Review: Intel SSD 520 Series 240GB
Overview
Intel is looking to SandForce to provide it with a performance-class SSD in the Intel SSD 520 Series 240GB.
It changed tack about a year ago and started using third-party controller chips in its consumer class solid state drives (SSDs). From that moment on, it was almost inevitable that a SandForce-powered Intel drive would eventually appear.
With the launch of the new Intel SSD 520 Series 240GB, and the other members of the 520 family, that day has finally come.
Of course, SandForce SSD controllers aren’t perfect.
Thanks to the use of aggressive compression technology, impressive headline data transfer rates can sometimes translate into slightly pedestrian real-world performance. What’s more, SandForce’s second generation of controller chips suffered from a few stability glitches early on.
Still, there’s no doubting the popularity, success and strong, all round performance of SSDs based on the latest SandForce controller. Add in Intel’s reputation for going the extra mile with SSD firmware quality control and validation and you have a very promising mix.
The task for the Intel SSD 520 Series 240GB is clear enough. Not only must it rise above the hordes of SandForce based drives, it must also take on the new pretender in the form of the OCZ Octane and its refreshed Indilinx controller.
Game on.
Benchmarks
SSD performance is more multi-discipline decathlon than single-distance time trial.
A drive that delivers impressive peak performance doesn’t always deliver the goods in random access workloads, for instance. Intel says it’s put a lot of work into tuning the SandForce SF-2281 controller to improve performance and reliability.
But the results aren’t always obvious in our benchmark tests.
Synthetic drive performance, compressible data
Synthetic drive performance, incompressible data
Synthetic drive performance, 4K Random
Application performance
Verdict
For the most part, Intel’s new desktop SSD looks like any other drive based on the SandForce SF2281 controller chipset.
Not that we’re suggesting that’s a bad thing.
Sequential read and write speeds of 550MB/s and 520MB/s courtesy of a SATA 6Gbps interface is about as good as it gets for a single desktop SSD.
A peak IOPS rating of 80,000 for writes is pretty much par for the second-gen SandForce course, too.
So Intel isn’t making any showbiz claims for basic performance.
In fact, if anything it’s more up front about the limitations of the drive when it comes to shunting incompressible data around. In practice that includes most really big files, such as video, music and images.
Intel is also happy to ‘fess up to the fact that the peak IOPS speed relates to a completely box-fresh drive. It only rates the Intel SSD 520 Series 240GB at a maximum of 60,000 IOPS in normal use.
However, what Intel does have is an enviable reputation for exhaustive validation and quality control when it comes to SSDs.
In fact, it’s rumoured the 520 Series has arrived later than expected due to that very validation process. The upshot of all this, however, is not a drive than immediately blows away the competition for raw performance.
All our synthetic tests reveal an SSD that’s very similar in performance to other SandForce-based drives. So that means a generally pretty fantastic performance with the exception of slightly ordinary incompressible data write performance.
We liked
It’s not perfect, but SandForce’s SF-2281 SSD controller is probably our current favourite.
It routinely wins a lot of benchmarks and is never too far behind even when it isn’t at its best.
Add in Intel’s hardcore validation and you have the promise of speed combined with longevity.
We disliked
If you were expecting something special in terms of raw performance, you’ll be disappointed.
The 520 Series is very similar to other SandForce powered SSDs. And that means only ordinary performance in incompressible writes.
Like any large SSD, it’s pricey, too.
Verdict
Probably the pick of the currently available 250GB-ish SSDs. Just a shame it’s not a bit cheaper.
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