mbp 2010 13" + intel 320 vs. vertex 3

[tonystark21]

i was trying to review all the threads to get a definitive answer on the vertex 3 but it was tough.

i just bought an intel 320 120gb ssd for my 2010 mbp 13"... everything is working great. xbench scores are around 280.

however, i can't help but wonder how much faster the vertex 3 would feel on my system.. i know a mbp 2011 is needed to take full advantage of the vertex 3 but the drive is still faster than the intel 320. biggest advantage of intel 320 being stability and reliability.

bottom line, as of today, does the vertex 3 (with updated firmware) function properly on the mbp 2010??

 

[basesloaded190]

I think only the 2011 have SATA III connections which is necessary to take advantage of SSD's such as the Vertex 3. Your machine will run the Vertex 3 at SATA II speeds, so i would say that the cost and no real benefit i worth it in your situation

 

[tonystark21]

I think only the 2011 have SATA III connections which is necessary to take advantage of SSD's such as the Vertex 3. Your machine will run the Vertex 3 at SATA II speeds, so i would say that the cost and no real benefit i worth it in your situation

so are you saying stay with the intel? i understand that the vertex 3 will run at sata II speeds, but even at sata II speeds, won't the vertex 3 be faster than the intel 320? if that is the case, my decision to switch to the vertex 3 only depends on whether it will actually work with very few problems. on the ocz forum i've read about users having to switch firmware versions to get it to work and a case of a user insulating both the drive and the cable with aluminum foil, and grounding the foil to the case of the computer. suffice it to say, i'm not trying to do any such tweaks to make the vertex 3 work for me, especially since this particular user only achieves a xbench score of 333 on his mbp 2009, which i would think is a negligible difference than the 280 i'm getting with the intel 320.

 

[Weaselboy]

The Vertex 3 will work in your system, but I would be very surprised if you can "feel" any difference at all in speed. You might see some speed increase in synthetic benchmarks. I really don't see any good reason for you to do this.

 

[tonystark21]

The Vertex 3 will work in your system, but I would be very surprised if you can "feel" any difference at all in speed. You might see some speed increase in synthetic benchmarks. I really don't see any good reason for you to do this.

thanks for the response. i'm leaning towards sticking with the intel 320 and perhaps swapping it out for the 160gb version. but, basically if i want to spend $50 more for a negligible increase in speed (and am concerned about reliability), i may be better off getting the intel 510 120gb as opposed to the vertex 3?

 

[Weaselboy]

thanks for the response. i'm leaning towards sticking with the intel 320 and perhaps swapping it out for the 160gb version. but, basically if i want to spend $50 more for a negligible increase in speed (and am concerned about reliability), i may be better off getting the intel 510 120gb as opposed to the vertex 3?

Historically, Intel has had good reliability. Still with the Intel 510 you are paying extra for a SATA III SSD for what will likely be little or no benefit. I would just stick with a SATA II drive it I were you.

The only thing that might tilt me towards SATA III was if you plan to get a 2011 MBP soon and you could move the SATA III SSD to that and see the benefit of the faster interface.

 

[tonystark21]

Historically, Intel has had good reliability. Still with the Intel 510 you are paying extra for a SATA III SSD for what will likely be little or no benefit. I would just stick with a SATA II drive it I were you.

The only thing that might tilt me towards SATA III was if you plan to get a 2011 MBP soon and you could move the SATA III SSD to that and see the benefit of the faster interface.

makes sense. with the speeds i'm getting w/ my current config, i can't see the benefit of trying to sell my mbp for what $700-800 on craigslist and then having to pay another $300-400 to upgrade to a mbp 2011... with my current system, sometimes when using the mouse or the touchpad, i feel like the computer is moving faster than me... i can't even imagine how fast the vertex 3 is on a mbp 2011 with the faster processor, memory, and sata III connection... upgrade to 160 gb intel 320 seems like only logical change if any at all... thanks.