Which SSDs is the better, an External SSD or internal SSD?

[Hadramawt]

Hi

While reading
How to Create a Portable OS on an External Drive published by Whs, I found the point below marked in red brought my attention:::

For obvious reasons, the SSD works the best. Operations on the HDD will be slower. I have also tried a fast USB3 stick. But that was too slow. See performance section for details.

I found a $55 'value pack' -a SSD and a USB3 enclosure including cable. The 30GB SSD is large enough to accommodate Windows 8 or any Linux distro with room to spare.


My questions are:
Firstly: Which is the better the an External SSD or internal SSD?

Secondly: Is any brand USB3 SSD with a size of 30GB or 120GB really enough?
These SSDs were suggested for me:

$199.99 (3yr, 480GB TLC): SanDisk Ultra II
$199.99 (3yr, 512GB MLC): Crucial MX100
$212.99 (5yr, 500GB TLC): Samsung 850 EVO
$229.98 (3yr, 500GB TLC): Samsung 840 EVO
$259.99 (10yr, 480GB MLC): SanDisk Extreme Pro
$289.99 (5yr, 480GB MLC): Intel 730 Series
$289.99 (10yr, 512GB MLC): Samsung 850 Pro
$373.36 (10yr, 512GB MLC): Samsung 840 Pro

However,in the local market 'Yemen', I only found this 'Kingston Digital 480GB SSDNow V300 SATA 3 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive with Adapter (SV300S3N7A/480G)' . However, I was told that the Kingston SSDs are not good.
With respect to SSD brands, in my own country 'Yemen', I really didn't find other than 'Kingston Digital 480GB SSDNow V300 SATA 3 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive with Adapter (SV300S3N7A/480G)', and with a price of $350. However, I would be still looking for another brand as I was told the Kingston SSDs are not good.

Also, Amazon.com doesn't ship to my own country, or it would be much better since their prices are much better than ebay.com. Also, there are many problems with shipping to Yemen. The products shipped to Yemen are stolen in the Yemen customs department. Do you know that other online seller can ship to my own country other than ebay.com, and Amazon.com. I only knew 'mydvddrive.com' the only online seller who ship to my own country. However, all what they sell is optical drives.
Yemen is going to be really problem.

I was told:
any of those SSDs will be so much faster than your HDD that you probably wouldn't notice the slight difference between the different SSDs.



A SSD will not:

• Increase your machine's ability to play back HD video or stream YouTube smoothly.
• Make your computer encode/process audio/video faster.
• Allow you to play games at a higher FPS.
• Keep your computer from being infected with viruses.

A SSD will:

• Make your computer boot, hibernate/resume, shutdown much (2-8x) faster.
• Make programs open instantly (or much quicker) after clicking on them.
• Make your computer more responsive, and able to handle more open programs before bogging down.
• Increase your battery life.
• Reduce game load times/delays.
• Allow you to accidentally drop, or throw your laptop across the room without losing your data (now your laptop may break, but the SSD and your data should be OK!).

Any comments would highly appreciated.

 

[LMiller7]

Which is the better the an External SSD or internal SSD?

There is no single right answer for everybody. The question of internal or extern anything always depends on how you want to use it.

 

[Hadramawt]

Which is the better the an External SSD or internal SSD?

There is no single right answer for everybody. The question of internal or extern anything always depends on how you want to use it.

Thank you so much indeed,
Yes, but I think SSD can only speed the performance of OS, and the maximum size of OS can be more than 30GB. So, SSDs are used to install OS on them, however, the user data can be saved in any normal HDD. So you don't tell me if 30GB of SSD with any brand is enough or not.


Also, I was told that Samsung 850 Pro 512GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-7KE512BW) is the best SSD model, and brand.

But, You don't tell me which SSD models and brands are the best. In the local market 'Yemen', I only found this 'Kingston Digital 480GB SSDNow V300 SATA 3 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive with Adapter (SV300S3N7A/480G)' . However, I was told that the Kingston SSDs are not good.
With respect to SSD brands, in my own country 'Yemen', I really didn't find other than 'Kingston Digital 480GB SSDNow V300 SATA 3 2.5-Inch Solid State Drive with Adapter (SV300S3N7A/480G)', and with a price of $350. However, I would be still looking for another brand as I was told the Kingston SSDs are not good.

Also, Amazon.com doesn't ship to my own country, or it would be much better since their prices are much better than ebay.com. Also, there are many problems with shipping to Yemen. The products shipped to Yemen are stolen in the Yemen customs department. Do you know that other online seller can ship to my own country other than ebay.com, and Amazon.com. I only knew 'mydvddrive.com' the only online seller who ship to my own country. However, all what they sell is optical drives.

 

[mike009]

Hi, here is my opinion. If this is for you laptop (you didn't mention which model it is) if it doesn't have USB3 port's it will be best to install SSD internally. Regarding the size I would recommend to have 120GB or 250GB SSD(or more if $ is not important), this will be sufficient for OS, applications and user data. Kingston are not "bad" if you don't mind "cat in a box" - they have changed some parts after original product was released..

 

[alphanumeric]

An internal SSD will always perform faster than an external one in a USB enclosure. The only reason to run your OS from an external drive is to make it portable. It can be a lot of fiddling around to make your OS run from an external drive. Even then, it may not run on another PC. Unless your running an official Windows To Go setup that is. What you want to do determines if you go internal or external. If all you want to do is run Windows on that PC from an SSD, go with an internal drive. If your trying to gear up a Windows To go install then go with an external drive in an enclosure.

 

[Boozad]

The 30GB SSD is large enough to accommodate Windows 8 or any Linux distro with room to spare.

No it isn't.

Samsung 850 Pro EVO and Intel 730 Series are probably the best.

 

[ignatzatsonic]

So you don't tell me if 30GB of SSD with any brand is enough or not.


You don't tell me which SSD models and brands are the best.

Size: a simple Windows installation takes about 20 GB. With a few dozen typical applications installed, it might use 30 GB. I have about 55 applications installed and use 38 GB. Most people will do fine with an 80 or 120 GB SSD, but you have to decide your own space requirements. If you install a lot of games, you might need much more space.

If the SSD is your ONLY drive and must store data as well as Windows itself, then of course you will have to make adjustments for that. None of us know how much data you have or if you need to store it on an SSD.

Brands: Crucial, Intel, Samsung are very popular in the USA. Kingston is a reliable manufacturer. I think that particular Kingston model (V300) was the subject of complaints because Kingston changed the type of memory cells used in it without changing the model number and without any publicity. Some thought that was sneaky.

But if it is your only choice, I'd go ahead and get it IF it's the only choice and you actually need an SSD. You have to decide if you actually need 480 GB. The price in Yemen is ridiculous, but there is nothing you can do about that.

 

[Layback Bear]

No member here has control of pricing where ever one lives. So that is a moot point.

If I had to choose one brand and only one brand I would choose Intel.
I have 5 of them. I chose them because Intel has never failed me on anything they make.
Reliability is my main concern. How fast it is today and doesn't work tomorrow does not impress me. The only problem I find with Intel SSD's is you seldom can find a good discount (sale) price.

 

[Hadramawt]

If your trying to gear up a Windows To go install then go with an external drive in an enclosure.

Thank you so much indeed for all of those participating in this thread of mine.
I would like you to kindly let me know why I will need to have an external drive in an enclosure If my trying to gear up a Windows To go install.

Why will I need to an external drive in an enclosure? I have a lot of USB3 External HDDs which can work without needing to insert them in an enclosure.
Are there two kinds of external hard disks, one of them must be inserted in an enclosure which will be connected to a PC via USB wire, and the other one can be connected directly into a PC via USB wire?

 

[whs]

I use external SSDs on an eSata port. But my USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.
My 6 systems on the external SSD (Mushkin 240GB) are all virtual systems running under VMware Player. I notice very little performance degradation. My Windows 8.1 boots in 25 seconds and the Linux systems are faster.

The SSD prices you quoted are very high. In the US you can get a 120GB SSD for less than $50. But in Yemen that might be different.

Regarding SSD makes - I own 10 SSDs from 5 different companies. They are all good but my favorites are the Mushkins. They are reasonably priced and very fast. I always buy special offers at low prices. Only my first 60GB OCZ was expensive - $265 in 2008.

 

[Hadramawt]

I use external SSDs on an eSata port. But my USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.
My 6 systems on the external SSD (Mushkin 240GB) are all virtual systems running under VMware Player. I notice very little performance degradation. My Windows 8.1 boots in 25 seconds and the Linux systems are faster.

Thank you so much indeed.
I am sorry to say that I still don't get on what you have said about USB external HDs which can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC without needing to be inserted into an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via SUB wire.
I don't think there is an eSata port on a PC, like the USB ports. So, why you say you use external SSDs on an eSata port. But your USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.

I would like you to kindly let me know why I will need to have an external drive in an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via USB wire If my trying to gear up a Windows To go install.

Why will I need to have an external drive in an enclosure? Enclosure just converts a HD based on SATA port into USB port, which can be connected then to any USB port. If I have a HD based on USB3 port, then no need to have enclosure. I have a lot of USB3 External HDDs which can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC without needing to insert them in an enclosure.?

Are there two kinds of external hard disks, one of them must be inserted in an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via USB wire, and the other one can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC via USB wire?

The SSD prices you quoted are very high. In the US you can get a 120GB SSD for less than $50. But in Yemen that might be different.

Regarding SSD makes - I own 10 SSDs from 5 different companies. They are all good but my favorites are the Mushkins. They are reasonably priced and very fast. I always buy special offers at low prices. Only my first 60GB OCZ was expensive - $265 in 2008.

In Yemen, there are only Kingston SSDs, with that high price which is 500GB with $350. It is also not internal it is just external with enclosure, and USB wire.

 

[AddRAM]

Yes there are Esata ports, they are on your motherboard if it comes with them, my Sabertooth has 2 Esata ports.

 

[whs]

Internal or external - those are the same SSDs. You can attach to the USB with an enclosure or a USB wire. They perform the same function.

Not all systems have eSata - in fact that is pretty rare. But you can always add it with a PCI-e card. And for laptops they look like this - that is if you have an Express Card slot.

Kingston SSDs are good. In fact they were the first in the industry to produce SSDs.

 

[Layback Bear]

A ssd is a ssd. They all have the same connections methods.
You choose whether to install it external using cables or a enclosure with cables. You can install it using cables internally to the motherboard.

Same ssd can be used either way or all the ways. It's your choice.

I use ssd in a external enclosure, hot swap bay and internal. It just depends how I want to use the ssd. It's the same ssd.

 

[AddRAM]

I use external SSDs on an eSata port. But my USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.
My 6 systems on the external SSD (Mushkin 240GB) are all virtual systems running under VMware Player. I notice very little performance degradation. My Windows 8.1 boots in 25 seconds and the Linux systems are faster.

Thank you so much indeed.
I am sorry to say that I still don't get on what you have said about USB external HDs which can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC without needing to be inserted into an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via SUB wire.
I don't think there is an eSata port on a PC, like the USB ports. So, why you say you use external SSDs on an eSata port. But your USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.

I would like you to kindly let me know why I will need to have an external drive in an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via USB wire If my trying to gear up a Windows To go install.

Why will I need to have an external drive in an enclosure? Enclosure just converts a HD based on SATA port into USB port, which can be connected then to any USB port. If I have a HD based on USB3 port, then no need to have enclosure. I have a lot of USB3 External HDDs which can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC without needing to insert them in an enclosure.?

Are there two kinds of external hard disks, one of them must be inserted in an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via USB wire, and the other one can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC via USB wire?

The SSD prices you quoted are very high. In the US you can get a 120GB SSD for less than $50. But in Yemen that might be different.

Regarding SSD makes - I own 10 SSDs from 5 different companies. They are all good but my favorites are the Mushkins. They are reasonably priced and very fast. I always buy special offers at low prices. Only my first 60GB OCZ was expensive - $265 in 2008.

In Yemen, there are only Kingston SSDs, with that high price which is 500GB with $350. It is also not internal it is just external with enclosure, and USB wire.

With a computer and a debit card, you should be able to order just about any ssd you want.

 

[mike009]

Windows To Go (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_To_Go) is mainly for corporations, no real benefit for Home/small office users. It gives you ability to connect a USB storage device to "*any" computer and in 5~10 minutes be able to work from it as if you were working on your corporate device (*any - not all computers will work you may see few "oops, something went wrong" messages).

If you not planning to move the hdd/ssd from your room/office and not worried you might spill some coffee or damage it in some way no enclosure is required.

 

[Hadramawt]

I use external SSDs on an eSata port. But my USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.
My 6 systems on the external SSD (Mushkin 240GB) are all virtual systems running under VMware Player. I notice very little performance degradation. My Windows 8.1 boots in 25 seconds and the Linux systems are faster.

Thank you so much indeed.
I am sorry to say that I still don't get on what you have said about USB external HDs which can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC without needing to be inserted into an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via SUB wire.
I don't think there is an eSata port on a PC, like the USB ports. So, why you say you use external SSDs on an eSata port. But your USB3 is slower. That depends on the USB3 implementation in your mobo - mine is not so good (Dell XPS 8300). Internal would obviously be the fastest.

I would like you to kindly let me know why I will need to have an external drive in an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via USB wire If my trying to gear up a Windows To go install.

Why will I need to have an external drive in an enclosure? Enclosure just converts a HD based on SATA port into USB port, which can be connected then to any USB port. If I have a HD based on USB3 port, then no need to have enclosure. I have a lot of USB3 External HDDs which can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC without needing to insert them in an enclosure.?

Are there two kinds of external hard disks, one of them must be inserted in an enclosure which will be connected to a USB port of a PC via USB wire, and the other one can be connected directly to a USB port of a PC via USB wire?

The SSD prices you quoted are very high. In the US you can get a 120GB SSD for less than $50. But in Yemen that might be different.

Regarding SSD makes - I own 10 SSDs from 5 different companies. They are all good but my favorites are the Mushkins. They are reasonably priced and very fast. I always buy special offers at low prices. Only my first 60GB OCZ was expensive - $265 in 2008.

In Yemen, there are only Kingston SSDs, with that high price which is 500GB with $350. It is also not internal it is just external with enclosure, and USB wire.

With a computer and a debit card, you should be able to order just about any ssd you want.

Thank you so much,
Although it is out of topic, yes, that is absolutely right all over the world, except in Yemen, for clear reasons.
I heard that usually items are stolen in the Yemeni customs department, and then will not be arrived by the buyer, in particular if they are priced with more than a hundred dollars.

Even if I were stupid, I'd order/purchased items, for instance at eBay.com, How would I be able to be one hundred percent sure that items are really stolen in Yemeni customs department, and the persons in the US really sent my items to Yemen. However, once my items got arrived in Yemen, then the items got stolen in the Yemeni customs department. Also, what should I do if my items hadn't been received by me.
No thing in Yemen is going as you think.

 

[Hadramawt]

Internal or external - those are the same SSDs. You can attach to the USB with an enclosure or a USB wire. They perform the same function.

.

Thank you all of you very much indeed,
If I can attach a HD(HDD/SSD) to the USB with an enclosure or a USB wire. They perform the same function. Then, what benefit from an enclosure?
I am a little bit confused with a HD which can be inserted to an enclosure which then can be connected to a USB port , and HDs can be directly connected to a USB port.

Not all systems have eSata - in fact that is pretty rare. But you can always add it with a PCI-e card. And for laptops they look like this - that is if you have an Express Card slot.

I don't know if it is quite good to have eSata port or not. So, if quite good, I can purchase 'esata pci-e card' for my laptop 'HP Pavilion dv6', and I will install it.
However, where can it be installed on my motherboard, since I don't see any free ports in my right or left side.

Kingston SSDs are good. In fact they were the first in the industry to produce SSDs

I was told these disadvantages of Kingston SSD.

Everyone has their favorite brand. Intel, Samsung and Crucial are generally better regarded than Sandisk and Kingston.
The Kingston SSD you mention is capable of being an external drive because it comes with a USB/SATA adapter. The purpose of the adapter is to allow you to clone your current drive to the SSD to perform an easy upgrade. This is for people with laptops that only have one drive bay. However, I would strongly recommend avoiding this particular drive because Kingston switched out for cheaper parts after the initial reviews and specifications were done. The newer shipments no longer perform as advertised, which was a very dishonest move, IMHO.

 

[mike009]

If I can attach a HD(HDD/SSD) to the USB with an enclosure or a USB wire. They perform the same function. Then, what benefit from an enclosure?
I am a little bit confused with a HD which can be inserted to an enclosure which then can be connected to a USB port , and HDs can be directly connected to a USB port.

If you not planning to move the hdd/ssd from your room/office and not worried you might spill some coffee or damage it in some way no enclosure is required.

It's to protect the HDD/SSD

 

[Hadramawt]

Could anyone please re-read my final post since I have made some changes since mike009 replied to that post of mine.