Internals, Testing Methodology and System Setup
Internals:
After disassembly:
Hmm, that looks familiar. Let's compare to a shot of the DC S3500 and S3700:
Yup, safe to say the SSD 730 is based on Intel's Data Center units.
Lets move on to a closer shot of the controller:
The part numbers of the controller is identical to the DC offerings, granted with a slightly tweaked revision. Flash is 20nm IMFT. Note the power-loss capacitors from the DC units have also carried over.
More flash populates the rear of the 480GB unit.
Testing Methodology
Our tests are a mix of synthetic and real-world benchmarks. PCMark, IOMeter, HDTach, HDTune, Yapt and our custom File Copy test round out the selection to cover just about all bases. If you have any questions about our tests just drop into the Storage Forum and we'll help you out!
Test System Setup
We currently employ a pair of testbeds. A newer ASUS P8Z77-V Pro/Thunderbolt and an ASUS Z87-PRO. Variance between both boards has been deemed negligible.
PC Perspective would like to thank ASUS, Corsair, and Kingston for supplying some of the components of our test rigs.
| Hard Drive Test System Setup | |
| CPU | Intel Core i7-4770K |
| Motherboard | ASUS P8Z77-V Pro/TB / ASUS Z87-PRO |
| Memory | Kingston HyperX 4GB DDR3-2133 CL9 |
| Hard Drive | G.Skill 32GB SLC SSD |
| Sound Card | N/A |
| Video Card | Intel® HD Graphics 4600 |
| Video Drivers | Intel |
| Power Supply | Corsair CMPSU-650TX |
| DirectX Version | DX9.0c |
| Operating System | Windows 8.1 X64 |
- PCMark05
- Yapt
- IOMeter
- HDTach
- HDTune
- PCPer File Copy Test
That lel so gamer skull is
That lel so gamer skull is killing me.
I like the Intel Skull logo!
I like the Intel Skull logo! They haven’t used it on a lot of things outside their desktop boards, but I think it’s awesome.
Allyn, your reviews are the
Allyn, your reviews are the bee’s knees. <3's
So can I OC this drive past
So can I OC this drive past what intel has already done. I would like that.
Nope. I wouldn’t want to push
Nope. I wouldn't want to push this any further. Intel can guarantee no data loss due to the overclock but only at as high as they have chosen to clock it.
Thanks Allen. Count me still
Thanks Allen. Count me still in the same boat with firmware should be solid out of the box *cough* OCZ *cough* where flashing shouldn’t be necessary, and overclocking storage solutions being a bad idea.
Enthusiasts may find some fun out of this, but I can’t get it out of my head that its just a bad idea to do it on storage. That’s taking overclocking a little too far lol.
You’re right in that SSDs
You're right in that SSDs with user selectable over clocks are a bad idea and would be difficult to implement well / safely. As such, Intel chose to set these overclock speeds from the factory. They are not adjustable. It also means those speeds are covered by the same 5 year warranty.
Actually I tend to trust
Actually I tend to trust Intel as far as the overclocking goes. I don’t mind this, no different than overclocking anything else. Then again, I may be wrong. The Intel of today is not quite in the same position as the Intel of 10 years ago. Who’s to say they aren’t willing to gamble a bit.
Crucial M500 480GB
Crucial M500 480GB
Really at 122F that is kinda
Really at 122F that is kinda warm, three years from now if that the drive will be dead. That’s of course depending on the amount of tear the cells go through before then.
Nevertheless nice review and still thinking about the Samsung EVO 256GB for the new system build.
Also where did you get that Digital Infrared Thermometer?
Harbor Freight 🙂
Harbor Freight 🙂
At 16:58 in the video, why
At 16:58 in the video, why did Ryan say the most popular SSDs are “unfortunately” the 840 evo? I was under the impression that that was a pretty good drive, what is wrong with it?
Not a thing! It’s
Not a thing! It's 'unfortunate' for the SSD 730.
Not to be mean here … but I
Not to be mean here … but I am trying to decide on this vs. an 840 evo. Why would I buy this when the spec’s are better on an evo and the price is much lower? It seems like such a price hike for a 730 for marginally better performance. Or am I completely missing something?
So – it wouldn’t advisable to
So – it wouldn’t advisable to put this in an Icy Dock? It would have a fan on the side of it and I had planned on getting this drive. but the heat is a little worrisome.
Well it think Mobile data
Well it think Mobile data centers offers numerous benefits over regular data centers such as makeshift storage, disaster management, colocation alternative, and competitive costs. source .. http://www.cloudwedge.com/