SSD for 2011 17" MBP?

[bniu]

I'm hunting around for a SATA III SSD for my 2011 17" MBP. The Crucial C300 256GB SSD sadly did not work, couldn't even get it to format. So I'm sending it back to Amazon. Are there any SSDs on the market that should work without issue? I'm guessing SATA II SSDs work without problems? Should I try OWC?


I'm also thinking of just sticking with the 750GB HDD for a while until the 500GB SSDs come down to the sub $500 price range...

Thanks for any help.

 

[MH01]

Vertex 3 seem to work well. After a few firmware updates this drive seems to perform really well in a MBP. You just need a PC to update the firmware. As for $500 500GB Sata 3 SSD drives... you are going to be waiting a very long time. and you will probably upgrade you MBP before then.

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

Intel's SSD's have been the most reliable and there aren't very many reports of problems in macs

OCZ Vertex 3 is one of the fastest out, still pretty decent reliability, but not quite as good as Intel

It's going to be a while before we see ~$1 /GB on SSD's since it's ~$2 /GB right now, and in some cases more.

 

[johnnyturbouk]

Intel's SSD's have been the most reliable and there aren't very many reports of problems in macs

OCZ Vertex 3 is one of the fastest out, still pretty decent reliability, but not quite as good as Intel

It's going to be a while before we see ~$1 /GB on SSD's since it's ~$2 /GB right now, and in some cases more.

aahem intel 510 reliable??? really??

Yes the G25 and 320 seem reliable, however, since the OP stipulated he was
looking to purchase a SATAIII SSD - the only intel sata-3 drive currently on the market is the 510 - and MROOGLE will show aplenty posts documenting intel 510 problems with MBP

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

aahem intel 510 reliable??? really??

Yes the G25 and 320 seem reliable, however, since the OP stipulated he was
looking to purchase a SATAIII SSD - the only intel sata-3 drive currently on the market is the 510 - and MROOGLE will show aplenty posts documenting intel 510 problems with MBP

haven't seen many posted problems with the 510's, and a quick search of the first 10 or so threads after searching "intel 510" and "intel 510 problems" didn't show any evidence either.

Also, if you actually look at the reviews and benchmarks, the 510 and 320 perform pretty similarly, 510 having an advantage in sequential write speeds, which is rather useless unless you are constantly copying huge files.

 

[DarwinOSX]

haven't seen many posted problems with the 510's, and a quick search of the first 10 or so threads after searching "intel 510" and "intel 510 problems" didn't show any evidence either.

Then your search skills need work. The 510 is problematic in Macs.

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

Then your search skills need work. The 510 is problematic in Macs.

perhaps it is.... i see one thread relating to intel 510 problems, and there are just as many people saying it worked just fine as those saying it caused problems.

but i guess that's just because i don't know how to use search

 

[bniu]

As for $500 500GB Sata 3 SSD drives... you are going to be waiting a very long time. and you will probably upgrade you MBP before then.

You think it'd be more than 2 years for $500 500GB SSD drives? I've got about a 4-5 year plan on using this 17" MBP. Right now I'm figuring that a 500GB SSD halfway through it's life cycle would be a worthwhile boost.

 

[xxBURT0Nxx]

what about an optibay? best of both worlds.

 

[bniu]

what about an optibay? best of both worlds.

not going there, too much work and I like having the Superdrive around.

So from what I'm hearing, SATA II SSD drives work fine in the 2011 17" MBP? If that's the case, I don't mind too much as 285/275 is fast enough for me. The main draw of an SSD is the durability factor for me.

 

[cherishzm]

I've been using 128GB Samsung 470 Series (PM810) OEM SSD for a couple months with no issues. I only paid $150 for it and am enjoying it! It's reasonably fast and has been reliable. I have it in obtibay and original 500GB for data storage.

 

[johnnyturbouk]

haven't seen many posted problems with the 510's, and a quick search of the first 10 or so threads after searching "intel 510" and "intel 510 problems" didn't show any evidence either.

Also, if you actually look at the reviews and benchmarks, the 510 and 320 perform pretty similarly, 510 having an advantage in sequential write speeds, which is rather useless unless you are constantly copying huge files.

here's a thread with over 200 replies - titled: 2011 Macbook Pro 13 - many beachballs with 510 SSD
MBP 2001 intel 510 problems

here are some more

what search where you using - bing!

 

[tafb]

I installed a OCZ 240GB Vertex 3 in my 2011 MBP 17 yesterday, and it is working great. I do a lot of photo and HD video editing and the MBP was beachballing all the time with the stock 750GB hard drive. A night and day difference with the SSD. Highly recommend the Vertex 3.

 

[Weaselboy]

aahem intel 510 reliable??? really??

Yes the G25 and 320 seem reliable, however, since the OP stipulated he was
looking to purchase a SATAIII SSD - the only intel sata-3 drive currently on the market is the 510 - and MROOGLE will show aplenty posts documenting intel 510 problems with MBP

Those posts seemed to stop in mid-April after the EFI update Apple released, so maybe that fixed things? You can search for "insert name ssd issues" and find problems with any SSD including the Vertex 3.

Also, reliability and compatibility are not the same thing, as you seem to imply.

 

[Weaselboy]

So from what I'm hearing, SATA II SSD drives work fine in the 2011 17" MBP? If that's the case, I don't mind too much as 285/275 is fast enough for me. The main draw of an SSD is the durability factor for me.

Yes they do, and users here seem to report fewer problems using a SATA II SSD rather than SATA III. Unless you are moving around a lot of very large files you are not likely to even notice the difference and you can save yourself some money.