Question What is best for Mini Comp- SATA SSD Internal, SATA SSD internal w Adaptor or External SSD 3.2 ?

[rom2124]

I recently bought a Minisforum UM690, which seemed to have good specification with a Ryzen 9 processor. However it came with only 500 GB SSD. And as I intended to do some gaming, I soon realised that this wasn't enough, with some games being quite large, for example Microsoft Flight Simulator which took up nearly half the SSD. So I wanted to upgrade the storage to 2 TB. Well I am not exactly a computer expert, bloody hopeless really so I'm having a lot of trouble deciding the best way to do it especially with so much conflicting information around. Apparently it is possible to add a SATA 3 HDD or SSD up to 2TB internally. But some people have suggested get an internal SSD drive, attach it to SATA adaptor and connect it through the USB 3.2 or USB 4 Port ,which will be quicker than internal SATA. I always thought internal would be faster, but it seems not always the case? But when it comes to the actual SSD getting confused there as well. For example this one- "Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND SATA 2,5" Internal SSD - Up to 540MB/s". Then I came across another one this time external, so wouldn't need an adapter, which seems even faster. Another example: Samsung T7 Portable SSD - 2 TB - USB 3.2 Gen.2 External SSD.. Now this one is quoted at 1050 MB/s, which is nearly double the speed of the internal with adapter. So it would appear also depends on which type of SSD you use, not just the adapter or SATA or whatever?? It's all very confusing and don't know what is best to buy ,so any advice would be welcome.

 

[jeremyj_83]

I recently bought a Minisforum UM690, which seemed to have good specification with a Ryzen 9 processor. However it came with only 500 GB SSD. And as I intended to do some gaming, I soon realised that this wasn't enough, with some games being quite large, for example Microsoft Flight Simulator which took up nearly half the SSD. So I wanted to upgrade the storage to 2 TB. Well I am not exactly a computer expert, bloody hopeless really so I'm having a lot of trouble deciding the best way to do it especially with so much conflicting information around. Apparently it is possible to add a SATA 3 HDD or SSD up to 2TB internally. But some people have suggested get an internal SSD drive, attach it to SATA adaptor and connect it through the USB 3.2 or USB 4 Port ,which will be quicker than internal SATA. I always thought internal would be faster, but it seems not always the case? But when it comes to the actual SSD getting confused there as well. For example this one- "Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND SATA 2,5" Internal SSD - Up to 540MB/s". Then I came across another one this time external, so wouldn't need an adapter, which seems even faster. Another example: Samsung T7 Portable SSD - 2 TB - USB 3.2 Gen.2 External SSD.. Now this one is quoted at 1050 MB/s, which is nearly double the speed of the internal with adapter. So it would appear also depends on which type of SSD you use, not just the adapter or SATA or whatever?? It's all very confusing and don't know what is best to buy ,so any advice would be welcome

I personally would use the internal connection first and then go to an external if you need more storage. That Samsung USB drive uses a NVMe drive inside which is faster, usually, than SATA. However, they tend to be more expensive overall. Here are a couple ideas for a good internal SATA SSD.

PCPartPicker Part List

Storage: Crucial MX500 2 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Samsung 870 Evo 2 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($159.99 @ Abt)
Storage: Crucial MX500 4 TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($229.99 @ Best Buy)
Total: $519.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-01-24 09:41 EST-0500

If you need or want faster SSD and not dealing with the fun of attaching an internal drive then USB is an easy choice. PCWorld has a review of some of the best USB SSDs for gaming. https://www.pcworld.com/article/553786/best-external-ssd-for-gaming.html

 

[rom2124]

Thanks for that advice.. yes you're probably right. I don't do that much gaming anyway, so I will just get a internal one to see how it works out and will probably order an adapter as well, in case I decide to go external. They only cost €20 or something, so might be useful in future anyway.

 

[rom2124]

Mmm... another option I considered . What do you think of this combination?

Crucial P3 Plus 2TB M.2 PCIe Gen4 NVMe Internal SSD - Up to 5000MB/s -Combined With- ORICO M.2 NVMe SATA SSD Enclosure Adapter Toolless, Aluminium USB 3.2/USB3.1 Gen2 10Gbps PCIe NVMe, 5Gbps NGFF SATA External M2 Case for M2 M-Key (B+M Key)

If I connect this to the USB 3.2 or USB 4 port that should give me a pretty good speed?

 

[CelicaGT]

Unless you are doing some very specific tasks, you will see virtually no performance difference between a SATA 2.5" internal, NVMe or USB 4. Just keep it simple and inexpensive, get the internal 2.5".

 

[geofelt]

It looks to me that you have the space and connections to add a 2.5" sata ssd.
A samsung 2tb 870 EVO is about $160:
https://www.newegg.com/samsung-2tb-870-evo-series/p/N82E16820147794?Item=N82E16820147794
The evo version is a bit slower, but ok also.
Here is a video showing how to install parts into your pc.
https://www.amazon.com/live/video/03a997e45b3b43128325c90cee2c219e?ref_=dp_vse_rvc_5

As to performance, the differences among all ssd devices shows up in synthetic benchmarks.
ANY ssd will be 40x faster than a conventional 5400 rpm hdd.

 

[rom2124]

Unless you are doing some very specific tasks, you will see virtually no performance difference between a SATA 2.5" internal, NVMe or USB 4. Just keep it simple and inexpensive, get the internal 2.5".

Ahhh Okay although that combination I mentioned with the NVMe is actually bit cheaper than the SSD internal , plus I guess might be useful as I could then use it as a separate portable drive, as I intend to get another mini PC later? .... Decisions decisions..... Or I could raid my credit card and buy both 🙂

 

[CelicaGT]

Ahhh Okay although that combination I mentioned with the NVMe is actually bit cheaper than the SSD internal , plus I guess might be useful as I could then use it as a separate portable drive, as I intend to get another mini PC later? .... Decisions decisions..... Or I could raid my credit card and buy both

Consider that some games really do not like to run on removable storage. I personally have never had any issues, but I do se a LOT of posts in relevant game forums.

 

[MWink64]

I would advise against using an external drive. External drives are more prone to a variety of issues that can result in reduced performance, data loss, or other unexpected behavior.

But some people have suggested get an internal SSD drive, attach it to SATA adaptor and connect it through the USB 3.2 or USB 4 Port ,which will be quicker than internal SATA.

On a modern machine (and assuming it doesn't have a flawed SATA controller) this will never be the case. A SATA drive connected to a USB bridge is simply adding another link to the chain. The limits of the SATA interface will still apply. They might have meant that an NVMe based USB drive could outperform an internal SATA drive. Regardless, there will likely be little to no noticeable difference between a high end and mediocre SSD for gaming. Most SATA drives will perform perfectly well. That said, I'd strongly advise against the Crucial BX500, as that model seems plagued by an issue that causes serious performance drops. The Crucial MX500 is fine and I think it's currently one of the best choices for SATA drives.