Intel 80 GB X25M Mainstream SATA II Solid-State Drive (SSD) Retail Package SSDSA2MH080G2R5

by Intel

• With no moving parts, Intel SSDs offer a quiet storage solution that responds quickly and uses less power

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 4.3 x 0.9 inches ; 4.5 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B002IJA1EG
• Item model number: SSDSA2MH080G2R5
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (108 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 20, 2009

Product Description

Amazon.com

The future of computer storage is here! The Intel X25-M Mainstream SATA II Solid State Drive (Retail) provides faster disk performance and greater durability than traditional hard drives. Since it stores data using NAND flash memory instead of spinning platters, the X25-M will never keep you waiting for disks to spin up. For further convenience, there are no moving parts to worry about breaking down.

X25-M Solid State Drive (Retail) features: 80 GB of solid state storage. No moving parts for better reliability and performance. Silent operation. Lower battery consumption than traditional drives.

With no moving parts, the X25-M Solid State Drive provides silent and reliable storage. View larger.

The Intel SSD Toolbox lets you easily optimize the performance of your drive. View larger.

A New Kind of Storage for Faster Data Access
The X25-M is a SATA II hard drive with a capacity of 80 GB. Additionally, it's 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 X25-M is any old drive. Instead of using spinning platters like traditional hard drives, the X25-M is a Solid State Drive (SSD), and it uses flash memory for storage, giving you dramatically faster data access. If you need more disk space, the X25-M also comes in a 160 GB version.

Performs Faster than Other Solid State Drives
Intel has been making memory chips for decades, and the company's experience is clearly displayed with the X25-M drive, which uses Intel's Multi-Level Cell (MLC) NAND Flash Memory. This 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 thanks to the drive's SATA interface that offers data throughput of up to 3.0 Gbps, you can take advantage of all that speed. What all this means for you is that applications launch instantaneously, files copy in less time, and your overall productivity is increased.

Optimize Performance with the Intel SSD Toolbox
Intel offers the Intel SSD Toolbox with Intel SSD Optimizer, so you can easily optimize and manage the performance of your drive. Simply download the Intel SSD Toolbox and you'll get a powerful set of management, information, and diagnostic tools to help you maintain performance at "fresh out-of-the-box" levels. The Intel SSD Toolbox with Intel SSD Optimizer is specially designed to run on Microsoft Windows 7, and it also works with Microsoft Windows Vista and XP.

Higher Reliability and Silent Operation
Compared to traditional hard drives, the X25-M is both faster and more durable. Because it doesn't have spinning disks or writing heads, there are fewer parts to fail. It is also less susceptible to vibration and shock and is completely silent. Providing superb reliability, the X25-M is rated at 1.2 million hours mean time before failure (MTBF).

Lower Power Consumption is Good for the Environment
The X25-M also consumes far less power than traditional drives, which saves you money and makes this drive a choice. The drive is certified RoHS compliant for its use of non-hazardous materials. Additionally, when it's installed in a laptop, the X25-M will give you better battery life, which means you can work longer on cross-country plane trips.

The Intel X25-M Mainstream SATA II Solid State Drive supports Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (SMART) commands, as well as additional SSD monitoring.

The X25-M is backed by a three-year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Intel X25-M Solid State Drive (SSD), manual, sticker and 3.5" desktop drive bay adapter, screws and installation guide.

Product Description

Intel X25M 80GB Mainstream Solid State Drive - Gen2, MLC flash technology, 2.5-Inch form factor, SATA (3.0Gb/s), 9.5mm Retail Box. Postville.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

122 of 123 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars intel ssd - the best upgrade you can do to your laptop or desktop August 21, 2009

By J. Reyes

I also have a G1 version of this drive and it's literally life-changing (I use the SSD drive in my work laptop). It's amazingly fast!!! If you notice your laptop or desktop to be accessing your harddisk a lot of time then you will see tremendous speed performance with this drive. It's the best performance upgrade you can have in your laptop.

In terms of the drive's life expectancy, the main factor is the amount of writes you do to the drive. On a normal daily-laptop-work usage then the drive will last >15 years. You can actually calculate this since the number of write cycles is tracked in the drive via the S.M.A.R.T attributes. So you can calculate when the drive will gonna die. Intel did a wonderful job in write amplification and wear-levelling algorithm. Thus, it will be obsolete before it reaches the maximum rated write cycles.

If you are a techie, then check out the following links:

Detailed intel spec sheet on the drives:
http://www.intel.com/design/flash/nand/mainstream/index.htm

All you need to know about ssd drives (31-page anandtech thesis):
http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3531&p=1

X25M Gen2 review:
http://techreport.com/articles.x/17269/1

55 of 55 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic performance improvement December 27, 2009

By A. Wiersch TOP 1000 REVIEWER

This review is for the product itself, not about stock or sellers!

This is a fantastic upgrade to a computer system. The Intel G2 drives support TRIM when upgraded with the latest firmware. Windows 7 automatically support TRIM. TRIM increases the drive's performance and efficiency.

Upgrading from an HD to a good SSD like an Intel SSD will result in a SIGNIFICANT performance improvement unlike make other upgrades you may make, like a bump in CPU performance, memory, or video card. An SSD is many times faster than an HD in many important ways and has a big impact on the responsiveness of a computer.

The Intel is even price competitive with other SSD offerings.

Pros:
* SPEED
* Significantly faster than a VelociRaptor 10,000 RPM hard drive
* Superior controller design vs other manufacturers
* Windows 7 scores this drive a 7.8 (highest possible is 7.9)
* Low power consumption, great for notebooks especially (but also good for desktops)
* Works just like a regular 2.5 inch drive so works great in SATA notebooks
* Retail version comes with a metal 2.5" to 3.5" adapter for desktop use
* Supports TRIM with latest firmware (G2 - second generation drives)
* Latest firmware upgrades sequential write speed to about 100MB/s from 80MB/s (160GB version only)
* Can download "Intel SSD Toolbox" to view drive information and optimize the drive

Cons:
* Expensive compared to HD's
* Slower sequential write speed than some competitors - but for many this does not significantly affect overall performance

Other:
* My suggestion: Use an SSD for OS and applications and an HD for storage (like a Western Digital green drive)
* See the photos I uploaded

UPDATE 2011-02-18: My Intel G2 SSD drive has been and is still performing GREAT.

49 of 50 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Blazing fast October 23, 2009

By DigicamNut

Amazon Verified Purchase

Let's get this out of the way first - this is not about capacity. Most everyone knows a 500GB 2.5" 7200RPM notebook hard drive can be had for less than half the price of this SSD. I swapped out this very 500GB 2.5" hard drive for this Intel 80GB SSD. Make sure you buy the G2 version which has TRIM support (enabled with firmware update from Intel) with no worries in performance degradation.

With this SSD, my laptop feels more responsive than my Intel Core i7 *desktop* computer. Windows 7 cold boots in about 35 seconds (from after BIOS POST to wifi ready and web browser open, with anti-virus and firewall installed). The hard drive is the highest rated component in my laptop - 6 for the CPU (Core 2 Duo P8600 2.4GHz), *7.8* for the hard drive (7.9 is the maximum score in Windows 7). Not just in actual use, installing Windows and other programs is also much faster. I have never seen programs install so fast before - Windows 7 Ultimate x64 installed in about 10 minutes from a USB drive.

If you're shopping for a new laptop, forget the very expensive CPU upgrades for an extra few hundred MHz which you probably can't appreciate in everyday use. Stick with the base CPU (Core 2 Duo preferably), spend that money on this SSD. The speed increase with this SSD will be much more dramatic than having an extra few hundred megahertz.