Is the Samsung 840 SSD worth it? Also what's the diff compared to Pro?

[rladngus]

The sequential write speed on a Samsung 840 SSD seems suspiciously low compared to other SSDs like the Corsair Force 180GB (520 MB/s write speed vs Samsung 840's 250 MB/s) and ADATA XPG 256GB (530 MB/s write speed vs Samsung 840's 250 MB/s).

Size is pretty important too and so, in that regard, i'm excluding the Corsair Force 180GB since it offers similar performance but a much smaller storage capacity than the ADATA XPG 256GB for the same price range. Only reason I mentioned it is for comparing its performance to the samsung 840, which I'm wondering if I should get it or look further for better SSDs. Friends recommended me the Samsung 840 but I can't say that I can take their word for it.

Also how come that some SSDs, the ADATA XPG and the Corsair Force in particular, don't include the 4K Random Read/Write specs? Is 4k Random not that important?

Oh and what's the difference between a Samsung 840 and a Samsung 840 Pro? Is the Pro worth getting it over the standard version?


ALSO! Does SATA III = 6.0 GB/s? Sorry if I'm asking too many question lol. Total newb to computer hardware specs here.

This is for OS, applications, and gaming BTW. 😉

 

[JohnnyLucky]

The Samsung 840 Pro Series and the 840 Series use different types of NAND Flash Memory. The memory in the 840 series is of the TLC variety while the memory in the 840 Pro is of the MLC variety. The flash memory in the 840 is definitely slower than the memory in the 840 Pro.

The 840 Pro will become the ssd of choice for enthusiasts and hardcore gamers. The 840 will probably be considered as a value ssd and will have a lower price.

Here is a link to a technical review over at AnandTech that explains the differences:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6337/samsung-ssd-840-250gb-review

SSD companies pick and choose which synthetic benchmarks they want to publish. They normally select those benchmarks that put their ssd's in the best light. The synthetic benchmarks are called synthetic for a reason. They are not real. They were designed to grossly exaggerate small differences in ssd's. At best they are only a very very rough approximation of real world performance.

The 4K Randon read and write specs are almost always included in technical reviews. I maintain the ssd database listed in the sticky at the very top of this ssd forum section. Here is the link:

http://www.johnnylucky.org/data-storage/ssd-database.html

Scroll down to the brands and models you are interested in and follow the links to the technical reviews.

Currently I do not recommend purchasing either the 840 or 840 Pro. They are brand new ssd's that have not yet established a track record. I recommend waiting six months to see if any problems develop.

 

[bigshootr8]

Man that is some good advice from Johnny. Yea I would wait and see what comes of the 840 personally I'd get the professional because getting a higher quality memory will show. Although samsung ssd's are known for not being chumps 😛

Tomshardware did a article on this as well.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/840-pro-ssd-toggle-mode-2,3302.html

Also a good article on tlc nand I'm going to read it myself had never heard of tlc nand only slc and mlc.

 

[rladngus]

The Samsung 840 Pro Series and the 840 Series use different types of NAND Flash Memory. The memory in the 840 series is of the TLC variety while the memory in the 840 Pro is of the MLC variety. The flash memory in the 840 is definitely slower than the memory in the 840 Pro.

The 840 Pro will become the ssd of choice for enthusiasts and hardcore gamers. The 840 will probably be considered as a value ssd and will have a lower price.

Here is a link to a technical review over at AnandTech that explains the differences:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6337/samsung-ssd-840-250gb-review

SSD companies pick and choose which synthetic benchmarks they want to publish. They normally select those benchmarks that put their ssd's in the best light. The synthetic benchmarks are called synthetic for a reason. They are not real. They were designed to grossly exaggerate small differences in ssd's. At best they are only a very very rough approximation of real world performance.

The 4K Randon read and write specs are almost always included in technical reviews. I maintain the ssd database listed in the sticky at the very top of this ssd forum section. Here is the link:

http://www.johnnylucky.org/data-storage/ssd-database.html

Scroll down to the brands and models you are interested in and follow the links to the technical reviews.

Currently I do not recommend purchasing either the 840 or 840 Pro. They are brand new ssd's that have not yet established a track record. I recommend waiting six months to see if any problems develop.

How important is the track record? When you said that the 840 Pro "will become the ssd of choice for enthusiasts and hardcore gamers," I got really excited and was a heartbeat away from purchasing it. :-/

 

[bigshootr8]

Well its brand new so its hard to tell how good or bad it may be. I would say though if you were to put confidence in a manufacture SAMSUNG, CRUCIAL, or INTEL would all be very good people to put your confidence in in terms of SSD's.

 

[bigshootr8]

Also Samsung is the first to release a TLC NAND SSD so like this article says it will be interesting to see what comes of it. The pro models aren't out yet to the public.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6329/samsung-releases-tlc-nand-based-840-ssd



http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&N=-1&isNodeId=1&Description=samsung+840+pro&x=0&y=0

edit here is a review from anandtech
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6328/samsung-ssd-840-pro-256gb-review/8

 

[JohnnyLucky]

rladngus - I know what your mean. I am tempted to get an 840 Pro myself but will wait until my next major build. Based on Samsung's track record with the 470 and 830, the new 840 Pro should be okay. In the meantime the Samsung 830 is an excellent choice.

Being King of the Hill is nice but it never lasts very long. Somebody will come along with something new and improved. I guarantee it.

 

[rladngus]

Best answer selected by rladngus.