Excellent Budget SSD - Great Upgrade for Basic Users
919808
This is a great drive for what it is. It is a cheap ssd that will offer a huge increase in speed for casual users. There are performance issues with larger files (You can read about this everywhere online) but most casual users (email, facebook, youtube) will be just fine. If you are a power user or gamer you should know this drive is not for you. I installed this on a 2010 iMac which had a failing HDD (WD Blue) and the speed difference is amazing. It performs like a brand new iMac.
1087139
I bought this to replace a smaller SSD (60 GB OCZ) in my desktop that had performed well but was out of space. I am thoroughly pleased with the performance of this drive so far but I have a couple of gripes that cost it a star. Firstly the only things that come in the box are the drive, a CD with cloning and benchmark software, pictorial instructions, and a warranty card. There is no drive tray adapter or SATA 3 cable so you'll need to provide that. These things are inexpensive and provided by some competitors.

Secondly the instructions packed in the box and on the CD tell you that you need a SATA to USB adapter to clone your current drive. This cable cost $40 at my local big box but I've seen them for around $12 here on Amazon. You might need it for a notebook but for a desktop you can simply plug in to the motherboard and the cloning software will do its thing. I had to make BIOS changes to get the drive to boot once cloned as the boot order changed (defaulted to dvd drive) when I unplugged the old drive

Thirdly this drive when formatted comes to 465.8 GB not the 500 GB as advertised. I knew this before I bought it but it could be a surprise for those who aren't computer savvy.

Now for the good stuff. This drive is screaming fast and has a good amount of storage for my needs. The cloning software was fantastic - it performed flawlessly and was super easy to use. The benchmark software can test all of your drives not just the Samsung and has several other useful optimization tools. Overall experience is 4/5 for me
4094299
Ijust switched over from PC to Mac and have had to do so on a budget, so after buying a manufacturer refurbished mid 2012 MacBook Pro and getting the memory upgrade, the solid state drive was next and then AppleCare. This was consistently reviewed as the best SSD on the market and thus I didn't mind paying a few bucks extra since, with a 10 year warranty, Im hoping that I can use this later on in whatever subsequent computers I end up buying. Some tests simulated 75 years of usage for these drives, which is laughably beyond the 3-6 years Ive gotten out of traditional mechanical hard drives.

The install was easy enough as the only time-consuming part of the process was the data transfer which I performed with a USB to SATA cable from Frys (electronics retailer in SoCal; Amazons cable took forever to arrive) along with the free version of the Super Duper software, after wiping the new drive with MacOSs Disk Utility. The drive initially took a few seconds for the Mac to recognize, but after configuring the SSD as the correct boot drive (computer seemed to be looking for the old drive) the machine boots from off to usable desktop in 15-20 seconds.  Most of the software, even bulky programs like iTunes and Microsoft Outlook, loads instantly. I still get the spinning beach ball on occasion, but, otherwise, for a mid 2012 MacBook running Sierra in 2016, the memory upgrade and SSD give me the feeling of running a genuinely brand new, late model computer.

The only issues I had were identifying the SSD as the boot drive as mentioned above, enabling TRIM, and transferring my Microsoft Office license.  The boot drive settings I figured out under system preferences, TRIM I was able to enable by Googling around for the correct machine code (dont need extra software), and Office took a few calls and online chat sessions to figure out, but thats not Samsungs fault.  Overall this is a fantastic drive that I highly recommend.  The performance boost is incredible and what I also appreciate is that the computer now has no moving parts on the inside so thats one less thing to have to worry about (besides the laptop screen) should I drop the thing when traveling.  The only big issue I had was the price per gig, as $200 for 512 gigs doesnt leave much wiggle room space-wise and $400 for 1 TB was beyond my price range.  That said, I was able to buy an enclosure for the old drive which I now use for backups along with an old 1 TB USB drive for larger files.  I wouldve been happier with 750 gigs for this price, but the 850 PRO and its 10 year warranty seems designed for heavier users while the EVO and its 5 year warranty is more for home users.
1816816
I can't say a bad thing about this SSD (yet). I picked it up for an inexpensive budget build for my father where this drive would be the only storage in the machine. I got the 120GB model (111 usable) and after a fresh install of Windows 10 there are 97GB free. With a Pentium G4500 Windows will cold boot in 11 seconds with this SSD. The computer will wake from sleep faster than the monitor will wake up. It's not the fastest drive around but for $48 I'm not going to complain one bit. I have a Samsung EVO850 in my personal rig and while I know the Samsung is a better drive than this one I honestly don't think the difference is THAT much better, really. I was also a bit surprised to see that it came with a little rubber mat with adhesive so it can rest nicely in a hard drive cage/tray. I opted to double-stick tape it to the backside of the motherboard tray. I'm impressed with the price-to-performance ratio of this drive and would definitely recommend it.
379167
Ok, lower end SSD. If your on a budget this works. Have two of them in a PC I buit for my parents that only do small tasks. Works well enough for them. Has been running over a year no issues.
3918738
OCZ never fails with performance and reliability. If you're looking for a budget SSD with great performance, look no further.
263848
After purchasing my hybrid Windows 8 machine on Thanksgiving and experiencing six second boot times with the SSD I had the need for speed in my 3rd generation i7 desktop.  Bottom line I needed a SSD for my desktop!

My shopping venture showed that the prices could get steep quickly if I hoped to install my whole system on the drive with 512GB of storage.  I had settled on buying a 256GB and loading my files to a HDD.  Then somehow, when reading an excellent review at PCWorld on Toshiba SSD's (Toshiba invented NAND memory that is used in SSD'S) I clicked on a link that popped me over to Amazon.  To my surprise I found this drive listed for $139 for the 512GB with only one available.  I started typing my order as fast as my fingers would fly.  Luck would have it that I nailed the order.

This is my first installation of an SSD drive, even though spending decades in IT.

While waiting on the drive I did research on installing the drive for a smooth installation.  One note, if you are installing in a desktop make sure you have mounting brackets if your case does not have a 2.5" bay, this drive is packaged as OEM with no frills.

Upon receiving my drive I backed up all my data and gathered all my registration, etc. numbers and started the install.  I used my recovery media USB flash drive, and if memory serves, it installed as any standard HDD.

The install went smoothly with no glitches and the machine was up and running in no time. I have been a very happy camper for several weeks now.  The fun side is how fast all the installation steps go with the SSD.

In researching I came across plenty of info that was dated.  If you are running a fairly new computer (my desktop is almost a year old) you should be able to pop the unit in and go.  If you are running an older configuration you should do some reading to prep for install and tuning the drive.  My take is that newer machines will handle all tuning and support the trim function.

The drive is fast and reliable.

If you have the need for speed and looking for a good price point (at the current price it is an excellent buy at about .60 cents per GB) you cannot go wrong.

The Cloning Software Kit can be found at - [...]

If you want to fine tune your SSD check out this site - it is all viable and solid tweaking - [...]
1452547
After my original hard drive died on my Early 2011 Macbook Pro, I decided to upgrade to an SSD in hopes of improving performance, longevity, and reliability. While I'd never heard of this brand before, I decided to go for it based on other user's reviews. Four months in I have no regrets. The initial installation was very easy, though installing OS X was a bit of a bear (I think this last one is more of an Apple issue rather than with the hard drive itself, as my Time Machine simply didn't want to recognize the hard drive). My computer boots up in less than 30 seconds and shuts down almost as fast. Programs open very quickly, as well, and there is no lag when trying to open files. This is a great alternative to the expensive Samsung and other name-brand options out there, as well as to paying the kings ransom Apple charges if you want an SSD when you first buy your computer.
3854252
Whether you intend to install this SSD in a desktop or laptop, this kit has everything you need to get it done, and at the time I purchased it, it was only a few dollars more than buying the bare drive.  So for about five dollars extra, I got the USB enclosure and SATA cable.
If you are upgrading a laptop, the USB enclosure is perfect for the old HDD.  It is simple enough to slide your drive in and the case can be re-opened multiple times without issue.
The SSD itself is very fast.  I have purchased several of these now, the oldest of which is about a year old and still working fine.
The included software is fine (Acronis).  You can boot off of the Acronis disk and then clone your existing drive to the SSD.  I could not figure out how to make it bring over just the partition that I wanted, so I used some other software that works better for that.
For most folks, the 120GB SSD is the right size for the OS and the few apps that they actually use.  In a laptop, it does create a space constraint, but in a desktop, you can install multiple drives.
All in all, everything works fine in this kit, is priced right, and I recommend it.  The packaging is easier to open than buying the bare drive as well.
I will continue to buy bare drives if I am replacing a dead drive, but for an upgrade, I like the inclusion of the SATA cable and mounting brackets (if it's for a desktop) and the USB enclosure (if it's going in a laptop).
620358
Adding a SSD is a cheap and easy to way to extend some life out of an aging desktop or laptop. I needed this to try to squeeze and extra year or so out of an aging Macbook Pro. The drive itself is part of OCZ's budget series of drives. It's a few dollars cheaper than their peers from Sandisk or Kingston and they're all rated roughly the same. The package itself is just the drive, and includes no SATA cable or a mounting bracket if you need it on desktops.

Odds are you want to use this drive as a primary drive. During my test, I used Macrium Reflect (free) on a Windows 7 desktop that I had at the house just to clone the drive over. That worked successfully without issues and it's what I use when I need to clone drives in the Windows world. For the Mac, I used SuperDuper to clone the old drive to the new one using&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/StarTech-USB-3-0-to-2-5-34-SATA-III-Hard-Drive-Adapter-Cable-w-UASP-SATA-to-USB-3-0-Converter-for-SSD-HDD-Hard-Drive-Adapter-Cable/dp/B00HJZJI84/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">StarTech USB 3.0 to 2.5" SATA III Hard Drive Adapter Cable w/ UASP - SATA to USB 3.0 Converter for SSD/HDD - Hard Drive Adapter Cable</a>. On both of the computers, I was limited to USB 2.0, which made for ~3 hours on each for cloning the entire drive over.

Performance-wise, there's definitely a boost you'll get going to SSD. For my Macbook, I shaved what felt like a minute off of boot times. Responsiveness in programs like Office and Chrome was definitely there, and made me feel like I got a new and shiny Mac. It definitely made the computer tolerable, and with light tasks, it worked well.

The only real concern was that I wasn't familiar with OCZ, so I don't have that brand trust like I have with Kingston or Sandisk. Also, the "daily usage guidelines" were half of what the 240gb model was. I found that quite odd. Should I be worried? Should I have gone with a larger drive or with a competitor?

3.5 stars
1627012
Just for a little background - I'm in the process of building a "budget" gaming system (So far: i5-2500K OC@4.5Ghz, P8P67 PRO MB, 650W PU) and decided to start fresh with a new boot/storage drive and a clean install of Windows 7 Ultimate. Everything has been working well since. Old hard drive was a WD Caviar Black, definitely no slouch being a 7200RPM HDD, but this 850 Evo blows it out of the water. The 5 Year/150TBW warranty has put my fears of solid state drives at ease. After using this for a week, I am not at all surprised this is a #1 Best Seller. Windows loads quickly, opening applications and files are essentially instantaneous, file transfers are speedy.

Avg. Read: 509MB/s
Avg. Write: 412MB/s
(Via: userbenchmarks utility)

I will update if anything changes, but I continue to be very optimistic about the future of this drive in my system.
3787192
Nowadays Solid States Drives (SSD) are becoming more affordable and that means performance boost for your old laptops or PCs. If you are not ready to purchase new computers, but want to have increased performance, then SSD is the best way to go. I have Lenovo G560 laptop (4 year old basic notebook without power CPU or bells & whistles), but I am not ready to buy a new one. Well by upgrading my HD to OCZ Vector 150 Series SSD tremendously improved my G560.

For detailed benchmark for this SSD, you can easily find more professional reviews online, but my purpose is to show that OCZ SSD with Windows 8.1 (b/c it is better with SSDs) have given new lease on the notebook.

1. BOOT UP and SHUT DOWN time are almost instant. For G560, it was less than 5 seconds boot up, and less than 4 seconds shut down.
2. APPLICATIONS open up much more quickly than previous HD. MS Word, Excel opens up less than a second. Other applications that I use for my work varies depending on the program, but still faster than HD.
3. PICTURES & VIDEOS open up faster and transfer to another media (USB stick or SD card) is much faster than HD.
4. WEB SURFING has also improved. Basically everything has been faster with this OCZ Vector 150 SSD.
5. PRICE. OCZ Vector 150 series is cheaper than other brands. I was surprised by its price and quality. Having been using this about two months, and not a single glitch.

All in all, OCZ Vector 150 series SSD is inexpensive, high quality, and high performance SSD that will give new life to your old notebooks and PCs. I love it! Highly highly recommended!
2395321
Bought in preferance to a OCZ
Has its own biult-in samsung controller, so no problems with conflicts which some ssd's are having probs with
Less read time than some ssd's BUT a huge 256mb cache that apparently means the overall performance is better than higher read/write competitors.
Ive got one installed and its FAST, and its only running at 3GB/s
Improves startup a lot, program open & close a lot (esp lotsa tabs on internet browsers), program running (photoshop is better)

I was used to a samsung 1TB F1 spinpoint hard drive, which apparently had high read/write times anyway.

Read up a bit before you buy, there are ssd problems are about on the web, it seems the samsung 830 is problem-free, very good quality.

In short very reliable and very fast. Just what you want from a drive
Worth the extra because of reliability. Who wants a drive that dies 6 month down the line? Data loss

Tips for looking for SSD upgrade -
- Make sure you mobo supports AHCI in the bios. read some info on the web if u don't know what this is. (Mine supports it but im currently running at IDE, need to check how my other HDDs are affected if i change, and if i can continue running my SSD in IDE safely, but works fine now)

- Make sure you got the power and dta connections to spare - a sata power connection from your power supply, and a spare sata port (and cable) on your mobo.
- Make sure you got a spare slot in your case!
2501311
Replaced the stock 128GB SSD in my Samsung laptop with this 500GB drive as the old drive was completely full. Formatted and  installed with Windows 7, it was 465GB of usable space. Performance is quicker than the previous drive, but since I replaced a SSD with another SSD, I did not expect a large increase in speed. However, with the extra room on the drive and the clean install of Windows 7, the boot and shut down times are significantly improved by an order of magnitude. As expected, this drive makes the laptop very slightly hotter, but this is not really noticeable. The new drive has been running over 1 month with zero issues and there were no problems with the install or transfer of files from the old drive. A trouble free upgrade! Only time will tell as to reliability, but I chose this Samsung drive based on previous experience and their reputation.

Update 10-29-2014 - about 6 months usage on the drive and everything remains perfect. I currently have it about half full and performance remains lightning fast. Still runs slightly hotter than the old drive, but no issues or problems. I perform regular maintenance and updates along with clean up and defragmenting the files. No reliability issues yet and I expect it to remain that way far into the future.
3165939
Bought this as an upgrade for my wife's laptop in order to add a little more life to it, and when combined with a RAM upgrade, it did just that! If you've never dealt with a computer that used an SSD before and/or are considering one for the first time, stop what you're doing an buy this now. The increase in boot times and general performance was significant, and my wife now loves her laptop again!
3510971
We have finally reached the stage in the SSD product cycle where they are quite commodotized, with differences in performance between brands (within reason), being very similar, except using minute benchmarking tools which won't make a difference to the common user.

In reality, this drive is right up there with the best in this category, so I can only highly recommend it (and in fact almost every current gen SSD at this point).

The only thing I would caution against right now, with SSD prices already so low and perhaps heading even lower, is that 120GB is not going to give you enough capacity.  Not even a year ago, the price difference between 80GB, 120GB and 240GB was huge.  With high performance 240GB SSD's in the sub $200 range now, there is really no reason to get anything less IMO.

Not only do you get the extra capacity, but the 240 gig drives give you more performance than smaller drives (bigger than 240GB and some performance markers are actually slower though).

Highly recommend this drive - if you have not switched from a traditional hard drive yet, you will be in for a treat, and this one is a great place to start (perfect for a boot drive for instance).
3311369
The best bang for your buck 256GB SSD on the market as of July '14.  Well under 50cents a gig and solid reliability.  Speed is just fine, the slightly faster drives will not be noticeable in most systems.