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    SSD or Standard Hard Drive?

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by MikeRadio, Oct 28, 2008.

  1. MikeRadio

    MikeRadio Notebook Enthusiast

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    Using a Z Series which I think I am going to get over the TT....

    Can someone tell me if the 256 Gb SSD is really faster and better than the 320 GB (7200 rpm) standard drive?

    I have had little experience with SSDs...

    Thank you!

    Mike
     
    MikeRadio, Oct 28, 2008
    #1
  2. psyq321

    psyq321 Notebook Evangelist

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    I don't have experience with new Samsung 128 GB MLC, which is most likely used in Sony's 256 GB SSD offering (sandwitched together) - but it should be definitely way faster than a 7200 RPM laptop hard drive.

    I replaced WD Scorpio (7200 RPM) with Samsung SLC SSD in Vaio Z and oh boy - the difference is indeed noticeable.

    Maybe you should wait few weeks until first benchmarks appear on the Samsung MLC - I'd be particularly interested in:

    * Random write performance
    * Boot and application load times

    If Samsung managed to tweak their MLC design to be as fast as their SLC drives - than I think it is going to be really a good buy.

    However, if you wait approx. three more months, you'd be able to get 256 GB SSDs in one piece from Samsung, and they are supposed to be 2x faster than current 128 GB MLCs :)
     
    psyq321, Oct 28, 2008
    #2
  3. sonoritygenius

    sonoritygenius Goddess of Laptops

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    ^+1 wait for the new SLC 256gb SSDs :D

    I had the Z with 320gb 5400RPM and OMG the boot time was horrendously killing me!! Its fast and responsive AFTER the boot up but the initial boot (start up > desktop) I hated it! LOL so I was FLOORED when I was using my friend's MAC with SSD - the boot up was INSTANTANEOUS (almost) lol
     
    sonoritygenius, Oct 28, 2008
    #3
  4. pracola

    pracola Notebook Enthusiast

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    Intel 25-M (or similar) SSD FTW

    XXXXrpm HDD? pish :D
     
    pracola, Oct 28, 2008
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  5. MikeRadio

    MikeRadio Notebook Enthusiast

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    The Z seems to come now witht he 320 GB drive running 720 rpm not 5400... maybe that changed?

    I have a 5400 on my Dell and hate it .. never again!! too slow.

    Anyone know the lifespan of the SDD?? I am impressed with its speed and all but there is a limited read write.. anyone know in real life applicaiton how long until the entire thing is shot and I lose the data??

    Mike
     
    MikeRadio, Oct 28, 2008
    #5
  6. Sir Punk

    Sir Punk Notebook Deity

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    I am not sure how reliable these are with electromagnetic fields. I would be a little scared when taking it in certain places with high EF.
     
    Sir Punk, Oct 29, 2008
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  7. human668

    human668 Notebook Consultant

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    From some test result I've read, that 256GB SSD sony uses is about 1.5 - 2 times faster than 7K320.
     
    human668, Oct 29, 2008
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  8. rambler38762

    rambler38762 Notebook Geek

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    I use the Z21 with an internal 128GB MLC SSD and I can confirm that the boot-times are way faster than with a normal HD.

    With all my installed Software etc. it takes about 1 min with Vista to be able to open the Internet Explorer and start working. This is without any tweaking of the Start-Up procedures.

    I bet, I can even squeeze out another 15sec if I optimize my StartUp-Services.

    Rambler
     
    rambler38762, Oct 29, 2008
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  9. Phil

    Phil Retired

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    Actually SSDs aren't much faster than 7200rpm drives or 5400rpm drives in booting Vista.
    http://www.laptopmag.com/review/storage/intel-x25-m.aspx?page=5
     
    Phil, Oct 29, 2008
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  10. recca85

    recca85 Notebook Enthusiast

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    SSD should be quiet compared to standard hard drive. It should be silent.
     
    recca85, Oct 29, 2008
    #10