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Rev. A MBA with Runcore SSD upgrade

NC MacGuy said:
It's done and awesome!!

Boot went from 69 seconds HDD to 34 w. Runcore SSD.

MS Word 12 bounces, 18 seconds to 3 bounces, 3seconds.

Mail one bounce - instantaneous.

Gathering X Bench scores after a permissions repair/PRAM ZAP. Procedure went smooth as silk. Looks to have given some new legs to my dog Rev. A.:D

Pic's and proper write up forthcoming.
Click to expand...

It looks like it sucks horribly. An intell SSD boots in under 10 secs..
 
8767092 said:
Use this link to learn more about Bing cashback. It is a great way to save a few dollars on a RunCore SSD when visiting MyDigitalDiscount.com's eBay store.
Click to expand...

too bad they currently don't have the rev A SSD's on ebay. Will just have to wait until it's back in stock.

Edit: anyone know if SSD drive is lighter than stock HD? wondering if it will cut down on the MBA's weight or if it's negligible. Thanks!
 
cheapa55 said:
Edit: anyone know if SSD drive is lighter than stock HD? wondering if it will cut down on the MBA's weight or if it's negligible. Thanks!
Click to expand...

These HDDs are 1.8" long and 5mm thick -- they are tiny. Unless they are made of depleted uranium, I am guessing it would fall well into negligible given the mass of the rest of the laptop :) Apple doesn't have a different weight spec for HDD vs. SSD units.
 
I'm curious as to how this unit compares to the standard SSD Rev A drive.
Is it worth it in this case?
 
NC MacGuy said:
External Intel SSD through a USB connector? Okay...

The bootup time once the system is recognized is quite fast.
Click to expand...

Just out of curiosity how many really care about boot time? I have a Mac Mini that has not been rebooted . . . in like a month and my Macbook Air I just got has not been rebooted since the last system update, I just leave them on and close the lid when I'm done . . . even if I'm running the battery.

I only reboot my Macs after a system update . . . I never turn them off, they don't seem to need it . . .

-iGrant
 
iGrant said:
Just out of curiosity how many really care about boot time? I have a Mac Mini that has not been rebooted . . . in like a month and my Macbook Air I just got has not been rebooted since the last system update, I just leave them on and close the lid when I'm done . . . even if I'm running the battery.

I only reboot my Macs after a system update . . . I never turn them off, they don't seem to need it . . .

-iGrant
Click to expand...

Agreed... frankly I prefer if apple focused on performance when my system was up and not reduce the "boot times" which I rarely perform aside from updates that require it.
 
iGrant said:
Just out of curiosity how many really care about boot time? I have a Mac Mini that has not been rebooted . . . in like a month and my Macbook Air I just got has not been rebooted since the last system update, I just leave them on and close the lid when I'm done . . . even if I'm running the battery.

I only reboot my Macs after a system update . . . I never turn them off, they don't seem to need it . . .

-iGrant
Click to expand...

Durious said:
Agreed... frankly I prefer if apple focused on performance when my system was up and not reduce the "boot times" which I rarely perform aside from updates that require it.
Click to expand...

It's used as a benchmark only.
 
NC MacGuy,

Any update, X Bench results, etc? My drive arrives next Tuesday and I am trying to decide how excited I should be!

Also, do you have any issues with sleep/hibernate that users where having with these drives and previous firmware?
 
Having had disappointing results upgrading the original 80 Gb HDD with the Photofast 128 Gb v2 SSD last September, I just deciced to go ahead and order the Runcore 128 Gb, despite the potential sleep issues I had read about...

WOW, what a difference !!! :D

It is night and day...
The Photofast drive had definitely an edge over the original "iPod" drive, but was arguably SLOWER in some situations (a lot of spinning beach balls using Safari...)

The Runcore is just perfect, everything is incredibly responsive and I can see myself using my Rev A Macbook Air for many more years...

And most important, I have had (until now) absolutely no sleep issues whatsoever !!! It just works... :)

Living in Europe, I just bought my drive from this place last week (excellent service) :
http://www.memoryc.com/
Don't know if they had the last firmware drives in stock (they seem to be out of stock right now)

Check out the Xbench results for the Photofast SSD (last September) :

photofast.png


and the new Runcore SSD... :D

runcore.png
 
jtamac said:
NC MacGuy,

Any update, X Bench results, etc? My drive arrives next Tuesday and I am trying to decide how excited I should be!

Also, do you have any issues with sleep/hibernate that users where having with these drives and previous firmware?
Click to expand...

No issues at all with sleep or anything else. You should be very excited, the Runcore makes the Rev. A feel like a new machine. Almost up to Rev. B performance.

Here's an X Bench w. the SSD:
Disk Test 110.69
Sequential 78.36
Uncached Write 84.79 52.06 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 78.03 44.15 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 51.01 14.93 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 146.25 73.50 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Random 188.45
Uncached Write 78.43 8.30 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 182.09 58.29 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 1871.94 13.27 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 408.13 75.73 MB/sec [256K blocks]
 
WOW, those xbench scores are AMAZING!... just so you guys know, the stock 64gb SSD only scores a 57 overall... faster than the photofast a couple posts up, but not near what the runcore is pushing!... looks like it's time to look for a runcore!
 
coast1ja said:
WOW, those xbench scores are AMAZING!... just so you guys know, the stock 64gb SSD only scores a 57 overall... faster than the photofast a couple posts up, but not near what the runcore is pushing!... looks like it's time to look for a runcore!
Click to expand...

How much is the disk test overall, my wife has a Rev A and I was thinking about uping the disk drive on it

=========== (My Rev C) ===========

Disk Test 81.84
Sequential 65.85
Uncached Write 59.24 36.37 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 56.70 32.08 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 48.07 14.07 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 184.52 92.74 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Random 108.09
Uncached Write 52.80 5.59 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 65.46 20.96 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 1385.41 9.82 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 483.25 89.67 MB/sec [256K blocks]
 
Installation tips?

Hi all,

Just ordered mine from Mydigitaldiscount. I have had hard drive issues (original 80GB) so hopefully this replacement will prolong the usage of my Rev. A MBA. In anticipation of the Runcore arrival, I have been looking at installation guides in earlier posts (iFix, etc.). I have never replaced a HD in a notebook and am a bit apprehensive about the installation. Are there any tips/guides/cautions that those who have successfully installed the Runcore would want to share? Thanks.
 
Durious said:
How much is the disk test overall, my wife has a Rev A and I was thinking about uping the disk drive on it

=========== (My Rev C) ===========

Disk Test 81.84
Sequential 65.85
Uncached Write 59.24 36.37 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 56.70 32.08 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 48.07 14.07 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 184.52 92.74 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Random 108.09
Uncached Write 52.80 5.59 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 65.46 20.96 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 1385.41 9.82 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 483.25 89.67 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Click to expand...


57 is for disk test score... I had the 80gb HDD in it and that only scored a 28 on the disk test.
 
ltsching said:
Hi all,

Just ordered mine from Mydigitaldiscount. I have had hard drive issues (original 80GB) so hopefully this replacement will prolong the usage of my Rev. A MBA. In anticipation of the Runcore arrival, I have been looking at installation guides in earlier posts (iFix, etc.). I have never replaced a HD in a notebook and am a bit apprehensive about the installation. Are there any tips/guides/cautions that those who have successfully installed the Runcore would want to share? Thanks.
Click to expand...

I just followed the iFixit steps to replace mine... just make sure you do it on a light surface with plenty of space around it so you can just set the screws beside the holes they go it... some are different sizes, and it's hard to tell them apart. It doesn't take very long at all. I would also get some arctic silver (or other hight performance thermal compound) and replace the factory stuff on the CPU and video chip while you're in there... also not difficult, and it will keep it from turning the fan on full blast all the time!
 
The installation isn't too difficult. Just make sure you have a follow the instructions and make sure to keep all the screws separate by step and size.

Check this link for instructions on how to do it. This link for the screwdriver to do it with.

You can also look at the thread here for some additional information.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
I will also add that I'm really happy with what I've been seeing from RunCore support. :) It looks like they're improving very quickly.

Now.. get the price of that 256GB SSD down a bit and it'll be time for me to upgrade. :D
 
macrookie73 said:
looks like a gain of about an 1 1/2 hour on a full charge (original battery)
Click to expand...

That's an impressive gain on battery. :eek:

Wonder what kind of fairy dust they're applying :p as most of what I've read, an SSD is only a marginal battery gain over HDD.
 
With both SSDs I tested (Photofast & Runcore), the battery gain HAS been marginal.
There is no way I can top the 3~3.5 hour battery mark (browsing with wifi on) I always had on my Rev A, even with the CoolBook controller.

I think some people simply look at the (inaccurate) time estimate in the battery gauge and think there is a gain, instead of actually measuring it.
 
Plx32 said:
With both SSDs I tested (Photofast & Runcore), the battery gain HAS been marginal.
There is no way I can top the 3~3.5 hour battery mark (browsing with wifi on) I always had on my Rev A, even with the CoolBook controller.

I think some people simply look at the (inaccurate) time estimate in the battery gauge and think there is a gain, instead of actually measuring it.
Click to expand...

I agree. I switched to the stock 64gb samsung SSD and battery life might have risen about 20 minutes... definitely not more than that. Bottom line: don't upgrade for the battery life, upgrade for the speed!
 
ltsching said:
Hi all,

Just ordered mine from Mydigitaldiscount. I have had hard drive issues (original 80GB) so hopefully this replacement will prolong the usage of my Rev. A MBA. In anticipation of the Runcore arrival, I have been looking at installation guides in earlier posts (iFix, etc.). I have never replaced a HD in a notebook and am a bit apprehensive about the installation. Are there any tips/guides/cautions that those who have successfully installed the Runcore would want to share? Thanks.
Click to expand...

It's a fairly easy process if you can work a screwdriver, take your time and put everything back together the same way you took it apart.

Part One. Making Runcore a bootable OSX drive.

1) Restart MBA
2) Unpack Runcore drive.
Runcore 11.jpg
3) Attach drive to included PATA-USB enclosure. No need to button anything up at this time.
Runcore 21.jpg

3) Attach USB cable to MBA & Runcore USB enclosure. The LED should light and the Runcore SSD icon should appear on your desktop.
Runcore 31.jpg
4) Click on the external drive icon.
Runcore 41.jpg
5) Choose either Carbon Copy Cloner or Super Duper to transfer your data and make the SSD bootable. This is the easy way. Wait about an hour to an hour and a half for process to complete.
 

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