Best 500GB SSD for ASUS GT50V

[checkmate223]

Hell0-

I am looking for a fast, reliable and affordable 500 GB or so SSD for my ASUS GT50V Laptop. I believe the controller is SATA II (300). Would a SATA III (600) SSD work with this system? Does it make sense to get that or is there a SATA II Model you would recommend? I need reliability and affordability (as close to $400 or less as possible) but want as much speed as possible as well.

Thank you for your assistance to all, multiple opinions very welcome.

 

[kleinkinstein]

I am looking for a fast, reliable and affordable 500 GB or so SSD

If you want all three, you want a Crucial M4. Although it's too new to measure reliability, the 840 performance is promising and it's economical @ $359

 

[checkmate223]

I have heard of multiple m4 failures after short time spans. I hear for reliability choose a Samsung 830 or Intel. I hear the 840 triple writes to each memory location which can decrease life span. Any other opinions?

 

[masteryoda34]

m4 failures are usually due to a firmware bug that was fixed. Samsung and Intel are also good.

 

[checkmate223]

What was the cause of the M4 failures? What did the firmware fix accomplish?

 

[sm625]

One bug I know about was the bug where the drive would fail if left powered up for something like 50 or 100 hours. So if you used hibernate or sleep you never saw the bug.

 

[Talaii]

What was the cause of the M4 failures? What did the firmware fix accomplish?

There was a bug that, after ~5000 hours of use, would cause your computer to crash roughly every hour. That got fixed with Firmware 000F (0309 or older need to be updated).

There's a new bug with firmware version 010G that causes the drive to occasionally not initialize. Apparently leaving the computer sitting at the BIOS for about 20 minutes will cause it to start showing up again, but it's pretty nasty. They released an update (040H) that fixes this, but it's brand-new and fairly untested thus far.

Basically, use Firmware 000F until they have a reliable, tested fix for the 010G bug. I'm holding off on updating to 040H for a month or two till I see some more solid reliability data.

 

[checkmate223]

Are all SSDs prone to such issues? Which ones are relatively trouble free? I am not looking to be a free tester. I need reliability.

 

[Jocelyn84]

Plextor M5P/M3, Samsung 830/840 Pro, or Crucial m4. If you really need to stay below $400, the M3 is $360, should be back in stock at Newegg on Friday, and is what I'd recommend. I agree Intel is reliable, but you're not going to see deals on their bigger sized SSD flavors.

 

[TakeNoPrisoners]

Are all SSDs prone to such issues? Which ones are relatively trouble free? I am not looking to be a free tester. I need reliability.

I have had a Samsung 830 for awhile now and it has been a very good drive. I also have an M4 in my laptop that I have not had any problems with as of yet.

 

[biostud]

I've run my m4 with F,G and H firmware for a couple of months in my laptop with no problems

 

[checkmate223]

I found a Plextor 512 M5 Pro for $458 on Amazon. Awesome drive, choice made. Thanks all for your excellent input. Much appreciated.