Need Help With A SSD Decision 2010 17in MBP

[KBS756]

Hey I know this has got to have been asked a ton of times, but I've been searching and only picking up fragments of what I would need to make an informed decision so I would appreciate it if someone could help me make an informed decision.

I have a 2010 17 inch Macbook Pro 2.66 i7 with 8 GB RAM

I am currently looking to buy something like the OWC data doubler a new HDD and a SSD since I will be needing the space as well as wanting the speed of the SSD. Removing the optical drive is no issue since i rarely use it maybe 3 times since I got my computer.

So I had a couple questions.

First if I wanted a SSD with a size range around the 256-240 GB mark what would be the best available currently and in the near future (meaning within the next month or so) Noticed some posts about a OCZ Vertex 3 and a Intel 510 Series

I've been browsing and noticing that some people are having hibernation issues with some drives even though it doesnt seem like a big issue. Which drives have this issue and which dont

Also I was considerin gettin a 7200 RPM samsung 640 GB hdd to place in the Optical Bay does anyone know if there are any reliability issues http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152237

I was wondering would it be possible to unmount the drive when not needed through disk utility to conserve battery life

Also are there any special steps in installing an SSD or would the normal procedure when installing a new hard drive hold true.

Any help would greatly be appreciated thanks

When spending money like this I'd like to feel confident I have made the right decision

Thanks in advance for any help

 

[KBS756]

If anyone can help me make a good decision please

 

[KBS756]

Also In addition was wondering if anyone can explain what IOPS measures and how it effects real world performance

 

[tslewis]

Also In addition was wondering if anyone can explain what IOPS measures and how it effects real world performance

It sounds like u would void ur warranty and apple care if took out the optical and stuck a non stock drive in there

 

[KBS756]

If i was able to replace the optical drive for service it wouldnt make a difference for apple care would it??

 

[KBS756]

still looking for some helpful opinions thx

 

[KBS756]

Noone feeling like helpin me out here?

 

[DHagan4755]

I did a lot of reading about SSDs before taking the plunge — since they are expensive. I ended up going with the OWC SSD. I installed it into my 2009 17" MacBook Pro. It makes a huge difference. I didn't want to scrap the optical drive for another drive so I can't help you there. I have the deep sleep issue with the drive I just remember to plug-in when I get the warning. I wrote to OWC & they said they are working on a firmware fix.

 

[KBS756]

I did a lot of reading about SSDs before taking the plunge — since they are expensive. I ended up going with the OWC SSD. I installed it into my 2009 17" MacBook Pro. It makes a huge difference. I didn't want to scrap the optical drive for another drive so I can't help you there. I have the deep sleep issue with the drive I just remember to plug-in when I get the warning. I wrote to OWC & they said they are working on a firmware fix.

Any issues with the OWC other than the sleep issue? would u know which drives arent effected by this sleep issue?

 

[KBS756]

I really hate to bump my posts but I would really love some helpful insight thanks

 

[bugout]

The OWC or OCZ Vertex 2 are your best bets.

 

[AlvinNguyen]

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I'm in the same boat and I just don't know if I feel good about throwing out my optical drive and voiding the warranty looks like I might just do 128Gb SSD and then everything else on a 1tb external

 

[jimithing]

Any issues with the OWC other than the sleep issue? would u know which drives arent effected by this sleep issue?

no DO NOT BUY AN OCZ!! sure some people on here have them and like them but they have the best chance at failure. they often come broken or break in a month or a week, do not buy one. and to answer your question about which ones do not have ANY problems including sleep, the intel x25m does not have any problems and is THE FASTEST on the market right now. dont listen to people who say NO THE CRUCIAL OR OWC HAS FASTER WRITE/READ SPEEDS. those dont make a difference AT ALL you need to look at a 4-8k random write speeds which NO MANUFACTURER really post except INTEL but in many tests I have read INTEL has the fastes 8k random write speeds in the 60-70 range where the owc is in the 20 range... meaning it is 3 times faster in day to day use.... those uses being boot time, opening apps and such.. the only time sustained write and read speeds matter is video encoding... which doesnt make a difference since you can walk away and let it encode... who cares if the owc does it in 3 mins faster than the intel... the intel is usuably faster in 90% of your computer uses... dont believe the hype , buy intel

 

[KBS756]

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I'm in the same boat and I just don't know if I feel good about throwing out my optical drive and voiding the warranty looks like I might just do 128Gb SSD and then everything else on a 1tb external

Doesnt it not have an effect on the warranty if you return your superdrive to its original place in a time of warranty service?

 

[jimithing]

Doesnt it not have an effect on the warranty if you return your superdrive to its original place in a time of warranty service?

i have never heard that it voids your warranty if you do this... and IF it does then yea obviously if you replace the optical than they wont know jack... watch some youtube videos on optibay installs.. you can see that if you replaced the optical drive there is no way they will be able to tell you ever took it out...

and I know for a fact putting an SSD in your HDD place doesnt void the warranty so I dunno why replacing the ODD with SSD or HDD would effect that.. .I would think it would just make it so they wont fix the ODD... obviously..

 

[KBS756]

no DO NOT BUY AN OCZ!! sure some people on here have them and like them but they have the best chance at failure. they often come broken or break in a month or a week, do not buy one. and to answer your question about which ones do not have ANY problems including sleep, the intel x25m does not have any problems and is THE FASTEST on the market right now. dont listen to people who say NO THE CRUCIAL OR OWC HAS FASTER WRITE/READ SPEEDS. those dont make a difference AT ALL you need to look at a 4-8k random write speeds which NO MANUFACTURER really post except INTEL but in many tests I have read INTEL has the fastes 8k random write speeds in the 60-70 range where the owc is in the 20 range... meaning it is 3 times faster in day to day use.... those uses being boot time, opening apps and such.. the only time sustained write and read speeds matter is video encoding... which doesnt make a difference since you can walk away and let it encode... who cares if the owc does it in 3 mins faster than the intel... the intel is usuably faster in 90% of your computer uses... dont believe the hype , buy intel

Thanks for the answer

Question about the Intel's then

would the 510 Series be an extention of the x25m? The ones that are coming out really soon?

I think an x25m doesnt come in 240ish GB and i sorta want to have that kinda space on my HDD because without my home folder my system apps and resources folders currently are over 150 GB

Is intels reliability all that much better than the other brands?

Also would operating one of their drives without TRIM do all that much damage like some people seem to be claiming?

OSX 10.7 is supposed to have TRIM so it would also be temporary so till then it wouldnt cause any serious damage right?

Thanks again

I really appreciate the answer

 

[axu539]

Thanks for the answer

Question about the Intel's then

would the 510 Series be an extention of the x25m? The ones that are coming out really soon?

I think an x25m doesnt come in 240ish GB and i sorta want to have that kinda space on my HDD because without my home folder my system apps and resources folders currently are over 150 GB

Is intels reliability all that much better than the other brands?

Also would operating one of their drives without TRIM do all that much damage like some people seem to be claiming?

OSX 10.7 is supposed to have TRIM so it would also be temporary so till then it wouldnt cause any serious damage right?

Thanks again

I really appreciate the answer

If you get an Intel, Sandforce, or even possibly Toshiba, lack of TRIM is negligible. All 3 companies have firmware level garbage collection that handles the drives fairly well. So, whether or not Lion included TRIM was really not an issue, except for cheaper, crappier SSDs. the 510 series I believe will have some decently large capacities, and will be significantly faster than the X25's.

 

[KBS756]

If you get an Intel, Sandforce, or even possibly Toshiba, lack of TRIM is negligible. All 3 companies have firmware level garbage collection that handles the drives fairly well. So, whether or not Lion included TRIM was really not an issue, except for cheaper, crappier SSDs. the 510 series I believe will have some decently large capacities, and will be significantly faster than the X25's.

Thanks I appreciate the help

I think im going to try out the 510 series if early tests hold up once they come out

would there be an issue about where I place the drive? in the ODD or the HDD bay?