Need advice on SSD purchase for T410/T510

Hi all,

Thanks in advance for your help, as always!

I am considering to get a T510 (or T410) and adding a SSD myself. I am having a hard time to pick. Which one of the below should I go for?

1. Intel 160GB X25-M SSDSA2MH160G2C1 ($484 from buy.com)

2. Samsung 256GB (don't have a specific model yet)

My questions are:
1. Are they compatible with the new T410/T510 machines?
2. Which one is better in terms of performance and durability?
3. Which one is more cost effective? The ~$500 is the most I can afford to spend on such a drive. I don't think I need a lot of storage on board, as I have a 500GB external for backup - but more is always nice to have provided similar price and performance.

Thank you again for your help!!!!

 

I am pretty sure all SSD will work.
As long you get a newer SSD with Indilinx-, Intel-, Samsung- or Sandforce-controller, you'll be fine regarding performance.
Durability? well, how long are SSDs on the market? Time will show


Anyways, Newegg has this deal on an OCZ Vertex 128GB SSD this week:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...NEFL011910-_-SolidStateDisk-_-LN6A-_-20227395


This is an Indilinx-Controlled drive, and really fast.
Google for reiews

 

The T400/T500 have 2.5" drive bays. You can use pretty much any SATA drive. The T410s uses 1.8" drives, so options there are few.

The Intel drive is a very solid performer, but make sure you get a Gen 2 drive (SSDSA2MH160G2C1 is the Gen 2 part).

Personally, I'd go for an OCZ Vertex or Vertex Turbo drive. I have a Vertex Turbo in my Sony that will go into the W510 I have on order. It benches out a bit faster than the Intel. OCZ also has a pretty decent online community and offers firmware with some regularity.

 

Thank you~
The Newegg OCZ is a good deal, but 120GB is a little too small for me. I work in scientific research and I'd like to have quite some portion of my data with me all the time, although I do back them up to various different sources.

It seems a lot to ask, but would anyone happen to know deals for SSD near the ~160GB, or anything bigger around $500?
I am really grateful for your help!

 

I had a Intel G1 80GB and then I upgraded to a 160GB G2 drive a few months ago. They are great drives! You can get the Intel G2 drive from ZipZoomFly for $460 (that is where I got mine).

 

Newegg is your friend: http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=636&name=Solid-State-Disks

 

Thanks. I found this with the same SN as the Buy.com one.

Do you know how their customer support is? I had a return with Buy.com before and they readily email me a pre-pay UPS shipping label and gave me full refund in 3 days after receiving the item. Does ZipZoomFly have an as good return or support policy in case anything goes wrong with the drive?

Just to confirm...is 2.5" and SATA 3 compatible with these new T410/T510?

Thanks!

 

I would recommend you buy an SATA Ultrabay adapter and put a second hard drive in it. Then you can buy a cheap, high capacity mechanical drive for all your data. Of course this only makes sense if you don't need the optical drive.

 

I've thought about that option too, especially I'll end up with a mechanical drive from the default build once I put my 3rd party SSD in. But I kinda need the optical drive more than an immediate on-board backup (though, nice to have it available as a swap option).

Another reason I don't like to have the extra hardrive always on board is battery. I don't need to access the big pool of data as long as I have ~160-200GB on my SSD. So having a hardrive spinning there may potentially eat my battery when I'm on the go.

 

If 160GB is plenty for you, definitely choose the Intel X25-M 160GB - it has superior all-round performance, and has TRIM support. If you need more space, go for the 250GB Samsung. If you have insufficient storage space you will notice that far more than any incremental difference in speed (and you may not even notice any difference).

 

if you are going to use it for your operating system drive
there is no reason to buy anything but an intel g2
buying anything else for an OS disk would be a waste of money

 

Quite a misleading statement, IMHO. Most present SSD's, as long as they have sufficient storage space for your needs, will do just fine - many times faster and preferable to any HDD. I would personally choose one that has TRIM; that's all. I have never spent money better on any computer upgrade than on a 120GB OCZ SSD. That was 8 months ago. If I were to buy now, any of the recent SSD makes would do just fine. If availability, price and space are equal, go for the latest 160GB Intel, for sure. But if not, other options will be excellent, too. They are all amazing buys, if you are prepared to pay for them.

Whether any SSD is a waste of money over a HDD depends on your priorities.

 

Thanks guys. I've got the Intel X25-M 160GB from B&H (~$463 incl shipping). Hoping this and my newly ordered T510 would come around together, then I'll swap in the drive.

 

I'm with antskip on the pro-OCZ side of the house, but the Intel drive is still very fast. You could do worse and you won't be disappointed.

Now, if we can just get Lenovo to start shipping the T/W510's....

 

Shipping date on mine is 2/27. My sales rep is pretty helpful so far - like searching for coupons for me, making the laptop ship separately from other accessories that would come late etc.
If my experience is really good when the machine comes, I'll try to recommend the guy to here? Feel it'd be more convenient to have an actual person as a lead and hub to follow up on orders.