SSD vs HD ONE

I currently have the 8gb ssd version of the Aspire one. I love the form factor and the overall feel of the machine, but am severely disappointed with the SSD performance when I install windows. I'm thinking about returning the One and getting the 120gb HD version with windows already installed.

Are there any drawbacks to this decision? Is weight or battery life severely affected? Are they selling the 6cell version of this machine in the US yet? I'm sorry if there is already a thread concerning this, but I could not find it.

 

Yes, the 120gb HDD model in the US was $399 but now is $349 and the $399 model will have a 160gb HDD and 6 cell battery, but I don't think its available just yet.

It should be much better than the SSD model, I don't trust the SSDs in netbooks right now, their performance is just too poor, especially for Windows.

It is slightly thicker and heavier and I don't know the battery life difference.

 

OTOH, SSDs are far less susceptible to damage from drops, bumps etc. the netbook may have to endure. But if you're no happy with the performance, then you probably answered your own question already. Personally I run Linpus , and the SSD seems to be quite adequate for the task.

 

I'm with rebuilder. I love the lack of disc noise, and the security of knowing there are no heads to damage.

 

Me too. IMHO the HDD isn't truely portable in the same way that the SSD version is. Having to worry about shutting it down before moving it, not dropping it or shocking it in any way would ruin the concept of a netbook for me. I don't want a device I have to treat like fine china.

Having said that, if you must have windows (most people don't), then you must have a HDD. Windows performs very badly on the SSDs compared to linux.

 

anyone test out SSD's internal transfer rate? 120GB SATA should be around 30~50mb/s. I was wondering how fast SSD in AA1 can do.

 

Hi

I wondering this too and I figured if SSD was good to go with XP then ACER would've offered a system with SSD/XP the fact that they do not tells me that ACER a least do not recommend it, at least with the present 8gsdd - but who know in the future? I have seen eeepc with 20g SSD/XP but I believe that their system runs an optimised version of XP.

It will depend on your planned use of the AA1 for surfing watching vids and lite work the 8G SSD will be fine, this is what it is designed for...but you know certain ppl will want to beef-up the system and make it more powerfull!! I guess it keeps 'em busy and off the streets late at night

billr

 

I found this:

from andy53 from this thread:
http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=59

 

You can check your read speed in linux by installing hdparm and running "sudo hdparm -t /dev/sda", Just ran it 3 times on mine and got the following:

Timing buffered disk reads: 84 MB in 3.04 seconds = 27.63 MB/sec
Timing buffered disk reads: 84 MB in 3.03 seconds = 27.76 MB/sec
Timing buffered disk reads: 84 MB in 3.03 seconds = 27.70 MB/sec

So read speeds are fine, where the SSD will let you down is in write speed, which is a bit harder to measure but can be done with a program called bonnie++, I just need to free up some space so I can write a big enough set of data to get an accurate result.(needs to write 2x the amount of ram in the machine, and as I've upgraded to 1.5GB that means needing 3GB free to do a proper test)

 

I just tried running hdparm on my AAO - it has got the Intel SSD (the slower one?), and here are the results (run 3 times):-

Timing buffered disk reads: 118 MB in 3.05 seconds = 38.69 MB/sec
Timing buffered disk reads: 112 MB in 3.05 seconds = 36.74 MB/sec
Timing buffered disk reads: 112 MB in 3.05 seconds = 36.77 MB/sec

I've heavily tweaked it, but not sure why there is such a huge disparity between IMSancho's results and mine. It has got the elevator=noop as a kernel param...may that's it?

 

Can please anyone test hdparm with HDD version (120GB)?

I am planning on buying an AAO and I don't know which one to buy. I need the 1GB RAM that comes with the 120GB model (at least that's available where I'm buying it from) but also SSD is good in terms or reliability and durability.

Please help me decide if I should buy the SSD version + RAM expansion or the HDD version with 1GB RAM included.

I will install Ubuntu and will use it for OO/FF/SSH/SIP/Skype

Thanks a lot!

 

Hi folks!

this is my first post here so... hi to everybody
Regarding the question on HD/SSD here are my thoughts: I bought the One with the HD (specially beacuse it has an HD) as I wanted a smallish and lightish notebook, and the One is the right size and weight. Asus EEE have too small a keyboard, so that was *exactly* what I was looking for...
I wanted the HD because I could fit there all my data, all the programs I do (I write programs) and all the ones I use... soemthing I can not fit in 8Gb.
It is true that HD is more prune to hardware crack than an SSD, that's out of question, but the question is: how much did you pay for the unit? I mean, iagine the notebook breaks in... let's say three years. Then well, I'll get me a new one, and if I do the backups at the right moments, I won't loose the information.
Before the SSD machines appeared, everyone was carrying around laptops with hard drives. You don't have to believe the One will break before a regular notebook/laptop would... why would it do it?
In summary: the benifts of a laptop with HD are, for me, really important. The One with HD let's me do all the things I have to do with a laptop... all of them. Something that would not be possible without the HD because the space limitations. And I can cary it around all the time in my bag.

For me, there is no comparison. The One with and without HD are different machines, in different leagues.

But of course, that's ONLY MY OPINION.

Best wishes,

Ferran.

 

I wasn't using the noop elevator at the time of those tests, but have just tried it again with noop and results are only about 2MB/sec higher, so yours does still seem considerably faster. Could you paste the results of 'sudo hdparm -i /dev/sda'? perhaps there is a slight model difference? Here's mine:

Code:

/dev/sda:

 Model=SSDPAMM0008G1EA                         , FwRev=Ver2.I0H, SerialNo=CVCP8241822QN       
 Config={ HardSect NotMFM Fixed DTR>10Mbs }
 RawCHS=15636/16/63, TrkSize=32256, SectSize=512, ECCbytes=4
 BuffType=DualPort, BuffSize=1kB, MaxMultSect=1, MultSect=?0?
 CurCHS=15636/16/63, CurSects=15761088, LBA=yes, LBAsects=15761088
 IORDY=yes, tPIO={min:120,w/IORDY:120}, tDMA={min:120,rec:120}
 PIO modes:  pio0 pio1 pio2 pio3 pio4 
 DMA modes:  mdma0 mdma1 mdma2 
 UDMA modes: udma0 udma1 udma2 udma3 *udma4 
 AdvancedPM=no
 Drive conforms to: Unspecified:  ATA/ATAPI-4,5

 

my two cents:

I wanted the ssd because it is less likely to be spoilt due to shock and getting bumped about while on the road or in my bag.
i really dont mind the slight lag with winxp having followed all the tips to speed things up. As for space constraints, i do not use this mini to store all my photos or videos or what not, i use it mainly for taking on the road and for taking to places away from home such as to a friend's place or to a cafe with free wifi or whatever. because i take it around with me a lot, the ssd was the only way to go for me.

i know some people say the hdd has tons more space and if it breaks, just buy a new one. easy if it costs only 1/10 of your monthly income, but if it costs half a month's salary for the rest of us mortals (esp outside the US where the One is sold a much higher prices), that is not a real option.

One other thing, the screen's vertical resolution is only 600 max. I can only do basic video editing with it as my video editor requires a minimum of 1024x768 or the bottom half of the window remains hidden (where one does sound and title editing as well as access to the scroll bar). This means I won't be doing much editing on it and using it to store my large video files EVEN if I had the faster HDD version with lots of space. Anyway, doing too many multimedia tasks on a tiny screen is ridiculous anyway. I just really love the fact that I *can* do some basic multimedia editing on my SSD One with WinXp such as editing simple holiday videos while traveling.

So for me, I don't mind the 8GB SSD, esp since I can add in a SDHC card to increase storage space if necessary. The only complain I have about the SSD is that I wish Acer would just use the same faster SSD on all models.

 

vs.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26744001@N ... 7/sizes/m/

 

$ sudo hdparm -iTt /dev/sda

/dev/sda:

Model=SSDPAMM0008G1 , FwRev=Ver2.I0H, SerialNo=CVPA828182A17
Config={ HardSect NotMFM Fixed DTR>10Mbs }
RawCHS=15636/16/63, TrkSize=32256, SectSize=512, ECCbytes=4
BuffType=DualPort, BuffSize=1kB, MaxMultSect=1, MultSect=?0?
CurCHS=15636/16/63, CurSects=15761088, LBA=yes, LBAsects=15761088
IORDY=yes, tPIO={min:120,w/IORDY:120}, tDMA={min:120,rec:120}
PIO modes: pio0 pio1 pio2 pio3 pio4
DMA modes: mdma0 mdma1 mdma2
UDMA modes: udma0 udma1 udma2 udma3 *udma4
AdvancedPM=no
Drive conforms to: Unspecified: ATA/ATAPI-4,5

* signifies the current active mode

Timing cached reads: 1206 MB in 2.00 seconds = 603.10 MB/sec
Timing buffered disk reads: 110 MB in 3.02 seconds = 36.42 MB/sec

p.s. on latest bios v3114 (IIRC)

 

Well the model names are slightly different, with mine having 'EA' on the end. Would be good if anyone else with an intel SSD could post the same and we can see if there is actually a fast and slow variant of the 8G1.

 

I finally pulled the trigger and ordered the SSD model. I wanted the slimmer case. I'll never put windows on it so I'm sure performance of the SSD will be fine, but if not, I have a strong stomach and will put a 1.8" drive in it.

But if you need windows and it isn't running well for you, then do the swap. The case won't be quite as sleek but it probably isn't too noticeable by anyone but you anyway (though those pictures above I'm very glad I went with the SSD model).

 

I actually assume the HD in a netbook has a shorter lifespan than one in a larger notebook simply because the netbook will be lifted and moved around a lot more often while running. It is just so small, it is easy to pull it out of the way to reach the remote or to put it on a table to get the phone.

My larger notebook I use for development is basically a desktop machine that I can take places. It is usually on a hard flat surface so I am comfortable in thinking that the drive will have a long life.

 

Are you saying it's ok to drop or shock a HD model. You're not supposed to drop laptops or any electrical device. What a ridiculous statement :lol: :lol: