SATA II vs. SATA III - Backwards Compatible?

[DGalt]

Currently my mobo only supports sata II, and I'm not planning on upgrading my mobo / cpu for at least another 8-10 months.

I'd like to get a SSD, but considering that a future MB will almost certainly have SATA III my concern is whether to get a SATA II or a SATA III SSD.

So I guess the question is whether or not a SATA III SSD will work if plugged into a SATA II port. Usually things are backwards compatible, but I'd like to make sure before shelling out $200-$300


Also, if I can get a SATA III drive, any suggestions on which? Looking for something in the 120GB range...

thanks all

 

[CompTIA_Rep]

Yes absolutely.
Here is a source as well:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA#SATA_revision_3.0_.28SATA_6_Gbit.2Fs.29

 

[DGalt]

Awesome.

So my next questions is which would be the better choice: Intel 510 series of OCZ Vertex 3

 

[tecmo34]

Intel 510 - If your main concern is reliability over "speed". Intel's have the record of being the most reliable SSD's but aren't necessarily the fastest

OCZ Vertex 3 (recommend Max IOPS) - If you are all about performance and speed!! It is the fastest SSD (outside of PCIe cards / enterprise cards). OCZ has the best track record for firmware updates to improve performance and quickly address any "bugs". Another option is the Patriot Wildfire, which looks to match OCZ's performance.

 

[DGalt]

After reading a handful of reviews (most of which centered on the 250GB versions unfortunately) I'm probably going to go with the Intel. OCZ certain benchmarks better, but "real world" impressions tend to see less of a difference (from user reports anyway). And I hate having to RMA stuff so :lol:

thanks for the help

 

[jamesphillips1977]

SATA III on a SATA II system will use more battery power/electricity but will work. Check out this guy's blog about it at http://www.futurestorage.co.uk/article/TechBlog