After soo many years of hearing my HDD loading windows, grab a coffee while waiting and even getting the coffee cold while I finaly pass the Windows login, I decided to make the move! About time right? I'm on a budget, not really looking for super high performance SSD but one that feels still fast enough. I was looking at the ARC – 100 from OCZ. What do you guys think?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820228116 110$ http://www.amazon.com/OCZ-Solutions-2-5-Inch-Ultra-Slim-ARC100-25SAT3-240G/dp/B00LULV4V2 99$
If you're in the US, BestBuy has the Samsung 840 EVO 250GB for $120 and PNY Optima 240GB for $90. The Samsung 840 EVO 250GB at $120 is pretty well the best drive you can find and is well worth it's price.
The Samsung 850 PRO or 850 EVO is the way to go - they've got exclusive 3D V-NAND architecture technology, baby! Very fast and greatly improves long-term reliability. 850 PRO Product Warranty Policy (Period or TBW) - Industry Leading 10 Years or 150TBW ! ! ! ! ! http://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/minisite/SSD/global/html/ssd850pro/warranty.html Although not listed, the newly released 850 EVO has a 5 year warranty, which comparatively, is great, considering the performance/longevity factors. This "The best SSDs of 2014: A buyers guide" article can help you decide. http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/191934-the-best-ssds-of-2014-a-buyers-guide
http://ssd.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Samsung-840-Evo-250GB-vs-OCZ-ARC-100-240GB/1594vs2603 Good writing speeds for the ARC, seems like a good value!
Im not convinced by Rapid Mode, haven't noticed any realtime improvements. Samsungs are without doubt my favourite drives and the Magician software is very good.
i see rapid working in fc4 loading /exit screens, imo it's what shader cache 'should' have been, i.e. using system ram. 1 intel rst -uses ssd to speed up hdd 2 samsung rapid - uses system ram to speed up ssd samsung have taken a masive step forwards, not to mention their 3d memory tech. i got the 850 pro now, i notice a better game experience with it over my ol' 840, you can install windows in 10 mins these days.
Go for the Samsung drives (best consumer-level drives on the market) like others mentioned AND go for Intel enterprise-class drives, which are built for reliability if you are looking to upgrade your entire system with SSDs: You will want these for large files (.iso, etc) and other backups, and Intel will replace the drives if they fail (not to mention the Intel drives offer a few things that the consumer Samsung drives do not, such as guaranteed NAS compatibility, which is what makes them great for network, etc storage). As for the PNY, OCZ, etc drives? Not just no, but hellllll no. Not with their track records of early deaths and swapping in substandard parts after they get good reviews.
Dont think I would agree on that, OCZ had its bad models like any other, from my understanding, they got few issues with Sandforce controllers.. other than that they did quite good using Barefoot 3 controllers. Besides they were acquired by toshiba, for sure any issues they got had to be improved with Toshiba under the management.
Honestly I'd spend the extra 20 bucks and get a crucial or samsung drive. I won't trust the OCZ drives until they've been around for a few years without major failures. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148820 $109 for the Crucial MX100.
I will go for the ARC-!00, seems to be the best for the buck Since they are part of toshiba now, Im a bit more relax on the reliability part