Glyph GT 050Q - Hard drive - 500 GB - external - FireWire / FireWire 800 / Hi-Speed USB / eSATA - 7200 rpm - buffer: 16 MB - black powder coat Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)i've been using glyph drives for about 10 years. this is probably the 15th firewire glyph drive i've purchased.

i'm an engineer and producer in the music industry and glyph has become (for the most part) an industry standard. we use these drives for our digital recording systems. i have yet to run into any major problems with these drive. they're fast, durable and reliable. and i do all my backups on glyph drives. i've had a lacie and ezquest drive fail on me while the glyph's have been solid.

this is the one to get for a portable, professional hard drive.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Glyph GT 050Q - Hard drive - 500 GB - external - FireWire / FireWire 800 / Hi-Speed USB / eSATA - 7200 rpm - buffer: 16 MB - black powder coat

Product Description:
The GT050Q builds upon the success of the original GT050 and adds FireWire 800, eSATA and USB ports. Designed for high-speed access to audio and video content, while at the same time offering flexible connectivity options, the GT 050Q is...

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Iomega eGo Mac Edition 500 GB USB 2.0/FireWire 400/800 Portable External Hard Drive 34629 (Ruby Red) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I got this portable hard drive recently to use for Time Machine with my MacBook Pro. Some notes and observations so far:

1) First off, the hard drive's ruby red color is not as bright as the Amazon photo. It's a darker red, which I prefer.

2) As with most portable hard drives, it is very quiet. Sitting a foot or two away from it, you should barely hear it, if at all.

3) This hard drive does not spin down after a certain amount of inactivity (unlike, for instance, a WD Passport, which spins down after 10 minutes or so of inactivity). You may or may not prefer this, depending on what you use it for. I use mine as a Time Machine, which backs up my hard drive every hour. I prefer the fact that it doesn't keep spinning down and spinning back up every hour (many argue that this is worse for a hard drive than simply leaving it on all the time, but there are varying opinions on this).

4) I wouldn't say the hard drive runs hot. It feels warm to the touch when idling all day like mine. However it may get hot if being used for constant data access. The only time it has felt somewhat hot is when I did the initial ~200GB backup of my hard drive.

5) This hard drive works well for daisy chaining. I have it connected to my MBP via Firewire 800, and I have a Firewire 400 external hard drive connected to the Iomega. NOTE: If you have the Iomega connected to your computer via USB, you cannot daisy chain a Firewire device.

6) Size-wise, it is a bit bigger than my (USB-only) WD Passport but it is still fairly compact.

7) The exterior feels like plastic, but the box says that the case is made from aluminum, so I'll trust that it is.

8) The light on the back of the drive is VERY bright. It actually projects light onto my wall. The color of the light may vary. I bought two of these drives from two different Best Buys... One has a blue light, the other has a white light. Either way, I found the light to be pretty annoying, so I simply covered it up with a small piece of black electrical tape. Works well.

9) Comes with a USB cable, Firewire 400 cable, and Firewire 800 cable.

10) One review noted: "No on-off switch, drive does not stop when computer sleeps, does not stop when computer turned off!". As far as bus-powered 2.5" portable hard drives go, I have not seen any with an on-off switch, although some may exist. If you want that, you will probably want to go with a 3.5" external desktop drive. HOWEVER, I think it is important to note that the Iomega WILL power down when the computer is sleeping or shut off. I was worried when I read this review because I thought the drive would keep spinning when I put my computer to sleep, but this is not the case. The only thing that stays on is the light. It will only turn off when you unplug the drive from the computer.

Overall, this drive works perfectly as a Time Machine. It is fast, small, quiet, not too hot, and unobtrusive. After the initial backup, you should barely notice successive backups (unless they are really big ones). The price is also great for a portable hard drive with three different connectivity options. The only thing I can't review is hard drive longevity... Only time will tell. Here's hoping that it lasts for a long time.--UPDATE February 5, 2010--

Hard drive is still working extremely well for me as a Time Machine. A few new notes and observations:

1) A lot of people have been reporting that the top of their cases are detaching, which is pretty discouraging. I've been lucky, as the only problem I've had is that one of the front corners has come up about 1-2 millimeters. However, the top of the case is still in place and secure for the most part. I bought another one of these hard drives for my father, and the top of his case has not detached at all. I should note that I leave my hard drive on all day and sometimes overnight, whereas my father only turns his on every once in a while (when he turns his computer on), but it is generally turned off. I did buy my hard drives from Best Buy... Perhaps they received a shipment of units that were of better quality than what Amazon received?

2) This is a strange one... My hard drive runs SIGNIFICANTLY cooler than when I first got it. It hardly feels warm at all, even though it's spinning away all day. I don't really understand why, but I can't complain.

3) My thanks to A.W. Jester for pointing out that you must register online to get the 3 year warranty. I had missed this at first!

This product seems pretty hit-or-miss based on the workmanship. On the one hand, I'd have a hard time recommending it based on the other reviews I've read. On the other hand, I would recommend it based on my own experience. It's a great value for the price if you're lucky enough to get a good one.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Iomega eGo Mac Edition 500 GB USB 2.0/FireWire 400/800 Portable External Hard Drive 34629 (Ruby Red)

Product Description:
Great aluminum design and multiple connections too! With one FireWire 800 port, one FireWire 400 port, and one USB 2.0 port, the Iomega eGo Portable Hard Drive offers triple interface versatility for Mac users and a stylish design. These drives are formatted HFS+ for a great out-of-box experience. Plus, the Iomega Drop Guard feature protects the drive when dropped up to 51" (40% above the industry average!). EMC Retrospect, QuikProtect, and MozyHome Online backup software is included with purchase. Available in Ruby Red, Alpine White and Midnight Blue in up to 500GB capacity (capacities vary per color).

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LaCie 301827U d2 Quadra 1 TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 External Hard Disk Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I'm in shock.

Having just moved from Windows to Mac (OS X 10.5.2) I'm used to long, involved nightmare hardware installations.Between OS X and the utilities supplied by LaCie on this drive, the whole business was up and running in about ten minutes.It took me longer to figure out which was the FireWare 800 cable than it did to finish the rest of the installation!

I have a new iMac with both FireWire 400 and 800 ports, and I'm using the LaCie as my Time Machine drive, so I opted to use the fastest interface available, the FireWire 800.The installation had four steps:

1.Physically attach the footplate to the drive so it could sit on its thin side, as in the photo with this review.Tools:included Allen wrench.Time: 60 sec

2.Attach the FW800 cable and the power supply.Plug in same.Tools: none.Time:60 sec.

3.Turn on the drive.Tools:finger.Time: 15 sec.

4.Click through the installation program that pops up on the screen.The last click is to inform OS X that this will be my TimeMachine drive.Tools:mouse, finger.Time:5 min.

Total time:7.25 min.(It took me about 2.5 minutes to figure out which cable to use.)

The FireWire interface is so fast, it did the initial TimeMachine 30GB backup in about 30 minutes.

The drive is quiet, it's fast, and it has a cool blue light on the front.It also has an auto power switch that detects when the iMac is seeking from the drive and switches on drive power.

What's not to like?

Click Here to see more reviews about: LaCie 301827U d2 Quadra 1 TB eSATA/FireWire800/FireWire400/USB 2.0 External Hard Disk

Product Description:
With a unique ridged exterior that enhances the enclosure's cooling performance, and a quadruple interface for full Mac and PC compatibility, the LaCie 301827U d2 Quadra External Hard Drive is an all-in-one drive that's built with the professional in mind. Designed by internationally acclaimed designer Neil Poulton, this versatile drive offers extreme performance and an aesthetic touch that will enhance any work space.
The LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk offers:

eSATA 3Gbits, FireWire 400/800, and USB 2.0 for universal compatibility and extreme speed
1 TB of disk space.
7200 rpm spin speed and 16 MB cache.
Fanless ridged design for cool, quiet operation.

Unique ridged heat sink aluminum design increases surface area by 60% for cooler operation. (Show here with the Little Big Disk Quadra and the 2big Network.) View larger.

The minimalist space-saving design will enhance the aesthetics of any work space. View larger. View back.

The d2 can be racked horizontally and set up in a RAID configuration. View larger. Quadruple Interface for Unmatched Performance and Compatibility
The LaCie 301827U d2 Quadra External Hard Drive features one eSATA 3 Gbit port, two FireWire 800 ports (9-pin), one FireWire 400 port (6-pin), and one hi-speed USB 2.0 port that is USB 1.1-compatible. (Cables for each connection are conveniently included with the drive.) This quadruple interface makes the d2 Quadra ideal for demanding multi-media applications that require extreme speed as well as universal connectivity. The USB and FireWire connections ensure that you can transfer or back up your data from your laptop or other computers, while the eSATA interface offers a transfer rate of up to 300 MB per second (3Gbits/sec).
The LaCie d2 is compatible with Windows, including Vista, and Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard, including Time Machine, making it an ideal partner for your Mac. Time Machine automatically backs up your Mac's system files, applications, accounts, preferences, music, photos, movies, and documents to an external hard drive and lets you easily go back in time to recover anything.
Superior Drive Performance for Power Users
Built for power users such as video editors, the d2 Quadra features a rotational speed of 7200 rpm and a cache of at least 8 MB. Perfect for digital content creation, audio/video editing, DVD authoring, web animation, and more, the d2 Quadra can handle multiple demanding professional tasks. It can also be daisy-chained via FireWire or connected to your DV camera and is even bootable in FireWire for Mac and in eSATA for Mac/PC.
With a capacity of 1 TB (1,000 GB), the d2 Quadra can hold up to 1,000,000 photos, 350,000 songs, or 70 hours of DV video. If you purchase multiple drives, they can be daisy-chained and set to RAID 1 for data redundancy and protection, or RAID 0 for even greater speed.
The d2 Quadra also offers three power management options: "Auto" for energy efficiency; "On" for instant access; and "Off" for data protection. The drive also lets you back up files or launch any application with a simple push of the front blue button. This "shortcut button" can be configured to launch any document or application, or initiate the included EMC Retrospect Express software that offers automated backups.
Smart, Elegant Design and Loaded with Software
With the d2 Quadra, Neil Poulton has fashioned a unique, attractive and functional drive that offers excellent heat dissipation features and space-saving options for stacking. The fanless aluminum heat sink design features exterior ridges that provide 60 percent more surface area for heat dissipation, keeping the drive quiet and as safe as possible at all times. The d2 Quadra will sit nicely in an upright position alongside your PC or Mac machines, or it can be stacked horizontally with other drives or rack mounted to save desktop space.
Set-up and use is quick and easy, thanks to LaCie's preloaded Setup Assistant that helps format the hard disk according to your needs. For instance, the d2 Quadra lets you easily create a FAT32 partition for use with Macs. With the LaCie 1-Click Backup, you can backup any file into the location of your choice with a simple "click"--either via the desktop icon, or CTRL-S on your keyboard. And LaCie's Shortcut Button lets you easily launch any application with one push.
Also included with the d2 is EMC Retrospect professional backup software for PC and Mac users. This award-winning software offers several back-up options, including fast backups and scheduled back-up of either a single file or your complete system. With EMC Retrospect Express, you'll never have to worry about losing your data again.
The drive measures a slim 1.7 x 6.3 x 6.8 inches (WxHxD), weighs 3.31 pounds, and is backed by a 3-year limited warranty.
About LaCie
Established in France in 1989, LaCie is a leading manufacturer of computer peripherals for Windows, Apple and Linux users. With offices and plants in the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, Europe, Singapore and Hong Kong, LaCie develops and manufactures external storage solutions and color monitors that help professionals and everyday people easily manage their digital lives. LaCie has differentiated its products through original designs and leading-edge technology.

What's in the Box
LaCie d2 Quadra Hard Disk; eSATA-to-eSATA cable; FireWire 800 (9-to-9 pin) cable; FireWire 400 (6-to-6 pin) cable; USB 2.0 cable (USB 1.1 compatible); external power supply; drive stand for upright desktop use; LaCie Utilities (preloaded): LaCie '1-Click' Backup Software for PC or Mac; SilverKeeper Software for automatic backup and file verification (Mac); EMC Retrospect Express 6.1 (Mac); and EMC Retrospect Express HD 2.0 (Windows).

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LaCie Rugged All-Terrain 500 GB FireWire 800/ FireWire 400/USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive 301371 Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The LaCie 250 GB Rugged Hard Disk with FireWire 800, FireWire 400, and USB2.0 is a great unit that is ideal for those with fire-wire ports built-in to their laptops and computers.Unfortunately while most Macs have fire-wire built-in, right now the majority of Windows based laptops do not.That is changing as more PCs are getting them built-in.I need drives for several computers, including Mac, Windows and Linux boxes.Suffice it to say that this drive is definitely a must own if you have a Mac and may even be worth installing a fire-wire card if you have a PC.

While it is no secret that I love my WD hard-drives, the LaCie drive definitely outperforms it in a few key areas.So depending on your needs, it may be well worth the small premium to pick up the LaCie.

Don't get me wrong, when it comes to value and best performance for your buck the Western Digital My Passport Essential 320GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive (Intense Blue) is a great option. Like the LaCie, it has a variety of color options including black, red, white and blue. Of course changing colors on your LaCie is much easier than buying a different color WD drive when the mood strikes.The rugged color bands are interchangeable.The WD also doesn't have the "rugged" edges of the LaCie, and it only has USB 2.0 which makes it impractical for certain situations.

Namely, if you want to run something off your external drive, such as a program or a media library, the performance of USB alone is just not as good.Just ignore the specifications and numbers, because from first hand experience I can tell you fire-wire definitely performs faster for large backups or regular data access.It's just faster.

The LaCie is also more versatile.Even if you are planning on using it for USB only right now, having the fire-wire means that if you get another computer that is capable you already have the option built in.That may be a stretch, but if you are planning on getting a new laptop within the next year from one of the big brands you can pretty much plan on them having fire-wire.

Now there are a few slight advantages that the WD has over the LaCie.The LaCie is definitely slightly bigger and thicker, and it's also more expensive.Still, the difference is small enough that the pros will probably outweigh those small cons, especially for Mac users.

Pros
+ Great versatility with fire-wire 400, 800, and USB 2.0
+ Fire-Wire speeds give you better response times for online data access
+ Nice size with aluminum shell and "rugged" edges that hold up regular use
+ USB or FW powered, so no A/C required, which is great for portability
+ USB power sharing option allows you to hook up a USB hub, etc.
+ Works well on Windows Vista, XP and Mac OS X and older versions too
+ You can set up your own disk encryption for security and privacy
+ Nice looks, and the brushed surface scratches much less than my WD drives
+ Other color options for your rubber bumpers are sold separately
+ Turns on and off with your computer or easily ejected via system tray
+ Easy driver-less installation really works!
+ Included backup software is less buggy than WD and may be useful for some
+ 250 GB capacity is decent for most users, but I hope a larger size is coming SOON!
+ The 2 year warrantee is good, but not as good as WD's 3 and 5 year warrantees depending on model

Cons
- Priced higher than WD on a dollar per gigabyte basis
- Larger GB capacity drives not widely available from LaCie though they are offered by WD
- Form factor is slightly larger and thicker than the WD passport drive
- Warrantee is also shorter than WD
- The *rugged* thing may be oversold, and I don't recommend dropping it
- Still no standard Linux drivers or software included, but there are workarounds
- Have to spend your cash to get a case that should have been included

Conclusion

This drive is great or those who want a portable drive for backups or running a media library application like iTunes or Media Center.I only wish they sold it in larger capacities. The premium price may be worth it for those who need that extra edge in speed offered by fire-wire connectivity.

Enjoy!

Click Here to see more reviews about: LaCie Rugged All-Terrain 500 GB FireWire 800/ FireWire 400/USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive 301371

Product Description:
All those videos ready to be downloaded but so little available space. Fear not, LaCie 301371 Rugged 500 GB External Hard Drive is here. At under 12 ounces, and nearly pocket size, it's hard to believe that the external LaCie 301371 Rugged 500 GB USB 2.0 / FireWire Hard Drive has space for so much data storage. With specially designed rugged protection, this drive is at home with your desktop or notebook, and you. The exclusive creation of world-renown designer Neil Poulton, this portable storage solution offers the supreme speed of FireWire 800 along with FireWire 400 and Hi-Speed USB 2.0 interfaces for true universal connectivity. Conveniently bus-powered and plug and play, it's ideal for backup, video storage and large data volume exchange on the go. Simply plug it into just about any computer anywhere for backup, video storage and large data volume exchange. Its unique scratch-protected aluminum shell and shock-resistant rubber bumper make the LaCie Rugged Hard Disk especially resistant to harsh elements for extra protection along the road of your adventures. Max Sustained Transfer Rate - FireWire 800 - up to 57MB/s FireWire 400 - up to 40MB/s Hi-Speed USB 2.0 - up to 36MB/s Average Seek Time (Write) - <12ms mini USB 2.0, FireWire 800, FireWire 400 ports Operating system - Windows 2000 or Higher / Mac OS X Compatible with Time Machine Approximate Unit Dimensions - 3.5 x 1.1 x 5.6 Approximate Unit Weight - 0.65 pound

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Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex 1 TB USB 2.0 Ultra-Portable External Hard Drive STAA1000100 (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This drive has a large capacity (by today's standards) and is very portable.It is convenient and highly compatible, not fast, but no slower than others in its class.

I seriously doubt the claim that buying a USB 3.0 adapter for the drive will speed it up noticeably, and certainly not 10x.I discuss this point below.[Update 8/10/10]See below.A discussion in the comments has convinced me that the optional adapters may indeed make a difference for transferring large files, such as video.

Pros:
large capacity for portable drive by today's standards
small and not too heavy, similar to competitive products
USB 2.0 offers terrific compatibility (Win, Mac, Linux when drivers are available)
USB provides power, so no power supply needed
very standard USB connectors on both ends of cable
compatible with Windows and Mac, and probably Linux (not tested)
[Update] ability to connect directly to TV for playing audio and video without computer via new dock [see below.]

Cons:
misleading claims of value of changing cables [Update: maybe not]
slightly larger and heavier than WD Passport
glossy top attracts fingertips (like Passport)
black case is hard to find in my black computer backpack, but probably other colors will be available in the near future

Neutral:
not fast, not slow, about the same as competitive products, slower than desktop drive or many 3.5" external drives, but far more portable

SPEED

The drive spins at 5400 rpm.This is not as fast as most desktop drives (which are 7200 rpm), but 5400 rpm saves power and runs cooler.It could be that 7200 RPM drives could not be used for an application like this without a power supply.Big drives make great archives, and archive drives don't need to be as fast as the drives that contain your system, programs, and files you are working on.

I copied my audio collection - over 50,000 files totaling 383 GB - to this drive, starting empty, and (separately) to an empty 500 GB WD Passport drive that had been freshly formatted.Both drives took about the same amount of time: a bit under 7 hours, with Windows 7 reporting 16-18 MB/second.The Passport was a little faster, but not enough to make a difference.

CHANGEABLE INTERFACES: QUESTIONABLE VALUE, MISLEADING CLAIMS [see UPDATE in this section]

The included "Personality Cable" allows this drive to be used with USB 2.0.You can get others for USB 3.0 and eSATA, and they CLAIM that this will speed performance by up to 10x.I haven't tried to be certain, but I sincerely doubt that this is true.

You see, USB 2.0 is capable of 57 MB/sec, yet my drive runs at 16-17 MB/sec, so it is performing at only 29% of the maximum USB 2.0 speed.I think the disk itself is the limiting factor.Although eSATA and USB 3.0 are faster interfaces, they can't make a 5400 RPM drive go 10x faster.By comparison, copying files from my internal 7200 rpm drive to an internal 10,000 rpm drive with direct SATA interface maxes out at 66-70 MB/sec, which is about 4x the speed.

By analogy, your car may be capable of 100 mph, but on a lot of roads you're only going to be able to go 25 mph.Putting a faster engine in the car won't help.In this analogy, the disk is the road, and the interface is the car.

Many manufacturers have been very misleading about disk speeds.They often rate the performance as that of the interface, when the device itself is significantly slower.The ONLY time any drive reaches the interface speed is when the data you wanted is already in the cache - that is, you just read it or wrote it, and now you're reading it again.Because the cache is tiny compared to the disk capacity, this is an uncommon situation.

In summary, I doubt the optional interfaces are worth buying.

UPDATE 8/10/10: This section triggered considerable and interesting debate in the comments, and I stand corrected.The upshot is that when transferring "smaller" files (jpg's, mp3's), the transfer rate may be limited by drive performance, but for "large" files (video files, say ~200 MB and larger), sustained reads may indeedmean that the drive is pumping out data faster than the interface, and using a faster interface such as firewire or USB3 could improve performance for transferring large files.

Also, I ordered an eSATA interface kit.For a system with SATA drives, I suspect this interface will be faster than Firewire or USB3, but I'm guessing.I will run some new tests and probably rewrite this review with the results.

CONNECT THIS DRIVE TO YOUR TV!

UPDATE 8/10/10: This is a cool innovation.A dock for this hard drive, which you connect to your TV to allow playback of photos, audio (including SPDIF digital audio), and video (including HD), is now available.See: Seagate FreeAgent Theater+1080P HD Media Player STCEA201-RK.That dock would be handy for people who don't have a computer connected to their home entertainment system but want to play back their media library there.

RELIABILITY

This is the most important feature, and only time will tell.New drives rarely have any problems, and I saw none.The drive has a 3-year warranty, less than some.*Many* years ago I had a Seagate drive fail and I lost data, and I have always held a grudge.With massive changes in technology and manufacturing, this grudge amounts to superstition, but I still normally prefer WD, because they have never failed me.

THE CASE AND WEIGHT

Early drives are always boring black, and they are hard to find in a black computer bag.The comparison drive I used was a red Passport, which is easy to find, and I like the color.

The case is slightly longer than the Passport 1TB, and the drive is a little heavier 9.9 oz vs 7 oz for Passport 1TB, or 41% heavier) , according to the manufacturer's specs.

PRICE

1 TB is currently the largest size for this kind of disk.Starting with the 250 GB drive, these drives have started at the same price when new, and then decrease as larger ones come out, which is a good thing for consumers.Now we get 4x the capacity of the original 250GB drive for the same price.

BOTTOM LINE

Drives like this are now commodity items, with little to differentiate them aside from their size, so you can choose based on color/style or price.Seagate is a name brand and the drive should last.The WD Passport is somewhat lighter, slightly smaller, very slightly faster, and a little more expensive.The product is very good but does not excel, hence 4 stars.

UPDATE: My claim that the drive works for Mac is based on what Seagate says; I did not test that.I have read in other reviews people who have said that it did not work for their Mac.In one case, the review said he was running OS X 10.3.x.Someone suggested that this drive is said to require a later version of OS X, like 10.4.6(?).Please note: I am not a Mac user and my memory of OS X version numbers is not exact.The point is, Mac users might have more luck when the latest OS is installed.

DISCLOSURE: This product was provided to me by Amazon free of charge in return for a review.All of my reviews are written honestly - exactly as I see them.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex 1 TB USB 2.0 Ultra-Portable External Hard Drive STAA1000100 (Black)

Product Description:
750GB Black freeagent Goflex

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Intel X25-M Mainstream 160GB SATA 2.5-Inch MLC Solid State Drive Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I upgraded an intel 2.4ghz IMAC which had a Hitachi 7200RPM drive in it.The speed of this drive over a regular hard drive is night and day.I ran xbench 1.3 with my original drive and got a score of 64 which is average for these type of drives.With the new Intel drive I now get a score of 255.The boot time with this drive is less then 10 sec. and makes the machine blazingly fast.It takes me longer to get through the BIOS load during the boot process then it actually takes to get to the desktop.

I like the firmware upgrade of this drive over the OCZ Vertex.For MAC users this can be very import.For the intel drive you burn an ISO to a CD then boot your MAC/PC off the CD and update your drive.The update also does not delete the data you already have on the drive saving you a rebuild.For the OCZ you have to remove the drive and install a pin so you can update the drive.You then have to boot into a Windows OS to run the firmware upgrade.The firmware upgrade for the OCZ DOES delete the drive causing you to have to rebuild it.

Make sure if you do get one of these Intel drives it is running at least firmware 8820.This firmware addresses some fragmentation issues causing the drive to lose performance over time.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Intel X25-M Mainstream 160GB SATA 2.5 Inch MLC Solid State Drive

Product Description:
The future of computer storage is here! With the Intel X-25M Mainstream SATA Solid State Drive, you'll experience dramatically faster disk performance and greater durability than traditional hard drives. Since it uses NAND flash memory instead of spinning platters for storage, there's no waiting for disks to spin up, and there are no moving parts to worry about breaking down.


Experience blazing fast disk performance with the X-25M drive.

A New Kind of Storage for Faster Data Access
The X-25M is an SATA hard drive with a capacity of 160 GB in a 2.5-inch form factor that will work anywhere a regular 2.5-inch hard drive does, such as in notebook computers and external enclosures.
But don't think that the X-25M is your normal drive. Instead of using spinning platters like traditional hard drives, the X-25M is a Solid State Drive (SSD) and uses flash memory for storage, giving you dramatically faster data access. If you need more disk space, the X-25M also comes in a 80 GB version.
Performs Even Faster than Other Solid State Drives
Intel has been making memory chips for decades, and this experience is on clear display with the X-25M drive. This drive uses Intel's Multi-Level Cell (MLC) NAND Flash Memory that delivers better performance than other SSDs thanks to an advanced architecture and technologies such as Native Command Queuing, which enables up to 32 simultaneous operations. The result is sustained sequential read speeds of up to 250 MBps, sustained sequential write speeds of up to 70 MBps, and a read latency of just 85 microseconds.
And by using the SATA interface that offers data throughput of up to 3.0 Gbps, you can duly take advantage of all the speed. What all this means for you is that applications launch instantaneously, files copy in less time, and your overall productivity is significantly increased.
Higher Reliability and Silent Operation
Compared to traditional hard drives, the X-25M is both faster and more durable. Since it doesn't have spinning disks or writing heads, there are fewer parts to fail. It is also less susceptible to vibrations and shock and is completely silent. The X-25M is rated at 1.2 million hours mean time before failure (MTBF) for superb reliability.
Lower Power Consumption is Good for the Environment
The X-25M also consumes far less power than traditional drives, which saves you money and makes it an environmentally friendly choice. When installed in a laptop, you'll experience better battery life, so you can work longer on those cross-country plane trips. Additionally, the drive is certified RoHS compliant for its use of non-hazardous materials.
The Intel X-25M Mainstream SATA Solid State Drive supports Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology (SMART) commands as well as additional SSD monitoring. It is backed by a three-year limited warranty.


The X-25M has no moving parts for faster and more reliable performance.

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