Samsung SSD 830 Series Preview
Our Summary and Conclusion
Performance Summary: The Samsung SSD 830 Series solid state drive offered top end performance throughout all of our testing. Overall, drives based on SandForce’s SF-2200 series controllers (when paired to synchronous NAND flash memory), like the OCZ Vertex 3 MaxIOPS or Corsair Force GT, offer somewhat better performance due to superior write characteristics in many workloads with excellent read throughput. However, the Samsung SSD 830 Series drive offered the best Read performance of the group more often than not, due to best-of-class random reads throughput. Its performance also remains consistent with compressible or incompressible data, and under heavier workloads the drive excels, as is evident in our IOMeter and CrystalDiskMark QD32 benchmarks. Although, CPU utilization ended up relatively high in light of competing drives in the tests where the SSD 830 Series leads.
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Samsung SSD 830 Series Drives Will Be Offered in 64GB, 128GB, 256GB and 512GB Capacities
Samsung SSD 830 Series drives should be available in mid-October, with capacities ranging from 64GB to 512GB. As we mentioned, pricing isn’t available just yet, but when they do ship, we expect prices to be similar to the current SSD 470 Series drives. We should also point out that Samsung SSD 830 Series products are going to ship with both desktop and laptop installation kits to facilitate end-user upgrades. The desktop kit will include SATA data and power cables, screws, and a 2.5” to 3.5” adapter bracket. And the laptop kit will have a SATA to USB adapter cable and a mounting spacer so that laptops with more common 9.5mm drive bays can accommodate the SSD 830 Series’ slimmer 7mm profile. In addition to the installation kits, the drives will include a full version of Norton Ghost 15.0 as well, along with a copy of Samsung’s SSD Magician software which can be used to maintain, update, benchmark, and secure erase the drive.
Until we see official pricing and get a better feel for the Samsung SSD 830 Series over a longer period of time (we’ve only had the drive for a few days) we’ll hold off on passing judgment, but our initial impression of the drive is excellent. If pricing is competitive and long-term reliability ends up being as good as Samsung’s previous-generation, the Samsung SSD 830 Series is sure to be a hit. Let’s just hope Apple doesn’t scoop them all up for their next-gen Macs and we enthusiasts can get our hands on them when the time comes.
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