Transcend JetDrive 520 SSD upgrade for 2012 MBA Quick Review

[Tastannin]

Thought I'd share my quick review of the new Transcend JetDrive 520 SSD upgrade for the 2012 Macbook Airs that I posted in the original news thread about the new Transcend JetDrive line.

I just installed my JetDrive 520 in my 2012 11" MBA. I'm very pleased with it.

Very nice kit, well packaged. Included screwdrivers are pretty good quality & magnetized. The external enclosure is just sweet and FAST. Too bad I only have a 64GB OEM stick to put in it.

I benchmarked the OEM drive and the JetDrive with Blackmagic Disk Speed Test (5MB). The JetDrive was 48% faster than the OEM drive when writing, and 27% faster on reads. Pretty impressive improvement. The Blackmagic benchmark speeds are in line with Transcend's own ATTO/AJA benchmarks too.

A few thoughts:
- Like some have already said, when you first boot with the JetDrive, go to System Preferences, Startup Disk then select the JetDrive as your boot drive.
- Don't test/benchmark your JetDrive until Spotlight has finished indexing the new drive.
- If you have Dropbox (or other cloud storage) and have used Selective Sync (or its equivalent elsewhere), don't forget to turn on all folders - and don't test/benchmark until the sync has completed.
- The clear plastic cover for the JetDrive makes a great place for your screws when you are installing it.
- Wish the screwdrivers were easier to take out. My fingers are regular-sized.
- The JetDrive Toolbox app should be signed.
- Everytime I run the JetDrive Toolbox, why does it ask me to install the "helper" app? Where does that go? How do I use it?

Overall, I'm very glad I waited on upgrading my MBA's drive. I wasn't happy with what OWC was offering - Sandforce controller, quality control (see horror stories in that OWC thread elsewhere), price, etc.

TranscendInfo, thanks for coming out with this very reasonably priced kit, and not skimping on performance/quality! Now I'm a happy MBA camper!

FYI, TranscendInfo is an official company account, and they're being quite helpful in the original thread.

 

[flowrider]

My Review:

My Review of the Transcend JetDrive 520 480GB SSD in a 2012 11" MBA.

My Review also includes a comparison of the JetDrive with the OWC Aura Pro Drive.

I ordered the OWC Aura Pro Drive the day before the Transcend Drives were announced. Before I received the drive, I called OWC to see if they would price match, and the answer was no. So, I thought Shame on Me. OWC's pricing was $449. for a bare drive and $475. for one that included tools and an enclosure for the old SSD. (OWC's pricing has since been reduced to $398. and $419. respectively) I opted for the bare drive. I installed the drive, and as others have noticed, the vertical dimension of the circuit board the components are mounted on is a millimeter or 2 larger than the stock SSD. Others have cut the board, I didn't, I applied a little pressure and it snapped into place. OWCs installation video is, IMO, far better than the Transcend video. Once set up, the SSD seemed to work fine, for awhile, but less than a day later, the drive started giving me problems. I tried repairing it with both Disk utility and Tech Tool Pro, both to no avail. Two days later it happened again. I called OWC and asked for an RMA. They agreed but said I would have to pay a restocking fee and pay for return shipment. I challenged that, saying this was not a capricious return, that the unit was defective and I expected OWC to pay for shipping and refund the full amount. They agreed, and sent me a UPS label.

When ordering the Transcend JetDrive I was quoted a delivery time of from 2 to 4 weeks. The unit was shipped 3 days after the order was placed and I received it one day later, that's 4 days after order placement! The price of the JetDrive 480 GB SSD from Amazon was $350. + Sales Tax (OWC charges no tax in Arizona). If I could have waited longer, I could have bought it from my memory Supplier, Data Memory Systems and not paid Sales Tax, but Transcend has not yet supplied it's distributers with this product.

Upon receipt of the JetDrive, yesterday, the first thing that jumped out at me was the packaging. The OWC SSD came packed in an anti-static bag enclosed in a thin gauge blister packed piece of cardboard with blue printing. It looked the packaging used by Ace Combs. The Transcend packaging on the other hand was impressive. A heavy gauge white slide out box with a full color picture of the SSD. The box was multi layered and contained the drive, the enclosure for the OEM drive, and the tools necessary for installation. Each layer was a plastic bed with depressions sized to fit the associated parts. It also contained an instruction booklet and warranty information. The instructions are, IMHO, inadequate, and only two pages apply, the other 26 pages being written for other languages.

The tools worked very well, and installation was a breeze. the form factor of the circuit board is the same as apple's so no undue pressure was needed for installation. My old SSD fit into the supplied enclosure with no issues.

I then cloned the JetDrive using Tech Tool Pro from the external Hybrid Drive I had been using as the main drive for my MBA. I foolishly ordered my MBA with only the 64GB SSD.

No issues. Everything is working as expected. In terms of speed. I have not measured the speed, but it feels very snappy. I believe the OWC and Transcend drives to be equal here. Transcend even supplies software to enable Apple's Trim support, OWC does not. There is however, third party software that enables Trim, Trim Enabler. I use that anyway for the SSD I use in my Mac Pro.

In ending, I would urge anyone installing the JetDrive in a MBA to watch the OWC installation video, again, it is superior to the Transcend video, and will make things more understandable to you.

The JetDrive is by far the superior product, and as of right now is $69. cheaper than the OWC Aura Pro. When I bought the OWC product, it would have cost $125 more than the corresponding Transcend product.

That IMHO is Value.

Currently, Apple charges $500. to go from a 128GB SSD to a 512GB SSD in the MBA. So, $350. for a 480GB SSD AND you get to keep your old drive, you can't beat that.

Edit - The Transcend drive seems to run color than true OWC drive. When feeling the bottom of my MBA where the SSD is mounted, the area while warm, is not as warm as it was with the OWC unit.

Lou

Well, I ran BlackMagic this morning. The Transcend is one speedy drive. It's faster than the Samsung SSD mounted in an Apricorn Solo x2 in my 5,1 Mac Pro. The MBA is the first pict. The Mac Pro is the second pict.

Lou

 

[drsox]

I bought an OWC SSD for my 2011 MBA but resold it after a month. It ran very hot, didn't exact fit the space in the MBA and was (IMO) likely to be a problem. Maybe it's time to revisit this with a Transcend unit.

 

[jmazzamj]

Do you guys know of any review/comparison between the Trascend and the OWC? I have a 2012 13" and I am considering either upgrading my Mac or replacing the SSD.

 

[flowrider]

^^^^Read my review above.

Lou

 

[Idiotpathic]

Quick Warning

A word of warning to potential upgraders out there - opening the Air may be a little tricky. The tools are perfect for the job. But if you're an idiot (like me), if you're not careful, the MBA's bottom screws have a tendency to become stripped. I ended up stripping one of the screws and had to take my Air to the Apple Store. They ended up having to pry open the machine and replace the bottom panel along with the screws. It ended up being an out-of-warranty repair that was about $140.

And, after all that, I tried to open my case again - only to find another screw that was a little stubborn and of course, now stripped again.

I am frustrated at my own stupidity and have wasted so much time and money. Will have to unfortunately return my Transcend 520.

 

[flowrider]

^^^^The Apple repair folks got it open and replaced the bottom panel, and you had problems with the original and replacement panels? This is the first case, like yours, that I have heard about.

Since I put in an OWC drive before my Transcend SSD, I had my cover off and on twice (really three times since I ran it with only an external drive for a couple days) and no issues. This really surprises me

If you're careful and don't force anything, it should be a piece of cake. I've modified sort's of Macs over the years, and I'd rate this swap as being relatively easy. The only issue is having the proper tools.

Lou

 

[Idiotpathic]

^^^^The Apple repair folks got it open and replaced the bottom panel, and you had problems with the original and replacement panels? This is the first case, like yours, that I have heard about.

Since I put in an OWC drive before my Transcend SSD, I had my cover off and on twice (really three times since I ran it with only an external drive for a couple days) and no issues. This really surprises me

If you're careful and don't force anything, it should be a piece of cake. I've modified sort's of Macs over the years, and I'd rate this swap as being relatively easy. The only issue is having the proper tools.

Lou

Well, it was the screws that I really didn't handle correctly I think. Transcend supplies the perfect tool, the P5 - but it just felt like some of the screws were made of wax or something, stripping away with minimal pressure. The first time, definitely my fault. About 3-4 screws became too worn for me to remove. After the Apple repair, one of the replacement screws was already a little worn when I attempted to remove it. It almost immediately became unusable. It's incredibly frustrating because it's just the one screw! I'd like to think that I'm not oafish or heavy-handed, but this just might be the case.

 

[flowrider]

^^^^If that's the case, sounds like the Apple repair may be the cause. I'd go back to Apple and ask them to fix it under their nickel. And, oh by the way, can you please install this SSD while your at it?

Lou

 

[SmOgER]

Well, it was the screws that I really didn't handle correctly I think. Transcend supplies the perfect tool, the P5 - but it just felt like some of the screws were made of wax or something, stripping away with minimal pressure. The first time, definitely my fault. About 3-4 screws became too worn for me to remove. After the Apple repair, one of the replacement screws was already a little worn when I attempted to remove it. It almost immediately became unusable. It's incredibly frustrating because it's just the one screw! I'd like to think that I'm not oafish or heavy-handed, but this just might be the case.

Well maybe P5 screwdriver is worn out so it doesn't make enough contact?

 

[TranscendInfoLA]

Well maybe P5 screwdriver is worn out so it doesn't make enough contact?

The P5 screwdriver we provide is actually fairly robust. I have removed and installed numerous JetDrives with the same P5 and T5 with only the outer coating being worn. I have noticed that the screws are rather shallow, so unless you are putting a good amount of force onto the screw driver, you will more than likely pop it out of the screw and begin to strip it. It doesn't help that they also appear to be fairly soft as well. My advice? Press firmly onto the screwdriver and grip it from as low on the screw driver as you can to prevent an excess of torque.

 

[Idiotpathic]

Epilogue

Thanks for the above replies!

So I actually ended up keeping the drive, contemplating what I should do. (Plus, I was crazy busy with a cross-country move!) I finally decided to persevere and install it.

Today, I took the MBA to the Apple Store to have them replace the stripped screw. They ended up replacing a few more, and I took it back home and tried to open the case again. I tried to make sure that I placed the P5 screwdriver perpendicular to the screws and it worked - except for 2 of them! I then had to take it back to the Apple Store again (visit number 4!) to get the screws fixed/replaced. I brought the JetDrive along as well and wanted to see if they could install it or if I could install it in the store myself.

When the tech brought by MBA back, he could only replace one of the screws, saying that the last screw had to be ordered. He then asked to see the tool I was using and upon inspection, he said that it looked like it was worn a bit, possibly explaining my difficulty.

By this time, I really didn't want to leave the store without opening the thing up and installing it then and there. Initially, the tech told me it wasn't policy and that he really did not recommend me opening it up in the store. But I guess sensing my frustration, he went to the back to ask around. When he came back, he pointed to a corner of the store I could use to avoid electrostatic discharge from other customers bumping into me and handed me a disposable ESD wrist strap. The best part was that he also loosened all the screws for me!

After all that, JetDrive installed! Maybe it was the screwdriver (at least the one that I had) or it was just my own ability, but it was truthfully a frustrating experience. Perhaps I should have called Transcend earlier or have been a little more insistent at the Apple Store initially. Maybe it could have been a much smoother process.

 

[flowrider]

^^^^Glad you got er done

Lou