When buying one SSD drive To expand the storage available on our desktop or laptop PC, if we do not want to make a mistake, we must take into account a series of factors, since not all SSDs are the same in terms of performance nor are they all compatible with all motherboards.
The only factor that we should not consider when buying an SSD is the storage spacesince this depends on the amount of money we want to spend. The more capacity it has, the more expensive it will be.
How to buy an SSD without making a mistake
What we must take into account when buying an SSD and not make mistakes are the sections that we show you below.
Format
If we talk about SSD units we talk about two types. On the one hand, there are the units of 2.5 incheswith a smaller size than the traditional 3.5-inch HDD. This is the most widespread on the market and is compatible with any desktop and laptop PC.
In addition to the 2.5-inch format, we can also find smaller units called M.2. This has a longer and thinner format that connects directly to a PCI port. These types of drives are the most recent and are not compatible with all PCs and laptops.
Interface
Another aspect that we must take into account is the interface. SSDs use an interface SATA III which offers a maximum read and write speed of about 500MB/S.
Units with M.2 format came to the market to offer greater read and write speed. To do this and bypass the limitation of the SATA III interface, they use the PCIe port. The fastest SSDs that we can find on the market reach 12,000 MB/s.
PCIe version
Related to the above, not all SSDs support the same version of PCIe. The higher this number, the higher the reading and writing speed. If you use a motherboard with PCIe 4.0 and buy an SSD compatible with PCIe 4.0, you will be able to enjoy the maximum speed it is capable of offering.
If you use an SSD with PCIe 5.0 support on a motherboard that only accepts PCIe 4.0, you will only enjoy the speed offered by PCIe 5.0. This is one of the reasons why you should take into account the PCIe version of SSD and the motherboard before purchasing it in order to take advantage of all the speed it is capable of offering.
Read/write speed
On the market we can find SSDs that use the same version of PCIe but with different speeds. This is due to the type of memory that has been used in manufacturing. The maximum speed it is capable of offering is related to the price.
Durability
In addition to everything indicated above these lines, we must also take into account the durability of the SSD. This figure is indicated by all manufacturers through the TBW (TeraBytes Written). The higher the number, it means that it is designed to offer a greater number of write cycles.
This number is indicative, as in the speed section, of the type of memory (SLC, MLC, TLC among others) that has been used since not all of them are designed to offer the same resistance to use and wear. the cells is different.