#Owc solid state drive 256gb macbook how to#
#Owc solid state drive 256gb macbook pro#

Internally-fragmented Crucial 128GB SSD, after multiple reconditioning passes Write speed is impaird by 16%, and read speed of ~1/3 of the dive severely reduced Retest - not good and worseДЄll 4 drives were installed in Icy Dock enclosures, and inserted into the four standard drive bays of the Mac Pro Nehalem (boot drive was on another hard drive). But having to erase the entire drive to recondition it is major headache if youвЂ™re using it for storage! One more reconditioning pass did do the trick, restoring consistent read and write peformance. These speeds are after 3 reconditioning passes over the drive. Write speed was impaired by 16%, and read speed on about 29% of the volume was severely impaired, running at 78MB/sec instead of 260MB/sec. The graph below shows just how bad the problem is. Even after doing so, write and read performance remained impaired at about 160MB/sec (down from 190MB/sec).ДЄll four units were brand-new, 5-day old drives. It required reconditioning to raise its speed back to reasonable levels. Subsequent to that, it was erased in preparation for another test, and performance plummetted to as low as 47MB/sec for about 10% of the drive capacity. The next day, one drive was used for a few hours as a boot drive on a MacBook Pro. A subsequent fill-volume test showed a moderate 20% slowdown over about half the drive, with a subsequent test showing performance right back to normal- impressive it seemed.

Initially, the Crucial passed with flying colors. That kind of usage is not likely to be seen in any normal desktop usage and itвЂ™s a worst-case scenario for solid state drives. To determine whether the Crucial units have similar drawbacks, DiskTester was used to beat it up for several hours, using the run-random command with 64K blocks after first creating several million 64K files. SSD slowing down? Get it back into shape with DiskTester 'recondition'. The Intel X25-M first generation requires reconditioning on a periodic basis, as do many other SSD drives, a serious drawback.

Resistance to internal fragmentation (!) PERMALINK Until proven otherwise, use of an MLC-based drive like the Crucial, X25-M, etc is inappropriate for intensive writes eg a Photoshop scratch volume, unless one plans to regularly recondition the drive. Avoid using all that space- internal fragmentation on an SSD is an issue. Formatted capacityДЄ 128GB drive formats to about 119GB (Mac, where GB = 1024 X 1024 X 1024). Note that the 256GB model is rated a smidgen faster for writes, at 200MB/sec, an insignificant difference.Д®ven the 64GB model is capacious enough for a boot drive in a Mac Pro, with appropriate separation of system/applications from data.

The 128GB model tested here is rated at 250MB/sec for reads, and 190MB/sec for writes. The Crucial 64/128/256GB models are rated at different speeds, high capacity models are faster. Pricing on similar drives like the Intel X25-M 80GB should be similar, making the Crucial 128GB offering a very good value. The Crucial 128GB model is available for around $320 (street). Four drives were tested, single and in RAID. However, based on eight months of intensive daily usage of the Intel X25-M as a boot drive, this testing assessed the Crucial offering in light of previously understood SSD issues. Any findings with extended use necessarily take time to emerge. This review is based on relatively brief testing.

#Owc solid state drive 256gb macbook how to#

Send Feedback Related: 4K and 5K display, Apple macOS, computer display, diglloydTools, eSATA, hard drive, Mac Pro, memory, Photoshop, RAID, RAID-0, SSD, storageДЇor background information on solid state drives, see the Solid State Drive Overview and also How to Make Your Mac Feel Lightning-fast and Intel X25-M in a Mac Pro.