Can you use this SK hynix Gold S31 1TB SATA Gen3 2.5 inch internal SSD for laptop? The 7mm thick 2.5″ form factor case of the Gold S31 makes it easily compatible with both laptops and desktops. Enduring rigorous 1,000-hour stress tests the Gold S31 achieved an impressive 600-TBW (Terabytes Written, 1TB Standard) rating. Know more in SK hynix Gold S31 1TB SATA Gen3 2.5 inch internal SSD review.
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Pros & Cons
PROS
- Excellent performance
- Cloning software included
- 7 mm form factor fits in most laptops
- 5-year warranty
CONS
- Lower terabytes written (TBW) rating than competing drives.
- Small write cache capacity
- 1TB maximum capacity
Price
the Gold S31 is available online in 250GB ($50 on Amazon), 500GB ($70 on Amazon), and 1TB flavors—the size we tested—for $119 on Amazon
Compare SK hynix Gold S31 1TB SATA Gen3 2.5 inch internal SSD
| SK Hynix Gold S31 250GB | SK Hynix Gold S31 500GB | SK Hynix Gold S31 1TB | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | $37.99 | $53.99 | $105.99 |
| Capacity (User / Raw) | 250GB / 256GB | 500GB / 512GB | 1000GB / 1024GB |
| Form Factor | 2.5″ 9mm | 2.5″ 9mm | 2.5″ 9mm |
| Interface / Protocol | SATA 6Gbps | SATA 6Gbps | SATA 6Gbps |
| Controller | SK Hynix Quartz | SK Hynix Quartz | SK Hynix Quartz |
| DRAM | LPDDR3 | LPDDR3 | LPDDR3 |
| Memory | SK Hynix 72L TLC | SK Hynix 72L TLC | SK Hynix 72L TLC |
| Sequential Read | 560 MBps | 560 MBps | 560 MBps |
| Sequential Write | 500 MBps | 525 MBps | 525 MBps |
| Random Read | 54,000 IOPS | 90,000 IOPS | 95,000 IOPS |
| Random Write | 87,000 IOPS | 87,000 IOPS | 87,000 IOPS |
| Encryption | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Endurance | 200 TB | 300 TB | 600 TB |
| Part Number | T253TM250G3C302 | T253TM500G3C302 | T253TM001T3C302 |
| Warranty | 5-Years | 5-Years | 5-Years |
SK hynix Gold S31 1TB SATA Gen3 2.5 inch internal SSD review
Design
The SK Hynix Gold S31 adheres to the 2.5” 7mm form factor, and the metal casing is fairly rigid compared to some SSDs that come in plastic cases. The PCB, which houses two NAND packages, a controller, and a DRAM chip, is just a fraction of the size of the case.
Controller
SK Hynix’s own Quartz SATA controller powers the drive. It’s a fourth-gen design that uses the company’s LPDDR3 DRAM cache for FTL table mapping. It interfaces with SK Hynix’s fourth-generation 72-Layer 3D TLC flash.
SLC Cache
the Gold features an SLC write cache. That means write performance degrades after you write a few gigabytes of data, which we’ll cover a bit more on the following page. Additionally, the drive supports the secure erase command so you can wipe your data, but it lacks the AES 256-bit hardware encryption support that has become a standard feature with the top competing SSDs.
Read & write speed
As a 2.5-inch SSD, the Gold S31 is predictably SATA and limited to the usual upper measures on transfer rates that apply to drives using the interface. SK Hynix rates the drive for a maximum write speed of 560MBps, and a rated read speed of 525MBps, both typical SATA-ceiling claims. The drive is based on a 72-layer 3D TLC NAND manufacturing process.
Alternate of SK hynix Gold S31 1TB SATA Gen3 2.5 inch internal SSD
Seagate Firecuda 530
Specs
Capacity : 500GB, 1TB, 2TB, or 4TBController: Phison PS5018-E18 controllerMemory: Micron 176L TLC NANDInterface: M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4Seq. read: 7,300 MB/sSeq. write: 6,900 MB/s
Pros
+Excellent endurance ratings
+All round great performance
Cons
-One of the more expensive PCIe 4.0 drives-Lacks AES 256-bit encryption.
Of course Western Digital and Samsung are the big names in storage, and most especially in the world of SSDs. Seagate may have taken a while to get into the solid state game, and especially the PCIe 4.0 market, but it has arrived with a bang with the Firecuda 530. With or without the heatsink (something that’s necessary for its PlayStation 5 compatibility) the latest Seagate drive is a stunner.
It combines brand-new Micron 176-Layer TLC NAND—the same memory Crucial is using to great effect with the new P5 Plus drives—with a Phison PS5018-E18 controller. Micron claims that its 176L TLC NAND is the best in the industry with a 30% smaller die size and a 35% improvement in read and write latency over its previous generation 96L NAND.
Of course the rated sequential read/write speeds are fantastic, but it’s the endurance levels that really stand out compared to the competition. The 2TB drive we tested has an unprecedented 2,550 TBW rating when it comes to endurance, which is something you won’t see this side of an SSD made for Chia mining.
And in terms of performance the FireCuda 530 either matches or beats the big bois of the storage world, and when you add its leading sequential performance and endurance rating, the Seagate 530 is at least the equal of any consumer SSD on the market.
Editor’s recommendations
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