My new SSD! Transcend 4Gb IDE Flash Module

[Retrofan]

Perhaps you could make that test, Nova.

The thing is that I don't understand why it has to be faster than a Cf that is 15Mb/s (Ejem: Sandisk Ultra II) or another 30Mb/s (Sandisk Ultra). Also I wonder what is the highest speed the miggy can get at PIO 5, as for what I understand a Fast Ata can get till 16Mb/s, but I never could get more than around 10 at Pio 5.

Also, I say Pio 5, but it uses to give me a lot of problems, even Pio 4 sometimes, that's why I want to try this card too. I don't mind (LOL) having "only" 10Mb/s as long as I don't have problems using them.

[Mrs Beanbag]

I didn't get this for speed, to be honest. I got it mostly because a 15 year old 2.5 inch HDD is living on borrowed time, and for aesthetic reasons, especially the quietness.

[Amiga1992]

Seriously, the bottleneck will be the computer anyway, so it doesn't really matter how fast this thing is. It's fast enough for an Amiga, period.

[Retrofan]

Is there an adapter to connect it to my laptop to transfer files?

Edit: Ok, I will install System using the Pcmcia and the rest connecting the miggy to the PC with this: http://aminet.net/package.php?packag...c/PC2Am308.lha

[Amiga1992]

YEs, use this:
http://www.google.co.uk/products/cat...ed=0CHsQ8wIwAA

Your "solution" is a bit masochist

[Retrofan]

Thanks a lot. Well, I'll try first the cheaper option to see if it works, if not, I will use yours. Just curiosity too, as I've never connected the Pc to it.

[Amiga1992]

These adapters can be gotten for very cheap. Check eBay for some chinese seller. I paid next to nothing for mine.

You can connect any IDE and SATA hard drive to your computer through USB using these. They come very handy not just for Amiga purposes.

[Retrofan]

Yes, I've just bought one for 11 euros with sending cost. I have a 3.5" HD also from a broken PC that I would like to read. Thanks.

[Mr B]

These ARE neat, i've used similar units for think clients transformed to small standalone PC's, but life is pretty much the same as for a CF, so i went with CF's for the Amiga. Getting a "real" SSD with some brains to work out wear leveling and such would benefit a longer life, but also costs a few bucks more. (And generally are way to large for my needs on the Amiga)

[Mrs Beanbag]

Just make sure to get a proper "cross over" male-male gender changer if you need one, a simple pin-to-pin one doesn't work.

@Mr B, also these modules are SLC which is far more reliable than the MLC you get in CF/SD cards, as well as in most cheap PC SSDs.

[Amiga1992]

What is SLC and please explain the differences, if you don't mind

[demolition]

SLC=Single Level Cell, MLC=Multi Level Cell

Basically, with SLC each cell can only represent two levels, i.e. 0 and 1. With MLC you increase the capacity by using multiple voltage levels with each cell. The downside is MLC is less robust and cannot withstand as many write cycles. That being said, an MLC drive with a proper wear leveling algorithm should work for many many years in a normal desktop computer. The bigger the drive, the longer it will last as writes are distributed evenly across all cells.

For servers, it can make sense to use SLC if it needs constant writing. I have a 120 GB MLC SSD in my desktop PC and with my write usage, it should last 20+ years, so I'm not concerned.

[Mrs Beanbag]

Well I read this: http://forum.notebookreview.com/hard...lc-vs-mlc.html

SLC ssds can be calculated, for the most part, to live anywhere between 49 years and 149 years, on average, by the best estimates. The Memoright testing can validate the 128Gb SSD having a write endurance lifespan in excess of 200 years with an average write of 100Gb per day.

This is where the mlc design falls short. None have been released as of yet. Nobody has really examined what kind of life expectancy is assured with the mlc except that, it will be considerably lower. I have received several different beliefs which average out to a 10 to 1 lifespan in favour of the slc design. A conservative guess is that most lifespan estimates will come between 7 and 10 years, depending on the advancement of ‘wear leveling algorythms ’ within the controllers of each manufacturer.

“The SSD will outlive the hardware for which it was built for” might be true for most people's PCs, but my Amiga has already outlived two PCs, I just replaced a 15 year old HDD, "between 7 and 10 years" maybe sounds impressive if you replace your computer every 3 years, but I'll take the one that's expected to last into the next century.

[Mr B]

While SLC's survive a lot more writes, unless there is wear leveling, your going to keep doing your writes to the same memory-area, over and over. On the Amiga i doubt it's really an issue, it's not like we write enough for it to be an issue, but thats why i went with CF's. For the thin clients i used these, and wear leveling have yet to show it self being the cause for any shrinking storage units. But i wouldn't put a "dumb" flash storage unit in a system with lots of read writes, and normally DOM's doesn't have any wear leveling. And for the price they cost, compared to a CF & adapter, i want something smarter. Don't get me wrong. these things work great, but all they really are is a high class CF, in a neater package. They are a lot slower then a SSD, which, again, doesn't really matter in an Amiga.

[Mrs Beanbag]

These have wear leveling, apparently. So do the Kingspec ones, I just looked it up. Maybe older ones don't.

[Mr B]

Oh, nice. I couldn't find it in the docs, but if thats the case, then they should last next to forever, even in a fairly active environment.

[Mrs Beanbag]

Last line on first page of brochure:
http://www.transcendusa.com/support/...-IDE-Flash.pdf

"Wear leveling algorithm ensures long term durability"

I do like a nice, sturdy bit of hardware, even if it's massively over-engineered for the problem at hand. Err, especially if it's massively over-engineered.

Plus I'm now wondering what else I can put in the space I just saved.

[Amiga1992]

OK so I understand all about writes, but I also read that there is a limit on how much you can read on this type of media.
As said before, Amigas don't write much to disk, what with not having a swap or stuff like that, and I keep most of my "writable" files on an SD card on the PCMCIA connector, but if there is a read limit, it's worth taking into account.

Mrs. Beanbag is right regarding the expected lifespan of these units. My Amiga is next week 20 years old and it has outlived all of my other hardware except for the Commodore 128. Stuff nowadays doesn't last that long, so buying a unit for my Amiga that lasts very long is paramount.

[Mr B]

Originally Posted by Akira

OK so I understand all about writes, but I also read that there is a limit on how much you can read on this type of media.

There isn't a read limit on these things. You can read unaltered data for as many times as you like. They have a limited number of writes, nothing else.
I was reading a different datasheet, i'm sure wear leveling it's mentioned in it as well, but i just didn't see it. It was in the order of 30-40 pages, rather then 2, so i guess i just got lost in all the text.
With wear leveling they are a better option then a CF with an adapter, but i doubt you'll ever notice it. For the price point, most will be just as pleased with a CF. But the DOM's still are nifty little things.

[Mrs Beanbag]

If I were to put together an A1200 just for running games with WHDLoad I'd have no problems with a CF card whatsoever, if it dies, no biggie, it's all replaceable. But if it was with my own data, oh boy would I suffer a loss. Horses for courses isn't it. Was thinking of getting a CF card for my other two A1200s, maybe the A600s as well who knows. But my special best Amiga, that gets the special best SSD.