General SSD question.

[Aps]

I don't know if this is the right place for this so sorry if it isn't. Iv'e never used an SSD before and i have been thinking this for a while; What do i gain from using one if i choose to use one? They make boot quicker sure but i just put my pc on sleep so what else are they good for over a hard drive? 

[Hyydrah]

You will notice an astronomical improvement in response times, particularly noticeable when opening "light" applications. Sequential and random read and write speeds are also superior, meaning that data transfers, boot/shutdown speeds, etc. will take much less time as well. Generally you can expect a halved boot time, for instance, as demonstrated here.

 

[bennyino]

even if you only put it to sleep it will be quicker going to and coming out of sleep, it will be snappier in general, you can open programs and files almost instantly, they are also much safer than HDD's because they dont have moving parts so they wont fail nearly as often. those are the main reasons, at least the ones i can think of right now

[chocolateftd]

No moving parts, reducing noise and making them potentially last longer.

[Aps]

This is most likely a stupid question and i think i already know the answer but, it has to be stored on the SSD for it to work right? Why are they so expensive for so little gb? 

[bennyino]

yes windows needs to be on it to be quicker and so do any other files that you want to be fast to open, remember there is no such thing as a stupid question on the LTT forums ;)

they are very expensive to manufacture because (as far as i know) they are like massive thumb drives, they use flash memory plus they need a controller and all those things are expensive to manufacture

[That Norwegian Guy]

This is most likely a stupid question and i think i already know the answer but, it has to be stored on the SSD for it to work right? Why are they so expensive for so little gb? 

 

Because flash memory and the controller (think of it as a processor) in an SSD costs more to make than the large copper plates and motor in an HDD. HDDs have also been produced for decades and as such there isn't much R&D left to do in that field, so the cost per unit has settled on a purely material, transport and labour level.

 

SSDs are not just twice as fast or three times as fast as HDDs though, it is closer to 10x and up. So for the consumer, you're not necessarily paying 'per gigabyte' but if you instead think 'megabyte per second' then they are dirt cheap compared to HDDs :P

 

A simple 120-256 GB boot drive to install the system and all startup applications as well as typically slow applications (like Photoshop or video editing software) and load-intensive games (sandbox and MMORPG games) will make your computing life a lot better.

[Aps]

Okay. Thanks for the answers! So what SSD would you recommend? I will be using it for my games and my OS?

[That Norwegian Guy]

Okay. Thanks for the answers! So what SSD would you recommend? I will be using it for my games and my OS?

 

Samsung 840 :) Won't cost you a ton and is pretty good.

 

Generally Samsung is just great cost-to-performance ratio, because they are one of the only ones who make the entire SSD and it's components themselves, not relying on any outside manufacturers that would drive the cost up and quality down.

[Chris2388]

This Thread is full of good Info.

[bennyino]

samsung 840 or 840 pro if you dont mind paying more it has significantly better write speeds, for just a boot drive and a "mainstream" user an 840 or an m4 is fine, vertex 4 is also good and many others, i personally like the 840 quite a lot so thats my main recomendation, if you can get an m4 with the same capacity for 20 bucks less, go for it

[Aps]

I will most likely get a 120gb samsung for around £70. It's all i can afford at the moment. I'm only 16 and i need to buy my 7950 and my NZXT Phantom soon. So i'm kinda short on money. Thanks again for the answers!

[TB-303]

I've been looking into getting a 500gb ssd and everywhere I've looked the 840 is the most recommended.