Samsung Series 470 250GB 2.5in SSD
Solid-state stunner
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Review Reg Hardware first reviewed a Samsung SSD - the South Korean giant's first, and a device aimed at computer makers rather than upgrade-hungry punters - way back in March 2009. Rather keen we were on it too.
But that was two years ago - how has Samsung managed to improve matters in the meantime?
Samsung's Series 470: cornering the market?
Currently available in the usual 64GB (£110), 128GB (£180) and 256GB (£400) capacities, Samsung isn’t going too wild with this one, except for perhaps the chrome and orange finish.
Despite the casual capacities and reasonable pricing, Samsung has sunk a considerable amount into R&D on this one by designing its own controller rather than doing the usual and buying in a SandForce or Marvell part.
It’s called the S3C29RBB01-YK40, and Samsung claims it will allow the 256GB model I have here to read at 250MB/s and write at 220MB/s through its 3Gb/s Sata interface.
The closest rival to Samsung’s new toy is Intel’s 320 series, which is very similarly priced and also features a 3Gb/s Sata interface. Before I get technical with this one, here’s a quick real-world time comparison between the two:
Times in Seconds
Shorter bars are better
As you can see, the Intel drive seems to have a slight edge in booting and shutting down, but the Samsung drive claws back some glory in being quicker on the application front.
