Solid State Drives, any recommendations?

[FurryGuy]

I have two computers running Windows 7 (one x32, the other x64) that I am looking at replacing the primary SATA boot HDs with SSDs, any recommendations as to brand(s) to consider or stay away from?

I'd be replacing a 500GB Western Digital in the x64 computer and an 80GB Seagate ST380013AS in the x32 machine.

Exact size crossover is not a concern since both drives currently use less than 50GB each as my primary boot drives. Getting a 128GB SSD for each machine would be more than enough space for my needs.

[gibyadahof]

about a month ago Newegg had a Corsair 120gb SSD for $119.00 + a $30 rebate offer from Corsair in the form of a credit card usable anywhere. my performance on the hard drive went from 5.9 to 7.5. best thing i ever bought. i use it just for the operating system, and store everything else (games, books etc on the old hard drives. can't wait for the prices to eventually come down from $1 a gb. you just have to keep looking til they go on sale. good luck.

[Sabertooth]

Originally Posted by FurryGuy

I have two computers running Windows 7 (one x32, the other x64) that I am looking at replacing the primary SATA boot HDs with SSDs, any recommendations as to brand(s) to consider or stay away from?

I'd be replacing a 500GB Western Digital in the x64 computer and an 80GB Seagate ST380013AS in the x32 machine.

Exact size crossover is not a concern since both drives currently use less than 50GB each as my primary boot drives. Getting a 128GB SSD for each machine would be more than enough space for my needs.

I have three SSD's...one in each of my 3 PC's, an OCZ Vertex 128GB, an OCZ Vertex 2 120GB, and a Samsung Series 830 256GB. I recently saw the Samsung on sale for $180 from Newegg. It's currently $119 for the 128GB and $199 for the $256GB. I didn't get a third OCZ, a Vertex 3, because there were too many negative reviews due to firmware issues initially and the Samsung is highly rated by Maximum PC which I read. Look for reads in the 520 MB/s range for the best ones this time around.

I've flashed the OCZ firmware several times and it's always a pain, you lose all data (so backup first), it doesn't work in AHCI mode so change that next, etc. That said the last update for the Vertex improved it's performance notably.

[FurryGuy]

Thanks for the feedback, guys, it is helpful to get real world experience, good and bad. Knowing tech specs to compare is definitely helpful. My PC tech experience/knowledge is definitely outdated.

Sabertooth, losing the partition data when updating the firmware is, for me, not that much of a problem because I do daily boot partition mirroring. While inconvenient I'd only lose any changes made since my last daily backup. If I can't remember what software changes I made up to 24 hours previously then any "losses" would not be a problem.

[Loonier]

Also very satisfied with my Samsung Series 830 128GB.
Very reliable out of the box.

[FurryGuy]

Originally Posted by Loonier

Also very satisfied with my Samsung Series 830 128GB.
Very reliable out of the box.

So far the Samsung 830 series seems to be the SSD that is "blowing up my skirt". Thanks for the info.

[Sabertooth]

Originally Posted by FurryGuy

Thanks for the feedback, guys, it is helpful to get real world experience, good and bad. Knowing tech specs to compare is definitely helpful. My PC tech experience/knowledge is definitely outdated.

Sabertooth, losing the partition data when updating the firmware is, for me, not that much of a problem because I do daily boot partition mirroring. While inconvenient I'd only lose any changes made since my last daily backup. If I can't remember what software changes I made up to 24 hours previously then any "losses" would not be a problem.

You wouldn't need to lose any data since you'd plan in advance of doing such an update...I would generate a full backup even if it didn't require it, in fact. I'm just saying the updates require more than just downloading a windows updater program and running it. That said the updates can be worthwhile. I think I got a 10% or better increase with the last Vertex update.

[FurryGuy]

I recently purchased one Samsung 830 128GB SSD and all I can say is WOW! Speed and rock-solid on that x32 Win 7 machine! I really need to replace the 500GB HD on my x64 machine now.