M17x ssd help

Guys I'm about to get my first ssd and I'm not sure which one to get but ive been looking at this one Newegg.com - Intel 510 Series (Elm Crest) SSDSC2MH120A2K5 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) will it fit in my laptop and are there any better choices? any suggestions are welcomed

 

that one is good dude, not the fastest but its reliable, i just bought one cause ocz have loads of issues at the moment

 

I have both Intel 510 120gb and Crucial M4 256gb in my R3. They both have been working perfectly since day one and no issue encountered so far. They are all fairly reliable and prices are about the same for the comparable models, with the 510 slightly more expensive. Of the three major SATA-III SSDs, the OCZ Vertex 3 on paper has the highest burst speed, but according to some there might be compatibility issues (which can be solved but are still issues to be noted, and can cause quite a headache if you're not very tech-savvy). Imo Intel 510 has the best driver support and has a very handy Intel SSD Toolbox app to monitor and maintain your Intel SSDs. The Crucial M4 is the cheapest of the three but still offers a balanced package between price, speed, and reliability.

 

It all depends on the way you are about your machine. Do you want a consistent reliability or are you trying to milk every bit of performance out of it?

I am a speed freak and want to milk the performance. So, I went with the Vertex 3 (before the MAX IOPS versions were announced). I've had to make the registry tweak and apply a firmware update to get it running smoothly but am one of those that likes tinkering with the machine to get it setup just right. If you go with a Vertex 3, MAX IOPS is the way to go.

If you want a product that works out of the box with a minimal amount of tinkering, I would say the Intel 510 pops up to the top of the list. I am a bit concerned as Intel is having problems with the 320 and I read another report about a problem in another SSD line. It seems this generation of SSD products from Intel has been uncharacteristically having some issues.

If you want a combination of value and reliability with slightly slower performance then the above two, the Crucial M4 is worth mentioning.

 

may i ask whats iop?

 

Input/Output Operations per Second. If you would like to know more reference this link. IOPS

I recommend the Intel 510 that you are looking at, I did a clean install with it several days ago and it has worked like a charm since. Absolutely zero issues with the drive itself for me. It is lightning fast; my R3 boots up in less than 15 seconds.

 

Just installed the Intel 510 last night and it works like a charm. 18 second boot up time. This would be a excellent choice. Intel from what I have read has the best driver support and ease of use.

 

thanks i decided on the m4 for the faster random access from what ive read the sequential isnt as necessary

 

What do you guys who own an 120 GB SSD do regarding games? Obviously you use the SSD for windows and apps but then do you install ALL your games on the SSD or none or some, I use mostly steam even though I have some other games as well, if I was to install Steam games I couldn't really split them between two drives and I would like to have the SSD for games as well as I think it will boost the speed of gameplay a bit. Well loading of the maps and stuff anyway.

 

I only think a SSD will boost load times. I use my other HDD for games.

 

I was thinking of using the ssd only for windows and apps and then getting a hybrid seagate drive for games.

 

You can use the SSD for your most played games. It boosts the load times. I have a 120GB SSD for OS, applications and most played games. You can use Steam games across multiple hard drives. Reference this link. Miscellaneous Tutorials

 

That actually solved one of my concerns, now I am wondering if I should get a MomentusXT drive or just a regular 7200 rpm drive, or maybe a velociraptor 10.000 rpm . The thing is that I don't know if the MomentusXT will still take advantage of the 4GB NAND if it has no OS on it. I will have to research that.