# Samsung SSD Is More Reliable & Won't Degrade Overtime



## happy (May 9, 2012)

Hi guys,
So I am debating on getting the Samsung 830 256GB or the Crucial M4 256GB.  I have read many reviews on both of the drives, but it just seems neck and neck.  From what I've read, Samsung is using Toggle NAND which is the fastest and reliable.  However, I have also read that as time past (maybe a year) the drive seems to degrade, meaning its read and write lowers.  I have read rave reviews about the Crucial M4, but maybe it's because it is lower priced than the 830.  The real question is will the 830 really degrade overtime?  I have not read any reviews saying the M4 degrades in performance.  Which one should I get?  I just need some opinions.

Thanks


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## RejZoR (May 9, 2012)

The degradation with both is VERY low if you are using TRIM supported OS and TRIM is properly enabled.

Basically if you use either of these two SSD's, you have Windows 7, you have your SATA ports set to AHCI and you have all the chipset (and SATA) drivers properly installed you should be fine.
You can't go wrong with either of 'em. They are both very reliable, Samsung is slightly thinner and has a higher sequential write. But also costs slightly more (usually). So it's up to you really.


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## Yo_Wattup (May 9, 2012)

Pretty much what he said^^^


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## dom99 (May 9, 2012)

I had the same debate and went for the 830256gb. Very nice drive.
I originally bought an intel 520 240gb but had serious issues with it right from installation.

My question is, because the m4 prices are crashing (£175 for 256gb on amazon), is it possible to raid the samsung and crucial together in raid 0?

I already run my setup in raid due to no AHCI option on motherboad


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## Aquinus (May 9, 2012)

dom99 said:


> I had the same debate and went for the 830256gb. Very nice drive.
> I originally bought an intel 520 240gb but had serious issues with it right from installation.
> 
> My question is, because the m4 prices are crashing (£175 for 256gb on amazon), is it possible to raid the samsung and crucial together in raid 0?
> ...



That is because RAID != AHCI, they're not the same thing. You can either use AHCI or use RAID. I have two Force GTs in RAID-0 and it works great so far. Granted I haven't had it long enough to be able to tell if how the life of the SSD is impacted. Lack of TRIM doesn't appear to be an issue though.

Also it is mostly bragging rights considering two Force GTs just hit 1gb/s at larger block sizes. It really isn't necessary and Windows won't boot much faster in RAID-0, other things will bottleneck the boot process.


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## dom99 (May 9, 2012)

Aquinus said:


> That is because RAID != AHCI, they're not the same thing. You can either use AHCI or use RAID. I have two Force GTs in RAID-0 and it works great so far. Granted I haven't had it long enough to be able to tell if how the life of the SSD is impacted. Lack of TRIM doesn't appear to be an issue though.
> 
> Also it is mostly bragging rights considering two Force GTs just hit 1gb/s at larger block sizes. It really isn't necessary and Windows won't boot much faster in RAID-0, other things will bottleneck the boot process.



What I meant was my motherboard is set to use RAID but I don't have my drives set up in an array, which is the same as AHCI


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## manofthem (May 9, 2012)

I own the 830 256gb and think its great. In my research prior to buying, I read many great reviews about the Samsung and did not hear about performance degradation, quite the contrary. But I have read and heard about SF based drives suffering performance degradation, multiple times. If you have the money for it, swing for Samsung


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## happy (May 11, 2012)

Thanks for the input guys.  But now the problem I am facing is whether to get the 830 or m4 because I found both at almost the same price.  Based on the review here --> http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/storage/samsung_830_sata3_ssd_256gb_review/4 the m4 seems to outbeat the 830 in about every benchmark.  Opinions are greatfully appreciated.


M4: $218
830: $220

Thanks


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## Aquinus (May 11, 2012)

dom99 said:


> What I meant was my motherboard is set to use RAID but I don't have my drives set up in an array, which is the same as AHCI



Not all RAID controllers in RAID mode will pass AHCI commands like TRIM, even if the disk is not in RAID. That is what I was trying to get at because my motherboards will actually change to an AHCI driver if I choose AHCI, or a RAID driver if I choose RAID. So just because you can use 1 disk in RAID mode doesn't mean it's running AHCI.


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## TheOne (May 11, 2012)

happy said:


> Hi guys,
> So I am debating on getting the Samsung 830 256GB or the Crucial M4 256GB.  I have read many reviews on both of the drives, but it just seems neck and neck.  From what I've read, Samsung is using Toggle NAND which is the fastest and reliable.  However, I have also read that as time past (maybe a year) the drive seems to degrade, meaning its read and write lowers.  I have read rave reviews about the Crucial M4, but maybe it's because it is lower priced than the 830.  The real question is will the 830 really degrade overtime?  I have not read any reviews saying the M4 degrades in performance.  Which one should I get?  I just need some opinions.
> 
> Thanks



Performance degradation, specifically write, comes from the drive becoming full, the drive has to re-arrange blocks of data more frequently before it can write, which is why the TRIM command is needed to help keep an SSD running efficiently by telling the drive which blocks are no longer needed so they can be erased, it's also why manufacturers recommend performing a Secure Erase on SSD's to return the drives performance back to specification, though that just tells the drive that it is empty and doesn't actually overwrite any data, usually.



happy said:


> Thanks for the input guys.  But now the problem I am facing is whether to get the 830 or m4 because I found both at almost the same price.  Based on the review here --> http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/storage/samsung_830_sata3_ssd_256gb_review/4 the m4 seems to outbeat the 830 in about every benchmark.  Opinions are greatfully appreciated.
> 
> 
> M4: $218
> ...



Personally I would go with the 830, the performance difference between the two probably wouldn't be noticeable and Samsung has its own software suite to help manage and update the SSD.  Also a couple more reviews *LegitReviews.com* and *StorageReview.com* which show the drives going back and forth.



Aquinus said:


> Not all RAID controllers in RAID mode will pass AHCI commands like TRIM, even if the disk is not in RAID. That is what I was trying to get at because my motherboards will actually change to an AHCI driver if I choose AHCI, or a RAID driver if I choose RAID. So just because you can use 1 disk in RAID mode doesn't mean it's running AHCI.



It should be noted that AHCI is generally enabled with RAID and that Intel recommends enabling RAID on their motherboards, specifically, for the best "_flexibility and upgradeability_". Also IRST drivers include AHCI and RAID support, so as long as your drivers are up to date and you're in RAID mode you should still have AHCI.


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