Crucial M4 or Samsung 840

[Mully]

I'm looking to get an SSD for my first build and I've narrowed it down to the M4 and 840.

If anyone has either of these drives I would be interested to hear your thoughts, as regards reliability, ease of use and speed

Thanks

[fredrikro]

I have got the M4, my dad has got one (both 128 GB) and we bought an mSATA one for his laptop. The mSATA ssd gave up during the first week (is currently on RMA), but the other ones work perfectly.

I don't have any performance issues, even large programs open within a second (or three for Photoshop).

When it comes to "ease of use", I don't really understand what you mean. All SSDs look just like hard drives in Windows.

[Mully]

I have got the M4' date=' my dad has got one (both 128 GB) and we bought an mSATA one for his laptop. The mSATA ssd gave up during the first week (is currently on RMA), but the other ones work perfectly. I don't have any performance issues, even large programs open within a second (or three for Photoshop). When it comes to "ease of use", I don't really understand what you mean. All SSDs look just like hard drives in Windows. [/quote']

Sorry for not being specific enough. I know the Samsung comes with some software not sure about the M4, just wondering what that was like. Also have you updated your M4's Firmware because I've heard that some people were having issues with previous versions.

[Dave :)]

The M4 is a great drive, i've had mine for over a year and it hasn't missed a beat. The performance is great, however so is the 840. Having said this, the 830 provides a better performance over the 840 as it uses different, and better, NAND.In raw performance, benchmarks suggest the Samsung drivers perform better than the M4, however in every day use this isn't that noticeable. I would suggest you find which ever one is cheaper between the 830 or M4. :D

[LTC]

The Samsung is the newer SSD, just for that reason I would choose that. Also the controller is newer, and you are sure to have a more reliable SSD because of that :) The M4 is cheaper though, and is also a VERY good SSD!

[Eric1024]

Both are awesome drives. I have experience with the M4 and it is rock solid, and Samsung has always made good drives so I can only assume that the 840 is a good drive. The M4 is going to cost you less and will more than likely last longer. The reason that 840 will likely not have the same longevity as the M4 is because is uses higher-density TLC, or triple level cell flash memory. If you're looking for the best possible performance, the 840 pro, which uses standard MLC (multi-level cell) flash, like the M4, will last longer and perform better than the 840 and the M4, so if you have a loose budget the 840 pro will be your best option.

That all being said, if you're not going to be pushing your SSD to its limits with very heavy work loads (10-15GB+ of writes per day or so, which is a lot more than you think), then you will most likely never encounter the longevity difference between a TLC and an MLC ssd. As far as raw speed, it goes 840pro > 840 > M4. So it depends what you want.

[Mully]

Edit: Found a deal on the 840 Pro for £25 more than the 840. Debating whether to go for it or not. Any thoughts?

[jeffrly]

Go for the pro if it's not much more expensive.

[VictorB]

Yes go for the Pro! the 2 year longer warranty is allready worth 25 pound!

[Mully]

Looks like I'll go for the Pro then :D Thanks for the vote of confidence

[Richard Burton]

The 840 is a far newer drive than the M4. Plus the 840 is faster, it uses a more modern controller. Crucial has released new drives, but personally if money was no issue the 840 would be my choice.

[Dave :)]

The 840 is a far newer drive than the M4. Plus the 840 is faster' date=' it uses a more modern controller. Crucial has released new drives, but personally if money was no issue the 840 would be my choice.[/quote']

Newer doesn't necessarily mean better. The 840 ( non pro ) uses a different type of NAND to the 830 and 840 pro, NAND which is significantly worse in comparison to the other 2 drives. It's still a good drive, just not, in my opinion, as good as the 830 or 840PRO.