systems and it stops working).
 

t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
Could it have been because of the system swap? It seems like it would be a big coincidence otherwise (i.e. works fine for 6 months, switch systems and it stops working).

I was wondering if that was the case too but I went with the advice I read from here that you could just go ahead and install SL over the ssd from the previous mac. Maybe I shouldn't have, but I don't really know for sure at this stage. I'm getting a replacement which is the newer 115gb version this Saturday. Will do a clean install and see how it goes. I'm even wary of doing a migration from my TM now!
 

t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
Two of my Intel x25-Ms died the same way.

Thems the breaks, I suppose.

Caught me out of the blue it did, even if I'd been aware of instances as such.

New technology. HDD's have been perfected through a large time scale. Eventually SSD's will be there. There seems to be a lot of defects with SSD's, considering some people have zero problems, and others go through 2-3.

Here's hoping it's sooner rather than later. Ever since I popped in my factory 500gb hd, I haven't felt quite the same.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
Got my replacement OWC ssd (115gb) with latest firmware. Fingers crossed on this one. Got my scorpio black hd ready just in case.

Still disturbed by Super Sudden Death (SSD).
 

RainCityMacFan

macrumors 6502a
Jun 10, 2007
929
4
NC
Got my replacement OWC ssd (115gb) with latest firmware. Fingers crossed on this one. Got my scorpio black hd ready just in case.

Still disturbed by Super Sudden Death (SSD).

Haha nice.

But seriously, this post makes me worry as I just ordered an OWC Mercury 6G Extreme... I seriously hope it doesn't fail within six months, because as a student, I just can't have that kind of down time.
 

kevink2

macrumors 68000
Nov 2, 2008
1,842
294
I have my first SSD on order right now, though plan is to use it in my Mac Pro. Will transfer my existing boot drive over.

Hopefully swap won't be an issue. With 14GB, it should never be swapping. I just checked, and I was surprised that I have swap used on my laptop, with 8GB of RAM. With 1.77GB of inactive RAM. I wonder if some of that swap is from when my system went into hibernation the other day.
 

t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
Haha nice.

But seriously, this post makes me worry as I just ordered an OWC Mercury 6G Extreme... I seriously hope it doesn't fail within six months, because as a student, I just can't have that kind of down time.

All the best, mate. I think the same principles apply here, backup regularly. Cutting edge technology can cut both ways, so it seems.

I have my first SSD on order right now, though plan is to use it in my Mac Pro. Will transfer my existing boot drive over.

Hopefully swap won't be an issue. With 14GB, it should never be swapping. I just checked, and I was surprised that I have swap used on my laptop, with 8GB of RAM. With 1.77GB of inactive RAM. I wonder if some of that swap is from when my system went into hibernation the other day.

Which SSD will you be getting?
 

RainCityMacFan

macrumors 6502a
Jun 10, 2007
929
4
NC
Kind of ironically though since some of us are buying SSDs not only for their speed but for their touted reliability...

Damn, I guess I will be keeping my most important documents in cloud storage for now. And I think having an Optibay setup, where you keep your important documents in the HDD and applications only on the SSD should serve as a way to prevent complete data loss.
 

vincenz

macrumors 601
Oct 20, 2008
4,285
220
As of right now, it's probably best to choose the SSD manufacturer based on the one who offers the longest lifetime warranty.

I just bought an Intel 320 series 160 GB for the 5 year warranty alone.
 

t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
Speaking of which, I've been thinking of giving the samsung 470 a whirl.
 

andreiru

macrumors 6502
Apr 18, 2008
404
142
Kurgan, RF
The same symptoms here. SandForce SSD - OWC, 8 months into use freezes during OS installation and now gone completely.
 

t0rr3s

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 23, 2010
477
52
The same symptoms here. SandForce SSD - OWC, 8 months into use freezes during OS installation and now gone completely.

Very to sorry hear that mate. More than a little disconcerting.
 

akhbhaat

macrumors regular
Sep 30, 2010
127
0
I've said it before and I'll say it again: there's no truly compelling objective evidence that SSDs are currently more reliable than a conventional 5400 or 7200 rpm magnetic drive. People love to make assumptions about the inherent superiority of a component without any moving parts, but these assumptions ignore a lot of other fundamental issues (quality control, design, heat, etc).

In fact, I'd actually be inclined to argue to the contrary, given my own experiences, various studies I've read, and all of the anecdotal evidence that I've seen. However, you should be covered under the manufacturer's warranty, so this shouldn't amount to too much more than a nuisance.

Here's an interesting article on the subject:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ssd-reliability-failure-rate,2923.html

But seriously, this post makes me worry as I just ordered an OWC Mercury 6G Extreme... I seriously hope it doesn't fail within six months, because as a student, I just can't have that kind of down time.
Keep the magnetic on hand with OSX and all the necessary programs already installed. Stick to a regular backup regimen for all your more crucial data (e.g. schoolwork).

Do this, and your downtime will amount to less than 15 minutes.
 

Bobby Corwen

macrumors 68030
Jul 16, 2010
2,723
474
I hate to say this.

I really do...

But,

You should have went with Crucial.

(I really do hate saying I told you so)
 

Weaselboy

Moderator
Staff member
Jan 23, 2005
34,073
15,497
California
I've said it before and I'll say it again: there's no truly compelling objective evidence that SSDs are currently more reliable than a conventional 5400 or 7200 rpm magnetic drive. People love to make assumptions about the inherent superiority of a component without any moving parts, but these assumptions ignore a lot of other fundamental issues (quality control, design, heat, etc).

In fact, I'd actually be inclined to argue to the contrary, given my own experiences, various studies I've read, and all of the anecdotal evidence that I've seen. However, you should be covered under the manufacturer's warranty, so this shouldn't amount to too much more than a nuisance.

Here's an interesting article on the subject:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ssd-reliability-failure-rate,2923.html

Keep the magnetic on hand with OSX and all the necessary programs already installed. Stick to a regular backup regimen for all your more crucial data (e.g. schoolwork).

Do this, and your downtime will amount to less than 15 minutes.

Did you read the Tom's article you linked. It cites multiple studies that show SSDs ARE more reliable.
 
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