What you should know, before you buy a Solid State Driv

[hotbread]

There are a few things you need to know, about Solid State Drives, before you upgrade your computer/laptop/netbook to this newest technology.

1. Do you have a SATA or IDE Controller?

Most drives are designed for SATA, though there are some IDE (aka: ATA and PATA) drives available also. To know which one you need, look inside your computer, or check out the specs/details of your laptop/netbook.
If you have a computer, open the case and locate your hard drive. Look at the wires on the back of your hard drive.


2. Internal vs. External
External drives are mostly for portable data, like a USB flash drive, so an internal drive is the best option for an SSD drive, so it can make your Operating System (Windows, Mac OSX, Linux) faster and more responsive.

3. Capacity
The most common sizes are 32, 64, 128 and 256 Gigabytes (GB). The operating system will use about 10 GB of space, so make sure you leave enough free space for your applications, games, files and so on. I would recommend getting a minimum of 64 GB, and up to 128GB, unless you have a big budget.

Continued at source: SSDTechnologyForum.com

Yes, I am a member there also, and I thought this article was useful for those looking to make the SSD leap

 

[noobvious]

64GB sounds about right to me, for the OS and programs, with a nice Caviar Black for your data.

 

[nate42nd]

This is another great place to start. You should read all 31 pages and his new articles on SSDs before buying.

AnandTech: The SSD Anthology: Understanding SSDs and New Drives from OCZ

 

[hotbread]

I read that article also nate42nd. Although, the average PC user who wished to purchase a Solid State Drive, would likely be intimidated by all the tech lingo and it's 31 page length

 

[nate42nd]

I read that article also nate42nd. Although, the average PC user who wished to purchase a Solid State Drive, would likely be intimidated by all the tech lingo and it's 31 page length

I know it's long and some of it is very technical. The same site has other VERY informative articles on everything, but I agree, the average user will not likely read these LONG articles. I hope it helped. Have a good one.

 

[pparks1]

Yeah, while the average person might struggle with that 31 page article...I don't think the average person is likely to plunk down the money for an SSD drive.

For the performance enthusiast or hobbyist who will plunk down the money, that article should be a required reading assignment. So much great information about how the specs and what they mean...but more importantly ensuring that you have a drive which is not going to degrade in performance down the road. Also making sure that you have a drive today with TRIM support and understanding why that is important.

These days with the faster controllers and cached memory, it's not quite as important to be very selective...but in the days of the 1st gen devices, being careful was very important to ensure good performance.

While a 30GB can hold the OS and most apps...I'd recommend going 64 or larger if you can afford it.

 

[nate42nd]

SO true, Anand's articles SHOULD be read before buying an SSD. I have learned so much from him it's not even funny.

He knows or finds out EVERYTHING about SSDs. His other articles are good too.