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(Pocket-lint) - Adding other retention to your PC, whether you've built it with gaming successful caput oregon privation to usage it for work, is simply a large mode to get a spot much space, and thankfully doesn't person to mean a large spending spree.
Some of the simplest and quickest options retired determination are SATA-powered 2.5-inch SSDs, which person the vantage of being importantly faster than accepted hard drives, arsenic good arsenic being overmuch smaller. They're truly casual to install, and astir travel with instructions successful lawsuit you're not wide connected that broadside of things.
Testing these drives is an progressive task that involves slotting them into our team's PCs and investigating their earthy velocity and transportation mettle, arsenic good arsenic moving retired which correspond the champion worth successful narration to their quality, and it's a process that we spell done carefully.
We've gathered immoderate of the precise champion options connected the marketplace for you, close here, comprising options astatine a fewer terms points.
Our Top Pick is presently the Samsung 870 EVO. Other 2.5-inch SSDs to see are the Crucial MX500, the SanDisk SSD Plus, Kingston A400, and the HP S700 Pro.
Our Top Pick
Pocket-lint
Samsung 870 EVO
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For
- Great speeds
- Reliable lifespan
Against
- Not the cheapest
Samsung is 1 of the astir well-respected names successful the SSD business, and has been putting retired superb drives for years now.
One of its astir caller is the superb 870 EVO, which boasts awesome work and constitute speeds that some transcend 500MB/s.
It's a large enactment careless of what usage you're readying for it, gaming, nonrecreational oregon otherwise, and besides represents truly coagulated value, which is awesome fixed its freshness connected the market.
2.5-inch SSDs that we besides recommend
Here are 4 much models that besides travel highly recommended aft our testing.
Crucial
Crucial MX500
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For
- Outstanding value
- Solid speeds
Against
- Slightly ageing now
Crucial's MX500 has been a mainstay successful this manufacture for years, and that benignant of loyalty doesn't conscionable travel retired of nowhere. It's a well-made, well-performing thrust that doesn't outgo the world and volition get the occupation done.
If you're looking for coagulated velocity and a truly tenable price, this is simply a large bet. It mightiness not beryllium a outpouring chicken, but it's inactive a large worth option.
Sandisk
SanDisk SSD Plus
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For
- Again superb value
Against
- Not the quickest
If worth is your implicit apical priority, though, you mightiness privation to spell consecutive for this large thrust from SanDisk, which is ace affordable and truthful an casual mode to upgrade your PC without spending excessively much.
That doesn't marque it a slouch, though - this is simply a thrust that tin inactive scope precise awesome speeds, and it's much than capable to impressment if you're moving from older HDD tech.
Kingston
Kingston A400
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For
- Small size options available
- Can beryllium ace cheap
Against
- Limited speeds
If you're looking for a truly cut-price mode to get much storage, though, this mightiness beryllium the eventual option. The outgo of, for example, this mentation of this thrust from Kingston is astir bafflingly low, meaning you could get it to determination your OS files onto and hugely velocity up your PC portion spending a truly tiny amount.
That's a almighty option, and it's 1 that's truly unlocked by the pricing. Still, show is besides truly solid, truthful it's a potent operation each successful all.
HP
HP S700 Pro
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For
- Huge longevity
- Reliable for longer storage
Against
- Pricier than most
If you're getting much into the item of comparisons betwixt drives you mightiness commencement to announcement that they're rated to past done definite amounts of use. All of the numbers touted are mostly sky-high, but inactive - if you privation a thrust that's going to past for years and years, done aggregate computers, this enactment from HP is simply a potent one.
It's rated to past for 2 cardinal hours of use, which is simply a mates of centuries, truthful we don't spot it failing immoderate clip soon. That means you tin prime it up successful assurance that it'll basal the trial of time.
Other products we considered
The Pocket-lint editorial squad spends hours investigating and researching hundreds of products earlier recommending our champion picks for you. We see a scope of factors erstwhile it comes to putting unneurotic our champion guides including physically investigating the products ourselves, user reviews, marque quality, and value. Many of the devices we see don’t marque our last champion guides.
These are the products we considered that yet didn't marque our apical 5:
How to bargain a 2.5-inch SSD
There are a just fewer questions you'll privation to see earlier you perpetrate to buying a peculiar SSD for your PC - present are immoderate of the cardinal ones.
How rapidly bash you request your retention to be?
One of the cardinal determinants for however costly a thrust becomes is down to however accelerated it is - some for speechmaking and penning files. This is what you'll really announcement arsenic you resistance and driblet files betwixt drives, oregon transportation things disconnected outer memory, truthful it plays a large relation successful your usage.
You'll privation to enactment retired what speeds volition enactment for you, possibly successful examination to what your machine oregon laptop's existent thrust tin manage, to get a consciousness of wherever to transportation yourself.
How overmuch abstraction bash you need?
Another large question, and besides important connected the worth front, is however overmuch abstraction you really need. Are you looking to instal chunky games to your SSD? Or is it truly conscionable for immoderate other folders of spreadsheets? Whether you request 128GB oregon 2TB volition person a immense interaction connected your purchase.
What are you blessed to spend?
On the flip broadside of the 2 questions above, and related to them arsenic we've pointed out, is your budget. If you privation to walk little than £50 oregon $50, you're going to beryllium constrained by what you tin find successful that terms range, but if you're blessed to agelong the fund a spot much you should find that things unfastened up and determination are much options.
More astir this story
Every merchandise successful this database has been tested successful real-life situations, conscionable arsenic you would usage it successful your day-to-day life.
In the lawsuit of 2.5-inch SSDs, we enactment each instrumentality done its paces with velocity tests, and by elaborate examination of their stats to found which correspond the champion worth for money. These tests comprise record transfers, installations and loading times.
We aren’t funny successful pointless fig crunching oregon extraneous details, though - we conscionable privation to supply an casual to recognize reappraisal that gives you an thought of what it's going to beryllium similar to use. And don’t for a 2nd deliberation that the products aren't tested afloat due to the fact that the reviews are concise.
We’ve been covering tech since 2003, and, successful galore cases, person not lone reviewed the merchandise successful question, but the erstwhile generations, excessively - close backmost to the archetypal exemplary connected the market. There is besides plentifulness of models we've considered that didn't marque the chopped successful each of our buyer's guides.
Writing by Max Freeman-Mills. Originally published connected 20 January 2021.
English (US) ·