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Plextor PX-128M1S 128GB Solid State Drive / SSD Review
Plextor PX-128M1S 128GB Solid State Drive / SSD Review - PCSTATS
The PX-128M1S is a 2.5-inch, SATA 3Gb/s drive, which makes it compatible with most notebooks. It can also be installed into a desktop computer with use of a mounting bracket (not included).
 80% Rating:   
Filed under: Hard Drives/SSD Published:  Author: 
External Mfg. Website: Plextor Mar 24 2010   J. Apong  
Home > Reviews > Hard Drives/SSD > Plextor PX-128M1S

HDD Benchmark: File Transfer Test & Conclusions

File Copying

For this test a single 8.5GB file is copied from a WD Raptor (WD740) system disk to the test disk (write to), from the test disk to the WD Raptor system disk (read from), and from the test disk to itself (read and write to self). While this test is heavily influenced by the SATA controller and by the number of files being transferred, it provides a good indication of the sustained transfer rates capable from the hard drive being tested. Higher transfer speeds are best.

PCSTATS Benchmark
 ReportLarge Single File Transfer (8.5GB)
Average Speed: Write to (MB/s) Ranking
Plextor PX-128M1S 51
Seagate 2TB Barracuda XT 51
Average Speed: Read From (MB/s) Ranking
Plextor PX-128M1S 63
Seagate 2TB Barracuda XT 58
Average Speed: Read / Write to Self (MB/s) Ranking
Plextor PX-128M1S 48
Seagate 2TB Barracuda XT 51

While other tests have shown the Plextor PX-128M1S as having higher sequential read and write speeds, a simple copying test in Windows Explorer show the Plextor PX-128M1S actually takes longer than the Seagate Barracuda to copy large files.

Weighing your SSD Options

Only recently have Solid State Drives (SSDs) come into vogue for personal computing, and for good reason. They're much faster than conventional rotational hard drives, particularly for tasks like booting into Windows and increasing the speed at which programs will load (READ: games).

The 128GB Plextor PX-128M1S SSD works the way a good piece of hardware should, giving a noticeable improvement in operating system responsiveness without requiring the user to jump through hoops to take advantage of it. Just hook up the SATA cable and turn on AHCI (if you have the compatible hardware), it'll work nearly as well with older systems that lack ACHI but you lose some hot-swappability and speed.

When compared to a pair of fast drives like the Western Digital WD1001FALS in RAID 0 mode, the Plextor PX-128M1S SSD can't quite attain the same sequential read and write speeds, but it does manage better random small file I/O performance. Thanks to its built-in wear-leveling and S.M.A.R.T. diagnostic tools, the PX-128M1S should last you quite some time. Plextor backs the whole thing up with a 3-year warranty.

SSD's are blessed with some of the lowest access latencies this side of Mars. As PCMark Vantage shows, it's these qualities that make the SSD significantly faster for situations like application loading... though you do sacrifice storage capacity for those gains. This is why most enthusiasts will use them selectively to boost the performance of their PC - typically by installing the OS directly onto the SSD partition and relegating all media/data files to a conventional hard disk where price per GB is dramatically lower.

Retailing for around $430 CDN ($380 USD, £250 GBP), the Plextor PX-128M1S SSD is definitely an investment, but 128GB of space gives you a bit more storage capacity compared to those enticing 32GB-64GB SSDs. If you've been window shopping for SSD recently, the Plextor PX-128M1S is comparable to OCZ's Vertex, the G.Skill Falcon II and Kingston's SSDNowV+; all of which can be found in 128GB capacities at for around the same amount.

Plextor's 128GB PX-128M1S SSD hits all the right notes and offers up good mainstream performance on par with other solid state disks of its class, although we do wish Plextor would expand the warranty from 3 years to 5. Bottom line, if you have can afford an SSD like the Plextor PX-128M1S, it is one of the best upgrades you can do for your computer in terms of application load time and all around snappiness!

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< Previous Page © 2023 PCSTATS.com Hard Drives/SSD Reviews...»

 

Contents of Article: Plextor PX-128M1S
 Pg 1.  Plextor PX-128M1S 128GB Solid State Drive / SSD Review
 Pg 2.  HDD Benchmarks: AS SSD, HD Tune 3.5 Pro
 Pg 3.  HDD Benchmarks: PCMark Vantage
 Pg 4.  HDD Benchmarks: SiSoft Sandra, HDTach
 Pg 5.  HDD Benchmarks: I/O Meter
 Pg 6.  — HDD Benchmark: File Transfer Test & Conclusions

 
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