Which SSD for $180ish, need experts here!

[stonedzen]

SO I'm looking at a few SSDs but am getting very conflicting reviews online about performance. At first I was looking at the Kingston V+. Then I saw a multi SSD benchmark which placed it very low on random access reads/writes, which are supposed to be the most important benchmarks for an OS/boot drive. So one of the SDDs that was rated highest on this particular benchmark review was the OCZ Vertex LE. As I did more research into this drive most were very positive, until I stumbled onto the OCZ support forum... On this forum there were endless members accusing OCZ of lying about the read/write performance of this drive and that real-world speeds were far below that of most other SSDs on the market. OCZ's response was that "hammering" the Vertex LE will cause it to slow down and will require a few days to recover (something about the TRIM not being able to keep up).

Anyway, I know a bit about computer hardware but almost nothing about SSDs and this is getting way over my head. I'm wondering what SSD experts out there feel is the best drive in the $150-$190 range. I know I will be limited to 50-64gb and that's fine since it will strictly be a boot drive. Here are a few I can afford:

$147.99 - Kingston SSDNow V Series SNV425-S2/64GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820139132

$159.00 - OCZ Agility 2 OCZSSD2-2AGTE60G 2.5" 60GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227542

$169.99 - OCZ Vertex LE (Limited Edition) OCZSSD2-1VTXLE50G 2.5" 50GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227526

$189.00 - Kingston SSDNow V+ Series SNVP325-S2B/64GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820139112

$199.00 - A-DATA ASINTS-80GM-CSA 2.5" 80GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211412


Any expert opinions or first-hand testimonials?

 

[MRFS]

Intel?

Corsair Force series?

OCZ Vertex 2?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227528&Tpk=N82E16820227528


On Intel chipsets, Rapid Storage Technology ("RST") 9.6 reportedly
only supports TRIM when RAID mode is enabled in the BIOS
but all connected SSDs are configured as JBOD (non-RAID).

TRIM is not (yet) passed to SSDs that are members of RAID arrays.


MRFS

 

[foscooter]

Ok, what mobo do you have? I only ask because Intel based chipset mobos support ACHI and TRIM, disk "utilities: that (help) support SSDs, without special application to keep them "clean and optimized."

I haven't heard or seen anything abou the the A-DATA drive, but it's a Co-Intel X25-M 80GB SSD. So the specs should be true along side the Intel: 270MBps reads, 70MBps Writes.

Now I do know that the Intel specs are "true."

Don't worry about RAID, but do get the driver, if you have an Intel based board.

 

[geofelt]

Be prepared for buyer's remorse. There is a new generation of drives coming out, perhaps by this fall based on cheaper, smaller nand chips. Price/capacity equation might double.

The marketplace is changing rapidly so it is hard to keep up with it. I have used Intel 40gb, 80gb, and 160gb drives, and have been pleased with the results. Could I have done better? Possibly, but right now, Intel gen2 drives are a safe choice.

 

[foscooter]

Yeah, I've heard that Intels Gen 3 are coming out around X-mas. And it might be a SATA III 6.0Gbps interface.

 

[stonedzen]

Something came up and I dont think I'll be able to afford the SSD, regardless of how much I want one. Plus, having a 50-64gb ssd boot drive would be fun but not really necessary for my usage.

Instead I'm considering getting a 600gb Velociraptor (I was going to get a 300gb Velociraptor w/ the SSD) which will be a bit cheaper. Or I may get a 300gb Velociraptor and get a Samsung Spinpoint F3 1tb for storage, which would be the cheapest. Any input on these options?

Sad day, but I guess I will get an SSD someday when I make more money.

 

[geofelt]

You might want to check out the seagate momentus XT 500gb drive. It is a hybrid that includes a 4gb mlc cache and a conventional 500gb drive. Reviews say it is faster than any conventional drive, but not as fast as a ssd. The cache adapts to your usage pattern, so your results may vary. Check out the reviews.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148591&Tpk=seagate%20momentus%20xt