Fast and Compact: TOP 5 M.2 SSDs

Solid-state drives with an M.2 interface have recently ceased to be a curiosity, and the standards for them have managed to settle down. But now we will look at an unusual compact model that can come in handy if there is very little free space left in the case.

Size is the first thing that catches your eye when you see the packaging of the Transcend MTS420. The length is 4 cm, compared to the standard 8 cm for most M.2 drives. Other than that, it's a regular 3D NAND -based SSD with decent speeds (520MB/s read and 480MB/s write), 240GB of storage, and a couple of little tricks in the arsenal. The first trick is the DevSleep mode, which allows you to completely turn off the power of the SATA interface, while maintaining the possibility of its online activation in less than 20 milliseconds. This helps to extend the laptop's battery life.

The second focus is the presence of proprietary SSD Scope software, designed to make life easier for the user in every possible way. For example, update the firmware, test the health of the disk, completely erase data, clone the disk, or clone a specific partition. The last thing is useful for those who want to plug the Transcend MTS420 into a computer and use it as a system disk without reinstalling the operating system and dancing with a tambourine.

Of the weaknesses of the Transcend MTS420, one can single out not the highest read IOPS of 40,000. This means that the disk is relatively slow with ultra-small random files. However, this indicator is much more critical for writing than reading.

About a year ago, WD updated its Blue line of drives with new 3D NAND vertical cell memory. The WD Blue 3D NAND is a solid midranger in this refreshed lineup.

The four-channel Marvell 88SS1074 chip acts as a disk controller. It supports a set of technologies standard for an SSD drive (NCQ, SMART, DEVSLP and TRIM), which allow you to automatically turn off the power of the SATA interface to save battery power, automatically release unused blocks in flash memory and monitor the status of the disk in the background. All this allows you to optimize the operation of the device, increasing its speed and durability.

The speed performance of the WD Blue 3D NAND is good, but not a bit unambiguous. On the one hand, in synthetic tests, it shows more than 500 MB / s for linear reading and writing. In addition, unlike drives with SLC caching, it has a slight speed drop when loading large-caliber files. On the other hand, the speed of WD Blue 3D NAND noticeably sags during stress tests. However, that's what they are stress tests for, in real life, few people will scoff at the disk like that.

Plus, WD Blue 3D NAND is doing well in terms of data protection. First, the SSD itself, which has no moving parts, is much less prone to accidental injury and data loss than a regular HDD. Secondly, it has very good TBW (100 TB) and MTBF (1.75 million hours). As a rule, the higher these indicators, the more durable and reliable the device. Completing this picture is an official five-year warranty and a set of proprietary WD Dashboard software that allows you to automate the cloning of the necessary data.

The Crucial MX500 is one of the most successful SSDs on the market thanks to its high performance and surprisingly low price. At the launch of the series, only 2.5 SATA models were available, but M.2 form factor drives are now also available at no additional premium, but with an impressive five-year warranty.

The Crucial MX500 M.2 uses Micron's 64-layer 3D TLC NAND chips and is based on an SMI controller with dynamic cache support. The average performance of the MX500 competes with the best SSDs in this price segment: 510 and 560 MB / s for writing and reading on the passport. What's more interesting is that the MX500 doesn't have the traditional problems of writing large files (like movies and games) when the SLC cache fills up. When other drives drop to 200MB/s or below, the MX500 keeps the speed at 400MB/s. Moreover, this decrease is barely noticeable and occurs only after 32 GB has been written. As soon as the recording stops and the cache is cleared, the speed returns to the usual level.

Lastly, a nice touch. In the production of SSD drives, it is difficult to surprise a buyer with something: here is a box for you, here is the drive itself, here is a passport with speed characteristics, etc. At best, manufacturers supply drives with proprietary software for data cloning or checking the viability of a drive. Instead, the guys at Crucial have made a damn simple and clear instruction for installing an SSD in a computer and laptop. Instructions are available both in the form of text with pictures, and in the form of clear and concise videos. It would seem a trifle, but such a small display of care is very touching. As it was sung in the song, gifts are not the main thing, the main thing is attention.

At the time of release in 2017, the Intel 545s was positioned as a mid-range product. However, after the gradual reduction in the cost of SSD on TLC NAND, this model gradually moved into the category of state employees. Now it is an excellent candidate for the role of a system drive in a home PC, work laptop or office computer with a small amount of daily disk operations.

As the basis of the hardware platform of the drive, a 4-channel Silicon Motion SM2259 controller and proprietary 64-layer Intel 3D TLC NAND memory are used. This combination provides high read and write speeds - 550 and 500 MB / s, respectively. Together with fast data access time (85 thousand write IOPS, 75 thousand read IOPS), this allows you to raise the performance of the disk subsystem of any personal computer or laptop to a fairly high level.

Due to the fact that the Intel 545s was originally in the middle price segment, it got a few goodies that are not inherent in budget SSDs. For example, the drive supports Intel Rapid Start and Smart Response technologies. The first allows the disk to almost instantly bring the computer out of deep sleep, and the second improves the interaction of the disk array, allowing you to use the SSD as a cache for the HDD. Plus, Intel gives the disk an official five-year warranty against the standard three-year one.

The Samsung 860 EVO storage series needs no introduction. Despite the considerable three-year history by SSD standards, the models of this line with enviable constancy are in the top of popularity among 2.5-inch SATA drives. In the case of this model, it is positioned as an affordable model for efficient working PCs, office machines, entry-level gaming systems.

The Samsung 860 EVO is a 250 GB M.2 internal open frame SSD. The hardware platform of this model is a Samsung MJX multi-channel controller and a 512 MB DRAM buffer. The controller supports Intelligent TurboWrite technology, which allows for high-speed SLC caching and 2-3 times faster sequential writes. This is a very nice bonus if you often move large files from place to place. Yes, and the speed of the system is slightly accelerated.

As for the technical characteristics, the Samsung 860 EVO shows itself in the top five. Sequential read speed reaches 550 MB / s, write is kept at 520 MB / s. At the same time, the write IOPS is 88 thousand, for reading 97 thousand. Plus, the manufacturer promises a resource for 150 TB of guaranteed write (TBW) and a five-year warranty.