[SOLVED] Single Hard Drive Replacement Laptop - SATA SSD or NVMe SSD?

ShangWang

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Mar 26, 2021
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Hi all,

My MQ04ABF100 Toshiba SATA 1TB HDD on the Acer Nitro 5 AN515-53 seems to be failing and I am planning on getting a new hard drive sometime.

Right now I am debating on two options at a budget price:

Samsung 870 EVO 250GB SATA 2.5" Internal SSD Hard Drive (MZ-77E250B/AM) [Canada Version]: Amazon.ca: Computers & Tablets $57.99 250GB SATA

Or

WD_Black SN750 500GB NVMe Internal Gaming SSD - Gen3 PCIe, M.2 2280, 3D NAND - WDS500G3X0C: Amazon.ca: Computers & Tablets

Planning on buying the new and used $69.74 500GB PCIe

I read that NVMe requires a heatsink for longevity if your motherboard doesn't support it, I don't think the AN515-53 does. Do I really need a heatsink if I wanted to use the NVMe for a long time?

Having an SSD will already increase my performance, but if I wanted to have it for 5+ years, which drive should I get? I hardly have any files other than one game a time downloaded so I don't really care much for space.

Is it worth it to buy the NVMe at a used price or generally is it not worth the risk at all? Would the SATA SSD be better for reliability and life?
 
Solution
First of all, the difference in performance between a sata ssd and a pcie ssd is not as great as benchmarks would lead you to believe.
The difference between a ssd and a HDD is HUGE.
Sequential benchmarks at high queue depths look impressive.
But, we do things mostly one at a time, and most of that is small random i/o.

I have used the samsung ssd migration app to convert the hard drive on every laptop I own or have come across.
You can download the app and instructions here:
The ssd needs to hold the used portion of the C drive plus some for expansion.

If your laptop has an available m.2 port, I would use that.
Today, there is not much difference between 2.5"...
First of all, the difference in performance between a sata ssd and a pcie ssd is not as great as benchmarks would lead you to believe.
The difference between a ssd and a HDD is HUGE.
Sequential benchmarks at high queue depths look impressive.
But, we do things mostly one at a time, and most of that is small random i/o.

I have used the samsung ssd migration app to convert the hard drive on every laptop I own or have come across.
You can download the app and instructions here:
The ssd needs to hold the used portion of the C drive plus some for expansion.

If your laptop has an available m.2 port, I would use that.
Today, there is not much difference between 2.5" and m.2 devices of the same capacity.
Do not worry about m.2 heat. Heat does build up under sustained sequential processing.
Say 30 seconds for a virus scan.
But the device monitors it's temperature and will slow down a bit if necessary.

On brands, Samsung is the go to brand so far as I am concerned.
Here is a report from puget systems on reliability:

I would not buy a used or off brand ssd if I could avoid it.
Dealing with a suspect ssd is just not what you want to sign up for.
 
Solution
Hi all,

My MQ04ABF100 Toshiba SATA 1TB HDD on the Acer Nitro 5 AN515-53 seems to be failing and I am planning on getting a new hard drive sometime.

Right now I am debating on two options at a budget price:

Samsung 870 EVO 250GB SATA 2.5" Internal SSD Hard Drive (MZ-77E250B/AM) [Canada Version]: Amazon.ca: Computers & Tablets $57.99 250GB SATA

Or

WD_Black SN750 500GB NVMe Internal Gaming SSD - Gen3 PCIe, M.2 2280, 3D NAND - WDS500G3X0C: Amazon.ca: Computers & Tablets

Planning on buying the new and used $69.74 500GB PCIe

I read that NVMe requires a heatsink for longevity if your motherboard doesn't support it, I don't think the AN515-53 does. Do I really need a heatsink if I wanted to use the NVMe for a long time?

Having an SSD will already increase my performance, but if I wanted to have it for 5+ years, which drive should I get? I hardly have any files other than one game a time downloaded so I don't really care much for space.

Is it worth it to buy the NVMe at a used price or generally is it not worth the risk at all? Would the SATA SSD be better for reliability and life?
Get a 2.5 quality ssd 500GB.
Clone old hdd to new ssd.
Straight swap.

Do it quick before your hdd decides to croak.