Any possibility of SSD prices coming down this spring?

I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on an hp dv3z but I really want the SSD...but it's still $300. (I would be willing to pay $200.) Does anyone have a crystal ball they can look into, and see whether that price point is a possibility this spring? (I'm researching what brand/model it is in addition, to see if it's worth it; I know you can swap out the regular HD and put in your own choice of SSD but hp says it voids the warranty and I know you can just swap them back out again and get tech support but I wanted to try and avoid that headache level).

P.S. HP just emailed me and said they have no information on the brand/model of SSD (if they don't who does?)

 

The warranty is void if you change the hard drive? Jeez! That's really stupid.

 

I'd beware of buying if changing your harddrive voided your warantee. Legally it shouldn't matter what you do to your product as long as you don't cause the damage. But the lawyer to convince them probably won't be worth it.

The reason they won't tell you is probably because they are using different oems and just shove in whatever they feel like (Whatever is cheapest). I would expect one of the low end drives because the high-end models are $300 alone, with mark-up they would be a hundred or two higher still.

Prices will fall. No one knows exact numbers, but they seem to be falling in price similar to other transitor based technologies, so about half the price 18 months later for the same performence/size option.

 

I beg to differ. Since the introduction of SSDs in OEM laptops about a year ago, most OEMs have been using Samsung drives. These aren't the fastest drives by a long shot, but they are quite reliable and certainly not low-end (that title is reserved for JMicron-based drives in my opinion). That's not to say that all OEMs use Samsung, but I do believe that the majority do.

To the OP, SSD prices will continue to fall as the year goes on. By how much, we really don't know. But just over a year ago you could get a Samsung second-generation SLC for $1000... now you can get one for $200.

 

I too am looking to move to SSD this spring - I can squeeze into an 80GB X25-M or 120GB OCZ Vertex, but only if the price is between $300-400CAD for either (and if I have that kinda cash).

EDIT: OK, I've heard about this Samsung SLC 64GB for $200, but for the life of me I haven't found it. What model am I looking for, and how does it compare to the X25-M or Vertex? How bad is the performance degredation?

 

You and me both, that $200 USD SLC drive is nowhere to be found in Canada. We can't even find 32GB SLC for that price.

 

If you guys in Canada can find adapters, you've got this drive available on Newegg.ca: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147056&Tpk=samsung 64gb. The performance is identical to the 2.5" counterpart, but the form factor and interface are not.

 

Or I could snag a 2.5" one off eBay for just a bit more. :3
And if I can ever wedge my optical drive out, I can sneak my 320GB WD back into my system and keep all my big files on that (I rarely use my BD-ROM)

 

A couple places for SSDs in Canada with great prices:
http://ncix.com/products/index.php?minorcatid=1275
http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/category/category_slc.asp?CatId=4147&srkey=ssd

NCIX had a 32GB SSD a while back for $69 on sale.

 

It's an Intel drive man... they are the only ones who make 80gb SSDs.

 

In the US, the Intel X25-M 80GB has gone as low as $350 USD, but CDN is weak and you would have to hope that whatever company has that special ships to Canada for a reasonable rate. The Samsung IMO is a better drive since SLC technology has proven reliability and their controllers are second to none for their price point. And it was actually $180 USD at geeks.com I think. The model is: MCCOE64G5MPP-0VA, and although the sequential speeds are lower than others, random speeds are much higher.

 

So THAT'S the part I'm looking for!
I'll be keeping an eye out for it once I have a handle on my finances.

 

im dying for an SSD, but cant justify the price right now. when will they be more reasonable?

 

btw my bad on the warranty issue...the voiding was because of installing Linux instead of Windows not an aftermarket HD.

 

THAT'S EVEN DUMBER!!!
They seriously voided your warranty for installing LINUX?

 

You could wait for a store sail on the SSD in order for its price to go down that much, but you could compare prices between retailers, and as for the warranty being void, I don't think you should mind that as long as you are certain your component is of good quality and it won't mess up your system...

 

NCIX price match