Who makes the 64GB, 80GB, and 128GB SSD models sold with the X200/s/t on Lenovo.com?

I do apologize if this has been asked and answered, I made my best search on these forums to no avail. As the title implies, I am trying to determine what particular manufacturers/models are currently sold through Lenovo.com's X-Series SSD purchase options, especially with regards to the X200 Tablet. For instance, on the online store, the X200 Tablet has listed:

"64GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA [add $350.00]
128GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA [add $550.00]
{The prices representing an base upgrade over the 80GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm}"

The X200 and X200s has listed:

"64GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA [add $310.00]
128GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA [add $510.00]
Intel 80GB High-Performance Solid State Drive [add $810.00]
{The prices representing a base upgrade over a 160GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm}"

I found my way to the March 2009 - Version 353 "Personal Systems Reference" tabook but could only uncover, for the ThinkPad® X200 Tablet (7449), ThinkPad® X200 Tablet (7450), ThinkPad® X200 Tablet (7450) - December 2008, ThinkPad® X200 Tablet (7453) - Onsite, ThinkPad® X200s (7466) - TopSeller, ThinkPad® X200s (7469), ThinkPad® X200s (7470) - Onsite, ThinkPad® X200 (7454) - TopSeller, ThinkPad® X200 (7458) - December 2008, ThinkPad® X200 (7459) - Onsite, ThinkPad® X200 (7458) - Education (EasyServ), and ThinkPad® X200 (7459) - Education (Onsite):

"128GB SSD SATA 3.0Gb/s 1.8" (2.5" cover) 43N3406"​

Similarly, under the "ThinkPad® X200 Tablet, ThinkPad® X200s, X200 Accessories" sections, it is the only size offered:

"128GB SSD SATA 3.0Gb/s 1.8" (2.5" cover) 43N3406 ann 08/26/08"​

Strangely, the ThinkPad® X200 Tablet (7450) - December 2008, ThinkPad® X200s (7469), and ThinkPad® X200s (7470) - Onsite, also has listed towards the top:

"7450-8UU SL9400 1.86 2GB 12.1" WXGA LED Cam 80GB SSD DVD±RW Ultrabase ✥ Intel 530028 AT&T23 None Yes 8 Bus 32 Dec 08"​

Why doesn't this Tablet 80GB SSD option show up in the online store, and why doesn't this document mention the 64GB SSD at all? Even though I was more interested in the 64GB model, I still can't glean anything of value from the information I now have on the 128GB model (I could not find a part number for the 80GB drive). The parts number website brings back:

"ThinkPad 128GB Solid State Drive Worldwide 43N3406 41W0519"​

and Google is similarly opaque. I was really hoping to size up its worth based on the many benchmarks established for different SSD manufacturers/models, but even just knowing which are SLC/MLC would greatly aid making a decision.

Based on the above quoted prices and Newegg.com's inventory, my best guess for the 80GB model is Intel's X25-M (MLC), and although I can't remember where I read it (probably somewhere on this forum), Samsung's MCCOE64G8MPP-0VA00 (SLC) is the prime suspect for the 64GB option. I don't even know who to point at for the 128GB model, but if turns out to be some Samsung and/or SLC I'm not familiar with, I might be inclined to splurge on that.

I do have a PM out to jonlumpkin (scratch that; no PMs on this forum?), as it is his signature I am looking to turn into my reality , but this forum is clearly bubbling with wisdom, so anyone and everyone, please educate me!! And as it relates to his posts, he has up a comparison of mechanical vs. SSD performance, where he states the 64GB Samsung model being tested came from Lenovo in an X300, but its not clear if that holds for the X200/s/t, and it doesn't resolve the 80GB / 128GB mystery.

Another curiosity, why does the "Personal Systems Reference" document list the X200 Tablet model number as everything but the only available one to spec out online (7448CTO is the only one online, whereas there are four different ones mentioned in the document)? I assume those models target markets other than the public, but it still doesn't explain the one missing.

 

Samsung makes the 64/128GB (the 64GB used to be SLC but I think both are now MLC, they come in 1.8" and 2.5" forms but have the same specs) drives and Intel makes the 80GB (X25-M).

www.samsungssd.com - model list of their products.

 

Great, thanks for some insight! So what justifies the cost ($350 over the base 80GB hard drive, which might be worth ~$35 at retail, so an approximate total of $385) when one of Samsung's "old" 64GB SLC drives can be bought on Newegg.com for $175? That difference (~$210) seems excessive even if there is a premium built in for the convenience of buying an SSD straight from Lenovo. I might be answering my question with the new SSDs' stats taken from Samsung's website, so on top of everything else, could anyone weigh in on that?

General
256GB 128GB 64GB
Model 256GB MLC SSD 128GB MLC SSD 64GB MLC SSD
Interface SATA 3.0Gb/s SATA 3.0Gb/s SATA 3.0Gb/s
Performance
Host Transfer Rate 300MB/sec 300MB/sec 300MB/sec
Maximum Sequential Read Rate 220MB/s 220MB/s 220MB/s
Maximum Sequential Write Rate 200MB/s 200MB/s 120MB/s​

 

It doesn't justify the cost, heh. You should buy them (an SSD) yourself, especially since lenovo may have switched to all MLC.

 

Agreed w/ jaredy. It will always be more cost efficient to upgrade yourself.

 

You may need to buy some rubber rails for the SSD to slide it into the X200 drive compartment. The standard hard drives and the SSD's have different required rails and my X200 did comes with any of the rails for the SSD.

 

When I swapped in my 64GB SLC Samsung drive, I used the stock T61p rails that came with the laptop, they will still work, but the drive just fits in a bit tighter, and is harder to slide out. You DO have to pull pretty hard on the pull strap to get it to come out. I was thinking about sanding down the corners of the SDD's lid since it is a pretty thick lid. But I never take the drive out much, so I don't really care if it's a bit tighter. I can still get it out if I need. It's not like super tight or anything, just a little tighter is all

 

Well this definitely sounds doable, and the after-market prices on 64GB drives are especially enticing. I dug around for more information on these rubber rails being mentioned, and this thread has no shortage of information on how to procure the hardware and make the drive fit securely.

Besides the convenience (read:laziness) of not doing any of this extra installation, I am still tempted by Lenovo's 128GB option (Samsung PB22-J). Referring back to my post just previous to this one, Samsung is claiming a maximum sequential read rate of 220 MB/s and a maximum sequential write rate of 200 MB/s, which appears to be borne out by the Register Hardware's benchmarking of the otherwise identical 256GB model: they found an "average read speed of 203.7MB/s," an average write speed "176.2MB/s," and an average burst speed of "241.5 MB/s." And these are all on par or exceeding the number from their co-occuring test of Intel's 80GB X-25 M, which would cost me about the same as the Samsung after market.

I am not well-versed in comparability of different benchmarking tests (let alone those not occuring on the same hardware / at the same time), but this appears to blow away Samsung's 64GB SLC, which this thread reported as having a roughly parallel read/write rate somewhere just south of 100 MB/s. On top of that, the 128GB Samsung is only currently available through computer manufacturers, so I would either have to bear the cost or going fishing for other 128GB options on the open market. None of these seem to hold a candle to the Samsung's performance, and between Intel's fragmentation woes and trying to avoid Jmicron controllers, I'm inclined taking the expensively safe path to highest performance.

So, am I overthinking this way too much, juggling apples to oranges with the numbers, or missing economical but similarly high performing options out there? Does the 64GB SLC have unique qualities besides their read/write longevity? In the end, I can accept "a fool and his money are soon parted" just so long as the computer moves so fast I can't remember a thing! In any event, if I do pull the trigger on the fancy new Samsung, I will try putting up a thorough benchmark to help others weighing this specific choice be more informed.

Thanks all for the help.

 

Any Samsung or Intel SSD will offer far better performance than a conventional hard drive. They also offer this performance more reliably than other SSDs.

I believe Lenovo only stocks 1.8" SSDs. These offer the same performance, and a lower weight, than their 2.5" counterparts. I would assume they do this to simplify supply chain management (the x300/x301 [most likely the #1 user of SSDs], only supports 1.8" drives).

At present, both of the unnamed options are Samsung MLC drives. The Intel drive should be either an Intel x25-M or x18-M (same drive, one 2.5" one 1.8"). Both the Intel and Samsung SSDs use MLC flash chips (I belive the exact same ones in fact), and differ only in the controller. The Intel drives have a more aggressive controller that heavily employs write combining and parallel reads. As a result, it offers super read speeds, small random writes, and IOMeter scores. However, this controller can lead to internal fragmentation in the long term.

The Samsung SLC (my drive) is slightly better for random reads than the MLC drive. It also uses less power (more battery life), and is stable throughout the drive and at a wide variety of block sizes. To me these factors are more important than sequential read speeds, but your needs may differ. It is also quite price competitive right now ( <$200 from Newegg for the 64GB 1.8").

Samsung is also supposed to have a new MLC drive with a high speed controller (likely employs similar tricks as the x25-M) available soon. You may want to consider it as well. I believe the numbers you quoted above apply to this drive, but I don't think Lenovo is shipping it at present.

If you purchase a 2.5" SSD (most aftermarket ones are 2.5"), you will use the standard rubber rails. You only need a special adapter (FRU42W8019) if you purchase a 1.8" drive (converts Micro-SATA to SATA, and adapts voltage from 3.3 to 5.0).

I would generally recommend that you buy the drive aftermarket and install it yourself. Not only will this save you some money, but it is THE ONLY WAY to guarantee that you get the drive you want (OEMs can changes suppliers without notice). As always, do your homework before making such a substantial investment.

 

Perfect, that gets to the heart of my confusion. I was in fact thinking those 200+MB/s numbers were referential to what Lenovo is currently shipping for the 128GB/64GB options, but as it turns out, that is probably not the case. For the moment, the Lenovo representative's best information suggests it is the same generation MLC drives that can be had as SLC through Newegg. Given everything I knew coming into this about the differences between MLC/SLC, and what this forum has educated me to, I have no intention of paying roughly twice the price for arguably inferior technology.

That being said, your Newegg suggestion is exactly what I previously linked to that I had found to be so enticing. So if (at this point its really a matter of when) I do go ahead and order that particular drive (it is 1.8"), can Jon, or anyone that has similarly upgraded their tablet, confirm what else I will need to make this work? I found from another of your posts I will need a 1.8"-2.5" storage converter from IBM's Maintenance Parts website (search for part number 42W8019)? Does that obviate the need for the rubber rails, or will I need those or something similar to securely mount the drive? Without pictures, I couldn't tell if the coverter is merely for the voltage change or if it also functions as a housing of sorts (Edit: I found those picture in the aforementioned post, but I still can't answer my question from them). Should it affect what parts I will be getting with my machine, I now plan on ordering the cheapest 5400rpm 80GB hard drive option, but I will upgrade that if it makes my life easier sourcing the parts for the SSD.

 

The converter eliminates the need for the rubber rails. It sticks out a bit on the side, and will fill the gaps in the drive bay. Here is a picture of the 1.8" SSD in the converter in the x200 Tablet bay (notice all the empty space).



It is also far lighter than the rail adapters (42g for the 1.8" SSD, 8g for the converter). The SSD converter offers less padding than the rails, but this is not an issue because SSDs have no moving parts.

I recommend you get the cheapest drive from Lenovo (likely 80GB 5400RPM, but sometimes a "enhanced/elite" config with a 160GB drive will be cheaper), and just replace it with an SSD. You can either use the recovery discs, or perform a clean install on the SSD.

 

Unfortunately, the SSD market is shifting to MLC drives altogether, so you may have to stick with "inferior technology" sooner or later if you want the latest SSD drives

 

The "Enterprise" market is staying SLC. Unfortunately, these drives (e.g. the Intel x25-E) carry a substantial price premium over consumer grade MLC equivalents.

 

X25-E is server-grade SSD though, most consumer (all actually) SSDs are now MLC.

 

Just to follow up, I went ahead with an order for an X200 Tablet, and as far as the hard drive situation is concerned: I configured the machine for the cheapest 80GB 5400rpm magnetic drive, purchased Samsung's 64GB SLC SSD from Newegg, and ordered the newest storage adapter ( 42W8019) from IBM's Maintenance Parts website. All told, I saved roughly $75 over purchasing directly from Lenovo. Should anyone be similarly frustrated by Lenovo's lack of information on their SSDs, I have an open thread on their forum. I don't strongly fault them for following what is a de facto industry obscuration, I just hope they will eventually elevate their ordering process to a degree of completeness so evident in their computer design and engineering.

Thanks to Jon and everyone here for filling in this gap of information.