SSD/HDD recommendations for battery/performance

Hi guys, so for the longest time I didn't know why my X220 9cell was only getting a max of 8 hrs while my friend's had 10+ until I realize my old Kingston SSDnow V was draining a lot of battery. As a student and an on-the-move guy, battery is fairly important. I've been researching multiple sites for the best SSD (or HDD hybrid) that's fast, yet power efficient. I'm hoping for at least 120gb and no more than $200 (may go higher if it's worth it). I can modify the drive (I did it to the SSDnow) so it does not have to be 7mm. I'm leaning towards the OCZ Vertex 3 (on sale, $170) but would like to hear from your experiences with the Vertex 3 or other drives as well like difference in battery life, BSODS or lockups, etc. I've looked at the Corsair Force GT as well as the Samsung Momentus XT 750gb, Samsung 470. (Note: I am not considering an msata + hdd option since it's more battery draw).

Thank you in advance!

 

If you want a BSOD-free experience then I'd say stay away from the SandForce controllers.

According to my own tests of idle power consumption with the same operating system image and the same tweaks/settings:

Intel 320 Series 300GB: 7W
Intel X25-E 64GB: 8W (I discarded this disk as the capacity is too small for me)
Crucial M4 512GB: 11W (I discarded this disk as I get BSOD upon stress writing)
Seagate 320GB HDD: 10W (I always ignore Seagate HDDs and there's no exception for this original disk)

Samsung 830 series also looks attractive (as Samsung has been known for its reliability), though I have no idea about the idle power consumption.

 

My T420s will get down to about 7W on idle with an Intel 320 SSD. The other alternative I would consider closely is the Samsung 830. Historically the Samsung SSDs have been quite power-efficient and the review here suggests that the 830 is no different. It also comes as 7mm thick, so no problem to fit into the X220.

John

 

I've been using Intel G1/G2 since forever now. Was idling 6.5W on my X200T and 5.5W on my 220s. Most of them are 7mm too. G3 should be similar. I've also found Samsung to be a good bet as John Ratsey described.

 

But the Samsung 830 Series is a very fast drive. Anandtech review reported very high power consumption, in contradiction against the official numbers. Also, users have found the temperature to be relatively high under the nightmare stress test, which is the 1QD 4kb random write over full span. Meanwhile, it is still difficult to figure out the true write amplification, which is suspected to be higher than other SSDs under stress. Perhaps there is a firmware bug.

Of course, it is a very nice drive for most users, under consumer-level usage.

 

Thank you:
-For that bit of info about Sandforce controllers
and
-For the wattage on Crucial M4
!!

 

It's quite likely that it does use more power when fully loaded - it's shifting a lot of data. I always look on the Tom's Hardware HD video playback test as a better means for comparing power consumption since it's a fixed data transfer rate for all the tests.

John

 

This was what I was concern about also. I checked out SSDreview.com (not sure how accurate these tests are). Does anyone have experience with the OCZ Vertex 3? Here's the comparison of various drives with data: OCZ Vertex 3 120GB 2.5 Inch / 2.06, Corsair Force GT 120GB 2.5 Inch / 1.2, Kingston SSDNow V 100 64GB 2.5 Inch / D100811a, Samsung 470 128GB 2.5 Inch / AXM0701Q - SSD Comparison - SSD Reviews, Data Sheets and Comparison - ssdreview.com

 

I see a big logo of "SandForce" clearly labelled on the controller chip. Good luck

 

I'll recommend what I always do if you are looking for long battery life and SSD performance (lower end) with the x220.

Just get the intel 310 and use the stock HDD. I know you weren't considering the combo... but...

I idle at 4.80-5.00 and get around 7 hours with the 6 cell on my normal days. I don't believe there is another msata or regular ssd out there that uses less power than the 310... idle or active.

I don't really understand how the HDD + msata uses more power? I have my HDD spin down and it uses nothing. If you are constantly accessing the HDD all day then yah it may, but most stuff runs off the msata. Something to consider, because frankly I'm loving it. Even my buddies with just SSD's only get around 5.5 - 6 hrs.

 

Any stats on the power consumption of mydigitalssd's 128gb msata? I was wondering whether there would be any difference in between using this versus the 310 80gb.

 

HDD spun down as opposed to ejected are not the same as far as consumption. I believe it's either due to the drive electronics only, or it's the drive electronics and the power to the interface.

 

How do you spin down your HDD?

 

My Toshiba 750gb uses .15W when it's spun down, that's hardly anything.

Set the idle timer in Power Manager.

 

That's about what I'm seeing, right around .10w. I'm using .25w with the SSD active and HDD spun down.

 

I went with the crucial M4 :

Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 128GB in x220 – modded to 7mm | Vivi The Mage

I did some reserach on SSD's, and which had the lowest power consumption, and this thing was pretty darn low..check out anandtech for power wattage usage.

 

Which msata are you using with the HDD? Is the Toshiba idling less than the typical Seagate Momentus drives?