SSD for ~$150

Hardware HDD's & SSD's
1

I'm looking into buying two SSDs, one for my laptop and one for my desktop, and I'd like them to be around $150 each ($300 total). I'd like good price/performance of course, but I don't want to be gimping myself too much in terms of storage. I'm willing to go with 128GB drives, but i'd prefer 256GB if possible. Also, I'd prefer to only order from Amazon or Newegg.

SSDs I'm considering (of course open to suggestions.)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211853&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E3W1726/?tag=pcpapi-20

2

Samsung = iops 97k, faster read writes 540 r 520w likely has a shorter overall lifespan due to writespeed, plus you may never see the full speed of the ssd. adata = 60k iops, slower read writes 480 r 250w likely will see most if not all speed with a million hour longevity.

3

I would recommend the Crucial M500 or M550.  I have a 120gb M500 and it works very well and they are known to be reliable.  The M550 is a little faster though.  I dont think these drives suffer from slower speeds as they get older like the Samsungs.

4

Well I see I can get the 256 GB M550 on Amazon for $157. It's definitely a drive I'm considering now.

I didn't know about the problem with Samsung SSDs slowing down as they age. Is that a problem with all SSDs and Samsung drives slow down more, or is it only really Samsung?

5

The way i look at it is something like the samsung for the laptop. Fast in a short lived portable device. Desktop wise , I would look at longevity, slightly slower reads , much slower writes. But thats just me?

6

Yeah I think I would agree with you. Especially since writes aren't the most important thing to me, I'm mostly looking for the reads.

So Samsung for the laptop then, what about for the desktop? The crucial as recommended above?

7

Think this may help? Yes the M550 looks pretty good.

http://ssd.userbenchmark.com/Explore/Best/2

8

well don´t stare to much blind on those read and write speeds, and iops. Honnestly you will only reach those speeds, in the most ideal circumstances anyway.

Samsung, A-data SX900, Kingston HyperX 3K are all very nice SSD´s.

9

Typically, in real-world scenarios, these numbers mean very little in the SSD market, especially in the SATA III segment. When booting your OS or loading a video game, the SSDs listed here will perform within fractions of a second between each other. I advise that you choose an SSD with both longevity and cost in mind. Crucial is a well-known name in the SSD market and are known for their reliability. With that being said, I recommend this drive:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BQ8RM1A/?tag=pcpapi-20&tag=teksynd-20

It's an all-around solid SSD, and for the features you're getting at that price point, it is a worthy contender.

10

Get the Crucial MX100 256 GB. Best price to performance ratio.

If you can't wait for it to hit retail, then the Samsung 840 EVO (TLC NAND has more than enough lifespan to last you a few decades) or the Crucial M550. Get the M500 if you find it cheaper, but don't get the M500 128 GB version because it has a very low write speed.

Both Samsung and Crucial have the best encryption on the market.

11

I did see the review on Anandtech and contemplated waiting for it. It did seem like a really good idea, and that's what I'm now planning on doing.

12

Apparently it's on amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Crucial-MX100-adapter-Internal-CT256MX100SSD1/dp/B00KFAGCWK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1401782022&sr=8-3&keywords=crucial+mx100

That 256 gig model is only 35 bucks more than my HyperX 3K 120GB.  Damn.

13

Wow that was fast. Thanks for the link.

It seems like the 128GB model is hardly worth it considering it's $80.