Intel X25-M 80GB SSD

I would like to get one of these but the price is still quite high, around $380. Has anyone been following the price of these? If so, how fast is it dropping? Hypothetically, what would this cost in early June?

 

Good question.... I would be very interested in what others think seeing as how I would like to purchase one at that very same time.

I have been following prices recently and it was at $366 the other week with a $30 instant rebate on newegg...

 

Why not go with OCZ Vertex ? Latest firmware gives it very good boost in performance. There's an article on anandtech comparing both and OCZ definately gives Intel's offer a run for the money.

 

Prices are dropping fast my MLC 120gb year old SSD cost just over $600. OCZ drives with more than double the performance, quadruple in write speeds cost barely half that now.

 

I read the Anandtech article that you mentioned, well I think it was the one you mentioned. The author states multiple times that the controller manufacturer is small and untested and even with OCZ, the two cannot test nearly as well as Intel. So, that makes me a little worried. On the other hand, the prices are much, much better. I'll have to look into it a bit more. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.

 

The X25-M was over $500 last December on Newegg. It slowly dropped until the end of February when it leveled out at $360 or so. Then Intel released its new firmware a week or so ago and now its back up to $393 at the Egg.

I have no idea what it will cost in June, but I sure hope it gets below $300 soon!

 

The latest firmware triples the 4K write performance on the Vertex. The 60GB model for under $200 is a fantastic buy if you're not sure whether you want to put down $360 for an X-25M.

 

If they were the same price (and size, so the 60GB vs 80GB wouldn't matter), which would you choose? Why?

 

The Intels are better in latency and probably throughput as well. If they were the same size and price, they'd be a no brainer (there's a reason Intel is selling such small drives for so much money).

 

I broke down and bought one and am now impatiently waiting for it to arrive.

This will be my boot and programs drive with data on the 7200 spinner till the prices come down. I'm really curious to see what the impact to usage will be like.

 

It sounds like the Intel is better but decisions are usually based on price and performance. At what point does is the performance gain not worth the extra price? Where that point lies isn't always the same for everybody.

Plus, you have to factor what's most important.

Brand name?
Product age (ie out long enough for bugs to be worked out)?
etc

If you have enough money to not care about costs, then Intel is likely the best choice. It's been out longer (bugs should be close to being worked out), Intel isn't going anywhere, more people have it so should be easier to find help online in case you need to troubleshoot (for the time being).

Personally, I tend to look at price to performance when making decisions so I'd go with Vertex since I have limited funds but everyone has to decide what's most important for them. I don't need one so I'm waiting til this winter since I want a good SSD that's over 100GB and doesn't break the bank.

Based on what I've read though, I don't think you can go wrong with either.

 

If price was no factor: Intel

I have a Vertex myself but this is a no-brainer, if money was not a consideration I'd definitely have gotten the Intel.

That said, the Vertex is currently winning price/performance, which is why I bought it.

 

i got the x25m. its super fast. everything is like a click then , boom, you're done!
everything on your system is almost f aster than instant. its great.
i got mines for 250.00 USD. cant tell where though.*hush hush. dont ask.

 

Oh come on, you can't say that price and then not tell us where.

Oh, and thanks for everyone's advice and input. I don't need the SSD immediately, so I think I'll wait and see what happens to the prices of both the X25-M and Vertex.

 

I'm pretty sure that it will drop to 150-200 USD in a couple of months. Technology is moving pretty fast.
So I'd wait if I were you.
I on the other hand just thought my deal was sick for this time being. So I took a plunge at it!

 

I got it for $280 after MS Cashback. You just gotta be patient.

 

I'm not asking, but I'd bet it was Newegg open box.

 

Well, heres another thing too: The size of SSD is a big factor for newer models that is coming out later this year and years to come.
But the funny thing too is that firmware updates somehow has the power to make a SSD drive faster than the newer models.
IE: The intel X25-M is just as fast, if not, a pin hair slower than the X25-E. Why? We're looking at a firmware that somehow gives the M a bit of edge.
So really, the firmware can make SSD's faster than a company like intel make an entire new model (intel X-25T?) who knows...

 

And because a new firmware come out... Guess what? Prices WILL GO UP!

 

X25-M will never be as fast as the X25-E because it uses MLC as opposed to SLC.

 

In that they are both Intel, you're probably right, but SLC is not always faster than MLC, at least from what I've read. Anandtech found the X25-M was faster than the Samsung 64GB SLC (which is rebranded by OCZ and called Ultra Performance by Dell).

 

While it's not true generally, in this case it is. Comparing two lines from one company is different from comparing one line from two companies.

 

That's an apples to oranges comparison. Newer MLC drives can beat older SLC drives, sure, but newer SLC drives will beat newer MLC drive still. IE, X25-M vs. X25-E, or Indilinx based SLC (Super Talent Ultradrive LE, etc) vs. Indilinx based MLC (Super Talent Ultradrive ME, etc).