[Question] Solid State Hard Drives

[Chatmaster]

Hi all, need some advice.

I am far from a hardware expert, anyone on here ever bought a SSD for their notebook? If so I would like to know what you think of it? I am seriously considering buying a few for my Notebooks at the office.

[twinscythe12332]

I haven't bought any, but I can probably find you information on makes, models and expected read/write times vs standard rotating disk hard drives.
it's a tough call on whether to go for it or not, I will be honest. I've seen a few benchmarks that have sayed yes and no to solid state.

this one by computerworld basically said that it wasn't worth it: read here
whereas this one says they're going miles ahead: read here

my personal opinion is that solid state would be used better in read applications rather than write applications. it has shown the tendecy to be a bit crap in the latter. but a few of the benchmarks i have seen that draw graphs have shown that it is consistent. there isn't a jagged graph, it's a constant line.

[insulin]

It is a good technology.

This I think you will benefit from these drives. I have a 32 GB installed in my notebook and it is running like a dream. However there is an issue with latency but it’s not crippling. And the problem is with the SATA controller on the notebook and not the drive. I had it for 3 months now and no problems. However I recommend you set up two notebooks with these drives and tests it for your needs before a mass upgrade of all your notebooks. They are expensive! But they do eliminate moving parts that is the biggest enemy of notebooks so I recommend a test you will see the Speed is really noticeable!

[Chatmaster]

my personal opinion is that solid state would be used better in read applications rather than write applications. it has shown the tendecy to be a bit crap in the latter.

So in terms of the desktops I have, If run the OS of the SSD and have a second rotating drive for writing, would that make a difference then?

[Chatmaster]

This I think you will benefit from these drives. I have a 32 GB installed in my notebook and it is running like a dream. However there is an issue with latency but it’s not crippling. And the problem is with the SATA controller on the notebook and not the drive. I had it for 3 months now and no problems. However I recommend you set up two notebooks with these drives and tests it for your needs before a mass upgrade of all your notebooks. They are expensive! But they do eliminate moving parts that is the biggest enemy of notebooks so I recommend a test you will see the Speed is really noticeable!

Cost is not an issue atm. According to my calculations if these drives are as great as I have heard they are, the efficiency in terms of effective time spent on not waiting for the computer would pay for it within 2 months. I am looking for 128GB drives with a writing speed of more than 200MB/s but it seems like SA doesn't have any available. It seems like I will have to import... Grrrrrrr I do think your suggestion of testing it first is a good one though, I will do that then.

[twinscythe12332]

probably better than going to your local store and asking them to do it. after the markup is placed, might not be as good as going online.

[insulin]

Right first of all sorry for not replying yesterday I had to check my facts.

It is safe to say that the only problem with solid state hard drives is there cost. An online game server I know of that host Eve used to or is indeed still using only solid state hard drives.

Secondly this is not a new technology. The first solid state hard drives looked like PC cards and some of the faster models still do look PC cards. I think if it is good enough for an online gaming server then you will have little trouble with this technology.

My notebook is running fine and I do a lot of work on it. But always remember that the size of the information you are accessing on the drive determine speed. I remember when Maxtor had their 7200 RPM drives on the marked. My friend got one and it was fast however on bench the deference was really not that noticeable.

So I will say this; a good main board aka motherboard, memory, CPU, and GPU together with a fast hard drive will give you good speeds and better performance. But hard drive speed was never that critical unless massif volumes of information needs to be accessed simultaneously but then you will need a dedicated bus controller and fast drives not just fast drives the controller is just as important.

My advice to you is; build a good system. Something with a good motherboard CPU, Memory, and these new drives and test it. However please remember that a good power supply is a must when it comes to this technology.

[twinscythe12332]

raptor vs SSD ignoring the fact that the raptor massacres the SSD in question, take a look at how steady the transfer is for the SSD versus the erattic line of the raptor.

[insulin]

Ok... I forgot about the 10000 RPM drive...

Now the extreme as far as I know the new black box systems used by Airbus and others use modified version of SSD.

If you have the money do a drop test. ( 0_o ) Get two brand new drives one conventional and one SSD. Load nice big files on them so that they use 50% + of their capacities and drop the two from the same height and make sure there is a carpet if only to protect the casing.

Chances are that both drives will survive the first drop. However the lack of moving parts in the SSD will be the winner on the drop test. “ I stand to be corrected” Because moving parts are sensitive to nocks and stuff.

Now notebooks will benefit from the SSD because notebooks are constantly in transit. Fact... Stable read write speed is better but not necessarily faster than spinning disks and a moving head.

Lastly both the conventional hard drive and the SSD is sensitive to power changes so power is a stable must for both drives.

[twinscythe12332]

Now notebooks will benefit from the SSD because notebooks are constantly in transit. Fact... Stable read write speed is better but not necessarily faster than spinning disks and a moving head.

absolutely true. spinning disks have much higher "burst speeds" than SSD. I think in the test the raptor managed a 249MB/s max burst speed, but dipped below the 80 MB/s mark . the SSD kept steady at between 113 to 108.

[insulin]

Stability is key to any mass storage device. Without it you basically have a data disaster waiting to happen: “When last did you do a back-up” The sequel featuring a sweaty technician running around desperately to find the missing disk of doom! His SATA controllers has blown the RAID is gone! And all the drives have been burned-out due to a dirty power spike!!!!! All he has is his backup devices! Will he survive! Will he get the system back up and running!!!!!?

Coming to Cinema near you! WHEN LAST DID YOU DO A BACK-UP

The horror continues...

[Wukkie]

I love the post, and the point is very true. It is not just when last did you do a backup- but there are other things to consider. Can another tech redo the systems for you, is very documented. Have the backups been tested, can you even restore from them. There is not point in doing backups if you can't access teh information at all.

the research I have done in the past on SSD shows that they are great and the cost per meg factor is high. but I think test would need to be done on the drives to see if there is a real gain. I think is will all depend on the type of application you run on them.
We where looking at then for a online SQL server. the other problem as point out is teh BUS speed. It is all very well have quick drives, but if teh BUS cant deliver, then the speed of thedrive is pointless.

[irneb]

Before you empty your bank accounts & pawn off assets so you can afford a decent size SSD, maybe wait a few months and see if the newer RHD's from DataSlide work out: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06...de_berkeleydb/