Intel 80 GB X25M Mainstream SATA II Solid-State Drive (SSD) Retail Package SSDSA2MH080G2R5
by Intel
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Manufacturer: IntelAudio: English (Original Language)
Model: SSDSA2MH080G2R5
Product features:
- With no moving parts, Intel SSDs offer a quiet storage solution that responds quickly and uses less power
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Intel 80 GB X25M Mainstream SATA II Solid-State Drive (SSD) Retail Package SSDSA2MH080G2R5
Customer Review: A True Breakthrough Technology
Summary: 5 Stars
So, what can we say about the new SSD hard drive technology? Well, if you've already been reading some of the comments from people who have purchased these drives, you might already have a good sense of what is happening in this area. The shift from mechanical spin-and-seek hard drives (even the fastest ones) to solid state technology is most likely to be the most significant upgrade you can make to your computer, whether it is a laptop or a desktop machine. When you think about it, this outcome makes sense.
Over the years, computers have been loaded with ever increasing amounts of RAM memory, which has certainly improved overall performance since operations in RAM are much faster than those depending on a mechanical hard drive to store and retrieve data. In addition, computer processors, following Moore's Law, have been increasing in performance which results in such number crunching capability for even the least expensive computer that would have only been dreamed of ten years ago. There are lots of others advances, as well, that have improved speed: PCI-express technology, faster RAM, and even improvements in the bus speed linking processor to RAM. So, we ask, why does my darn computer seem no faster than my computer of ten years ago? Why does it always take 30 to 45 seconds to boot up, and why do I have to wait for a program to open when I click its icon?
In most cases, the reason is the hard drive. Hard drives have increased in storage levels, and yes, there are some newer, high performance drives (which spin at 7500rpm or even 10,000rpm, instead of the more standard 5,400rpm), but taken as a whole, the hard drive has become what is called the "bottleneck" of most systems. That is, while your fancy processors and piles of RAM are waiting to be put to work, they are often waiting for the mechanical hard drive to serve them the very data they need to complete a task. And, unfortunately, that hard drive is performing at about the same level as it did ten years ago, and the result is the slow boot, the slow access times, and more waiting.
Solid state "hard drive" technology, then, is a significant factor in boosting system speed because it eliminates the access and latency times associated with most standard hard drives and replaces them with high speed, random access of data in solid state memory. This means that the "drive" can both read and write data at extremely high speeds, and that our bottleneck, the venerable old hard drive, has been taken out of the equation.
Can you expect miracles? It depends. On some systems, you will see your boot times more than cut in half, in others, just a basic improvement. Most systems will see programs leap open the minute you click the program icon, and the bottleneck can now be seen to shift to the program itself (i.e., how efficient and complex is the programmatic code). My own experiments on two modern computers - one, a HP Pavilion laptop with a AMD NV-40 dual core processor, and the other, an HP desktop with a T9300 quad core Intel processor) show significant performance improvements in both computers, with boot times cut in half and overall performance improvements throughout the system. To boot (no pun intended), these drives use significantly less power than the traditional mechanical hard drive (think about the energy required to keep a platter constantly spinning, and moving an access arm back and forth every time data is needed to be written or read), with the result that my HP laptop has almost doubled its battery life on a single charge (from about two hours to now about four hours) although it must be kept in mind that this particular laptop uses an LED-lit screen, which also reduces power consumption). And it is silent, with little heat generation. It's really nothing short of incredible.
This technology is the future of computing. Prices will continue to come down, and traditional hard drive manufacturers will be forced to offer larger and larger drives at cheaper prices, as it will be the only way they can compete with a clearly superior technology. In the meantime, if you can, putting one of these drives in your system will probably the single best performance increase you can achieve. My system uses about 30 Gb of storage for Windows 7 plus an entire slew of installed programs, and so an 80 Gb SSD drive is more than adequate for my laptop. In addition, since I use secondary drives in my desktop machine, I can use the 80Gb SSD drive as my primary boot drive (containing operating system, installed programs, and the paging file) and leave all my data libraries (music, documents, photos, etc.) on the secondary drives, resulting in incredible performance gains even in this type of machine.
You will want to ensure that you purchase the "Generation 2" type drive, which provides significant performance gains over the initial SSD drives, and also makes use of Windows 7 "TRIM" support.
Five stars for performance, and four and a half stars for price (it is coming down). This is the easiest of recommendations for anyone wishing to improve system performance.
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Description of Intel 80 GB X25M Mainstream SATA II Solid-State Drive (SSD) Retail Package SSDSA2MH080G2R5
Intel X25M 80GB Mainstream Solid State Drive - Gen2, MLC flash technology, 2.5-Inch form factor, SATA (3.0Gb/s), 9.5mm Retail Box. Postville.The future of computer storage is here! The Intel X25-M Mainstream SATA II Solid State Drive (Retail) provides faster disk performance and greater durability than traditional hard drives. Since it stores data using NAND flash memory instead of spinning platters, the X25-M will never keep you waiting for disks to spin up. For further convenience, there are no moving parts to worry about breaking down.
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 With no moving parts, the X25-M Solid State Drive provides silent and reliable storage. View larger. |
 The Intel SSD Toolbox lets you easily optimize the performance of your drive. View larger. |
The X25-M is a SATA II hard drive with a capacity of 80 GB. Additionally, it's in a 2.5-inch form factor that will work anywhere a regular 2.5-inch hard drive does, such as in notebook computers and external enclosures.
But don't think that the X25-M is any old drive. Instead of using spinning platters like traditional hard drives, the X25-M is a Solid State Drive (SSD), and it uses flash memory for storage, giving you dramatically faster data access. If you need more disk space, the X25-M also comes in a 160 GB version.
Performs Faster than Other Solid State Drives
Intel has been making memory chips for decades, and the company's experience is clearly displayed with the X25-M drive, which uses Intel's Multi-Level Cell (MLC) NAND Flash Memory. This delivers better performance than other SSDs, thanks to an advanced architecture and technologies such as Native Command Queuing, which enables up to 32 simultaneous operations. The result is sustained sequential read speeds of up to 250 MBps, sustained sequential write speeds of up to 70 MBps, and a read latency of just 85 microseconds.
And thanks to the drive's SATA interface that offers data throughput of up to 3.0 Gbps, you can take advantage of all that speed. What all this means for you is that applications launch instantaneously, files copy in less time, and your overall productivity is increased.
Optimize Performance with the Intel SSD Toolbox
Intel offers the Intel SSD Toolbox with Intel SSD Optimizer, so you can easily optimize and manage the performance of your drive. Simply download the Intel SSD Toolbox and you'll get a powerful set of management, information, and diagnostic tools to help you maintain performance at "fresh out-of-the-box" levels. The Intel SSD Toolbox with Intel SSD Optimizer is specially designed to run on Microsoft Windows 7, and it also works with Microsoft Windows Vista and XP.
Higher Reliability and Silent Operation
Compared to traditional hard drives, the X25-M is both faster and more durable. Because it doesn't have spinning disks or writing heads, there are fewer parts to fail. It is also less susceptible to vibration and shock and is completely silent. Providing superb reliability, the X25-M is rated at 1.2 million hours mean time before failure (MTBF).
Lower Power Consumption is Good for the Environment
The X25-M also consumes far less power than traditional drives, which saves you money and makes this drive a choice. The drive is certified RoHS compliant for its use of non-hazardous materials. Additionally, when it's installed in a laptop, the X25-M will give you better battery life, which means you can work longer on cross-country plane trips.
The Intel X25-M Mainstream SATA II Solid State Drive supports Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (SMART) commands, as well as additional SSD monitoring.
The X25-M is backed by a three-year limited warranty.
What's in the Box
Intel X25-M Solid State Drive (SSD), manual, sticker and 3.5" desktop drive bay adapter, screws and installation guide.
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