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SSD Buying Guide
- Thread starter Hellhammer
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This has probably been addressed in various posts so I apologise in advance (but I can't find anything specific).
I have an early 2011 MBP 13 inch with SATA II in the optical drive bay. I would rather put an SSD in the main bay but obviously the stock HDD doesn't have SMS, so the SSD would need to be in the optical bay.
I've been looking at the Crucial M4 64gb as a boot drive. Will this work, or be problematic with respect sleep mode (and closing the lid), unreliability, not booting properly etc.?
I have an early 2011 MBP 13 inch with SATA II in the optical drive bay. I would rather put an SSD in the main bay but obviously the stock HDD doesn't have SMS, so the SSD would need to be in the optical bay.
I've been looking at the Crucial M4 64gb as a boot drive. Will this work, or be problematic with respect sleep mode (and closing the lid), unreliability, not booting properly etc.?
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Finally gave in and bought a 128GB Crucial M4 SSD for my MacBook Pro (mid-2009, COre 2 Duo, 2.26 GHZ). Upgraded my RAM from 4 to 8 GB recently and it was as fast as ever. I hope this SSD upgrade helps
And a very useful thread! Thanks OP!
I have the same mbp as you and same SSD, definitely helps.
Hi all . Im buying a new MBP 17" MD311LL/A. It comes with 4gb ram. I was thinking about upgrading for 16 gb. However I gave up after read some people complaining. I decided to upgrade it to 8 GB ( 2 X 4GB) . Could you guys tell me what is the best brand/model for that? I mean, the one which doesn't have any kernel error or another bug. Corsair,Kingston,Crucial,etc...
Thank you guys so much.
Thank you guys so much.
Wrong thread for this - but that is fine - just so you know
Answer: All of those brands are great - any brand can have a bad egg
SSD for late 2006 MBP
Hi All,
I have a 2,2 model Macbook Pro that I purchased in April 2007. I haven't used it in just under a year. The battery is dead and it overheats like crazy. My primary computer is a 2010 iMac, but I need something to take on the road. I'm a photographer and I do a bit of video work, so I need to be able to run Lightroom, Photoshop, and occasionally Premiere. I'm upgrading the old MBP in hopes that it lasts me another few years.
So here's the question: do I go with something a bit more expensive and reliable like an intel 320 or 520 (They're actually about the same price right now so I figure a 6gb/s drive can be a bit more future-proof) OR a cheaper option like an OCZ Agility (crazy discount right now). Looking for a 120gb.
The third option is hybrid. I am planning on getting a rugged external firewire drive to bring with me on trips, and I am thinking that I may be able to save myself money by getting a hybrid drive with a balance of speed/capacity.
Thanks!
Dan
Hi All,
I have a 2,2 model Macbook Pro that I purchased in April 2007. I haven't used it in just under a year. The battery is dead and it overheats like crazy. My primary computer is a 2010 iMac, but I need something to take on the road. I'm a photographer and I do a bit of video work, so I need to be able to run Lightroom, Photoshop, and occasionally Premiere. I'm upgrading the old MBP in hopes that it lasts me another few years.
So here's the question: do I go with something a bit more expensive and reliable like an intel 320 or 520 (They're actually about the same price right now so I figure a 6gb/s drive can be a bit more future-proof) OR a cheaper option like an OCZ Agility (crazy discount right now). Looking for a 120gb.
The third option is hybrid. I am planning on getting a rugged external firewire drive to bring with me on trips, and I am thinking that I may be able to save myself money by getting a hybrid drive with a balance of speed/capacity.
Thanks!
Dan
You will ALWAYS "read some people complaining" on the internet. If you only did things the "some people didn't complain" about you would never do anything! I have 8Gb Crucial RAM in one of my MBPs and 16gb of Crucial in the other. Both machines have been 100% fine. Nothing wrong with having 16Gb though you may not need it. I am sure you will find some people complain about Crucial somewhere!
johnnyturbouk
macrumors 68000
ocz vertex 3 max oops as main drive
owc mercury extreme as 240gb ssd as 2nd hdd - no issues here!
flawless performance, since install
owc mercury extreme as 240gb ssd as 2nd hdd - no issues here!
flawless performance, since install
Occasionally, but it is rare IMO. As of now, it is the rarest of all current models on the market.
Google "Crucial RAM",
(http://www.google.com/search?aq=f&s...f.,cf.osb&fp=d14e097ca04c918&biw=1289&bih=850)
or "Crucial SSD",
(http://www.google.com/search?aq=f&s...f.,cf.osb&fp=d14e097ca04c918&biw=1289&bih=850)
and you will find that out of the thousands of reviews for their products, 90%+ are given 5 of 5 stars and about 98% are either 4 or 5. And that is regarding virtually every product they make. They are about as consistently positive as RAM and SSDs come as of right now. The C300 is a nice drive but it had nowhere near the positive feedback of the M4.
Hearing a few of my friends experiences with Crucial SSDs I'd steer clear and go for OCZ. One only stores Windows on his and his programs (data on a redundant drive) - 3rd one in 3 months, the other just had his second die after 9 months (everything on it).
I went for OCZ Vertex 3 in my desktop and it's fantastic. Worth the extra £20 over the OCZ Agility 3 (the speeds on vertex are more stable). Can't live without SSDs!
A question on read/write speeds vs. SATA interface.
I have a late 2006 MBP, with 1,5Gps SATA interface. Does this mean I should just go for a drive that reaches 250 MB/sec read/write speeds, and be happy, or should I also consider other aspects? (Apart from size of course)
I have a late 2006 MBP, with 1,5Gps SATA interface. Does this mean I should just go for a drive that reaches 250 MB/sec read/write speeds, and be happy, or should I also consider other aspects? (Apart from size of course)
That sucks to hear of that experience...I don't blame you for not wanting to go Crucial after seeing that first hand. I'm still hesitant to purchase any more SandForce drives myself at this point, especially OCZs with all of the reviews online about DOAs and service experiences. With that said, there are a lot of good stories on OCZs products and service as well. It seems that certain OCZ SSDs are fantastic, such as the 240 GB Vertex 3 Max Iops, where as some others are the opposite. And who knows, the SF drives may have gotten better since I last purchased one, as one maker can go from one extreme to the other in a matter of one release (some may say OWC as an example). And it does seem since the BSOD issue was resolved that the SF driven drives get better overall reviews than before it was fixed. If you do go OCZ, I agree the Vertex 3 is much better than the Agility as in real world performance, it is much faster. If pure reliability is the main objective, an older Intel X25 is probably the best way to go, especially if you can find a X25E.
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Your max is closer to 150 MB/s with SATA 1.5. If you plan to keep the computer for a while, I would try to find a clearance or factory refurb Intel X25M. If you plan to upgrade down the road, then I would look for a SATA 6.0 drive. As of now, your theoretical maximum is going to be around 150 MB/s for read and write, and so real-world tests will be slightly below that.
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owc mercury extreme 6g 240gb ssd and 16gb crucial 1.35 volt (cooler) ram in late 2011 17" MBP. runs perfectly and goes from cold start to browser open in 11 seconds.
I plan to keep it running as long as possible, as I'm impressed at how good it has been holding up, even after 6 years. No plan to upgrade in the future, as I will just get a MBA instead, if it dies. Thank you for your advice, I will be going for an X25M in that case.
Edit: They are harder to come by than I first anticipated.. And the prices aren't that cheaper then buying a 'modern' drive it seems.
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I plan to keep it running as long as possible, as I'm impressed at how good it has been holding up, even after 6 years. No plan to upgrade in the future, as I will just get a MBA instead, if it dies. Thank you for your advice, I will be going for an X25M in that case.
Edit: They are harder to come by than I first anticipated.. And the prices aren't that cheaper then buying a 'modern' drive it seems.
Yeah if it suits your needs keeping it is the way to go. I must have gotten lucky when I got my X25 on a close out...I just checked online and you are right...they ARE expensive! I imagine this is because the flash used in it is more expensive to make than modern ones and the Intel drives cost more. Still, I figured they would be down. Actually, it looks like most of the older SSDs are still higher than the newer ones. In that case, I would check out the Crucial M4 or Samsung 830. Intel makes great drives too but they are a bit more money. Of course there are other brands too which people seem to really like but those are my top picks, especially Crucial for us Mac people.
I am sure someone has a technical reason. But in my case I tested my new M4 before FV2 and then after. The one test I did before FV2 (new) was 270/501, after FV2 255/488 then after enabling Trim 270/488.
I only tested the one time new but several times in the other 2 states.
Tiger Direct has a 240 Gb OCZ Agility 3, SATA 3 for $229 and then there is a 20 or 30 dollar rebate on top of that.
I have a 15" Early 2011 running Lion...
Good deal? I don't need lots and lots of horsepower - I mostly use for word processing, making powerpoint slides and the like. However, I would like to speed up my access from the HD, as I frequently am running multiple programs at the same time. The big issues with me are - compatibility, and reliability. Thanks for any suggestions.
I have a 15" Early 2011 running Lion...
Good deal? I don't need lots and lots of horsepower - I mostly use for word processing, making powerpoint slides and the like. However, I would like to speed up my access from the HD, as I frequently am running multiple programs at the same time. The big issues with me are - compatibility, and reliability. Thanks for any suggestions.
Yes.
Opening/closing/saving programs will become a lot faster, and probably have a good effect on your day to day work, when this is what you do.
For that RAM is the logical choice, not an SSD.
I have become a Macbook Pro 5.3 (MB985) for free and already upgraded my memory to 8GB. The next step is that I replace the HDD with an SSD. But i read a lot of problems with SSD and the Mid 2009 Macbook Pro's.
The problems with negotiation speed on 1.5 Gbps instead of 3 Gbps and beachballing.
Are there SSD's that will work for sure with my Macbook Pro? I was considering to buy one of these:
Intel 320
Crucial M4
Samsung 830
So what should I do?
The problems with negotiation speed on 1.5 Gbps instead of 3 Gbps and beachballing.
Are there SSD's that will work for sure with my Macbook Pro? I was considering to buy one of these:
Intel 320
Crucial M4
Samsung 830
So what should I do?
Hey!
First of all, awesome thread. I'm willing to buy a SSD disk, and so far i have narrowed it to 3 candidates. Could you tell me with one is better considering the price factor? (note: these prices are for Spain and converted to dollars).
Thank you very much
EDIT: I have a MacBook Pro 13'' mid-2010
First of all, awesome thread. I'm willing to buy a SSD disk, and so far i have narrowed it to 3 candidates. Could you tell me with one is better considering the price factor? (note: these prices are for Spain and converted to dollars).
- Crucial M4 120GB: 213$
- Samsung 830 120GB: 231$
- Intel 520 120GB: 240$
Thank you very much
EDIT: I have a MacBook Pro 13'' mid-2010
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