Top 5 SSDs to Make Your PC Faster

If your computer has been running a little slow lately, maybe it’s time to make some modifications so it can run a bit faster. Computers, no matter how big or small will have at least one internal drive, which comes in the form of a regular hard drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD).

A hard disk drive is a data storage device used for storing and retrieving digital information using rapidly rotating discs coated with magnetic material. HDDs are measured by its storage capacity and how well they perform.

A solid-state drive (SSD) is a data storage device that uses combined circuit assemblies as memory to store data obstinately. SSDs do not contain any moving mechanical components, which differentiate them from customary hard disk drives (HDDs). They’re also more expensive then hard disk drives but the costs have lowered due to more vendors entering the market and advancements in technology. In 2012 the cost of SSD’s have lowered quite a bit, which resulted in consumers wanting to add them to their list of upgrades.

Hybrid drives combine the best of bother worlds. It features SSDs and HDDs in the same unit. It includes a large hard disk drive and an SSD cache to improve performance of frequently accessed data. So if you're looking for data storage solutions that have the best of both worlds, there is no better option than upgrading to a hybrid solid state drive.

With all that said, you should check your computer specs to see what your storage device currently is. If your computer uses a hard drive as the main internal storage unit, one major upgrade that will have your computer running like new, would be to replace it with an SSD. This is taking into consideration the money isn't that big of an issue, storage isn't too important and you want to get the most out of your computer by boosting its speed. If money doesn't matter and your storage needs aren't significant, than an SSD is the way to go.

If you currently own a desktop, it’s better to use a little bit of both worlds. The best way to set up your desktop would be to use an SSD as the main drive that hosts the OS and a fast hard drive as a secondary drive for hosting the data. In doing so, this will give you both better performance, and more storage space for your data.

Here's are list of the top 5 SSD's available on the market.

1. Corsair Neutron 240GB

Pros:

• Performance was very good.
• Reasonably priced when compared to it's competitors.

Cons:

• None, this thing works great, although it isn't as fast as the Corsair Neutron GTX 240GB.
• Brand isn't widely recognized among consumers (Link a Media).

2. Corsair Neutron GTX 240GB

Pros:

• Performance is excellent for the price.
• Reasonably priced when compared to it's competitors.
• Five year warranty.

Cons:

• Poor performance when writing our large batch of files and folders.
• Brand isn't widely recognized among consumers (Link a Media).

3. Intel 330 Series 180GB

Pros:

• When compared to previous SSDs from Intel the cost per gigabyte is significantly lower.
• Comes with an SSD Toolbox and data migration software from Intel.

Cons:

• It's 9.5mm profile renders it too thick for ultraportables.
• When comparing it to the competition, the price is slightly higher.

4. KingSpec Challenge 240GB

Pros:

• Overall this has to be one of the best in terms of performance.
• Includes cables and an carrying case.

Cons:

• Slow write performance.
• Warranty is only three years while competitors are at five years.

5. OCZ Vertex 4 256GB

Pros:

• Overall this has to be one of the best in terms of performance.
• Reasonably priced and has a great price/performance ratio.
• 16GB more capacity than much of the competition

Cons:

• Performed below average when reading small files and folders.
• Warranty is only three years while competitors are at five years.

Sandisk recently announced a new member to their SSD arsenal: the Extreme II. The Extreme II is a SATA III drive that boasts increased speeds and response times while still being energy efficient for anyone looking for a performance boost. The hardware claims up to 550mb/sec sequential read speed as well as a 510MB/sec sequential write speed. It comes in 120GB, 240GB, and 480GB sizes for 129.99, 229.99 and 439.99, receptively. If you are currently using one, please let us know in the comments how well its working for you!