Best SSD for Thinkpad x201s speed & power consumption

Hello all... I am getting ready to purchase a SSD drive to replace the original 128 GB SSD that came stock in my x201s laptop. I do alot of traveling and depend on the battery to run my machine for an extended amount of time. That being said, I am also very interested in trying to get the most performance out there in SSD drives. I am looking for a drive in the 240 - 256 GB range. The three I am considering are:

Samsung 830 Series MZ-7PC256N/AM 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC
Intel 520 Series Cherryville SSDSC2CW240A310 2.5" 240GB SATA III MLC
Vertex 4 VTX4-25SAT3-256G 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC

Do you guys think there would be a noticeable difference power consumption wise between these drives? I have also lurking here on your website and see a number of members promote the Crucial M4 drive - how would that compare to the Samsung 830 in power consumtpion and speed?

I appreciate your guys advice, experience and knowledge in advance - this board is awesome to read - especially when I do not keep up on the latest SSD technology.

Thanks.
Jeff

Intel is known for reliable SSDs, so I would suggest the 520 series. That is the same model drive that I have running in my system, as well.

I second the Intel recommendation. They tend to have very good power profiles compared to other SSDs, which is nice in a laptop. A lot of modern SSDs use more power than a spinning drive!

Intel

http://www.silentpcreview.com/forum...&sid=7be8554830d16572f448fc39aac1f795#p551348

cw823 said:

Intel

http://www.silentpcreview.com/forum...&sid=7be8554830d16572f448fc39aac1f795#p551348

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That's super helpful - I've been wondering about exactly that for a while. Reviews always have wildly different consumption ratings than manufacturers advertise.

any ssd though will have lower power consumtion then the 2.5in laptop hard drives. maybe i have missed a series from intel but i thought the 5 series was using the same controller as the rest of the ssd's on the market.

just me though after looking at the samsungs 800's a month or so ago i would suggest them. as it is a samsung based tri-core arm cpu with samsung nand flash.

any ssd though will have lower power consumtion then the 2.5in laptop hard drives. maybe i have missed a series from intel but i thought the 5 series was using the same controller as the rest of the ssd's on the market.

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The 520 uses an Intel controller, and the 530 uses a Sandforce controller with a custom firmware implementation by Intel.

johan851 said:

The 520 uses an Intel controller, and the 530 uses a Sandforce controller with a custom firmware implementation by Intel.

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from what im seeing so far in pics of reviews of the 520 it does indeed use a sandforce controller, not a intel one. even the 330 uses the same controller, as the 520.

520
http://techreport.com/articles.x/22415
330
http://www.storagereview.com/intel_ssd_330_review

which lead me to what a said a while back when the news of intel using a non-intel ssd controller hit. that intel will let the others develop the controller front and they would focus on the nand flash. as it does in the end suite them best as the cost for the controller to them would be lower. as only intel was the only ones to use a intel controller. really doesnt do them any good if they cant sell the controller to others if other controllers are doing better. people might want all intel based ssd's but if the cost is that much higher then they wont go for it, when they can get faster ssd's for a lower cost. intel's nand is more then likely in more use in ssd's then we know, could even be remarked ic's in ssd's. it is a win-win for intel, cheaper controllers since other manufactures are going for the same one. intel is going to be selling more nand flash then it was before since they on a new process.


it does seem to me right now till i find one, that last all intel ssd was the 320(aka updated G2 drive).

from what im seeing so far in pics of reviews of the 520 it does indeed use a sandforce controller, not a intel one. even the 330 uses the same controller, as the 520.

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My mistake - the 320 and 510 use non-Sandforce controllers (Intel and Marvell respectively), and the 330 and 520 use a Sandforce controller. Not confusing at all.

+1 for Intel.

Just make sure that the drive's 7mm thick, not 9mm; the 9mm will not fit in an x201.

johan851 said:

My mistake - the 320 and 510 use non-Sandforce controllers (Intel and Marvell respectively), and the 330 and 520 use a Sandforce controller. Not confusing at all.

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they are getting as about as confusing on the ssd's as NV and AMD on the video cards. :O more on the nv side though...

hafa said:

+1 for Intel.

Just make sure that the drive's 7mm thick, not 9mm; the 9mm will not fit in an x201.

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exactly, on the size that is if you intel.


i do have to ask, why am i on the only one that thinks the samsung would be the better way to go? is it just people sticking to intel because it is intel?

i do have to ask, why am i on the only one that thinks the samsung would be the better way to go? is it just people sticking to intel because it is intel?

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Samsung is a solid choice too. I think less people have them so they get recommended less.

By the way, some SSDs will say they're 9mm high when they have a 2mm spacer. You can remove the spacer to get a 7mm drive.

Evilsizer said:

i do have to ask, why am i on the only one that thinks the samsung would be the better way to go? is it just people sticking to intel because it is intel?

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For me it's primarily first-hand experience, as we sell about a dozen SSDs a quarter. Reliability is paramount, and Crucial and Intel have proven themselves. If I continue to see favorable reviews for Samsung and opportunity presents itself to do some testing on our benches for a while, I'll be willing to start to offer them to our customers (and recommend them here) if they pass muster.