Intel 34nm X25-M Gen 2 SSD Performance Update

Performance Summary: After being flashed to the new firmware update, which enables TRIM support and faster sequential write speeds, the Intel 34nm Gen 2 X25-M 160GB drive offered increased performance in every benchmark we ran. Read performance with the new firmware update installed was roughly on-par with the previous version, although the numbers slightly favor the update, by a few MB/s at least. Write performance, however, was increased by over 30% in some cases.

Intel has done exactly the type of thing that PC enthusiasts appreciate. The company has taken an already excellent product, and improved it with an updated firmware and additional optimization tools that not only increase performance, but introduce new feature support as well. And best of all, they've done it for free. 

The introduction of TRIM support to the 34nm Gen 2 X25-M means that the drive will perform as close to its optimal, clean state as possible under Windows 7 as the drive is dirtied with garbage data over time. And the optimization tool that's part of the new SSD Toolbox means Windows Vista and XP users can benefit from TRIM as well. The release of this new firmware update and optimization tool really is a win-win situation for owners of Intel's 34nm Gen 2 X25-M.

We liked the Intel 34nm Gen 2 X25-M so much when we first evaluated it that we gave it an Editor's Choice award. The introduction of this new firmware update and optimization tool only sweetens the deal, and makes the 34nm Gen 2 X25-M even more desirable.