Solid state drives, or SSDs, have become more prevalent in laptops in the last decade, and for good reason: they're much, much faster than traditional hard disk drives, have no moving parts, and use flash memory to store data, which makes them faster and more reliable than their disk-embedded counterparts.
SSDs, however, don't come cheap, and unless consumers fully transition to an HDD-free storage system, the price points of SSDs are unlikely to dip rapidly. Regardless, SSDs are here to stay, and for those convinced on getting one for their next machine, or updating their current machines, here's a handy list of the top-performing SSDs in 2016 that are worth their price.
Samsung SSD 850 Pro
The Samsung SSD 850 Pro boasts top performance and reliability. At a maximum size of 2 TB, it's easily a huge step up from mainstream SSDs that only go as high as 512 GB. The drive even comes with encryption features to make sure that all data is safe, and it also carries a performance-booster feature called Rapid. Available storage capacities are 128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB.
The only downside with the Samsung SSD 850 Pro is that it's very expensive compared to other models with the same storage capacity, and its proprietary Samsung Magician Software only works with Windows.
The Samsung SSD 850 Pro costs $822.54 on Amazon.
Toshiba OCZ VX500
The OCZ VX500 is Toshiba's 2.5-inch standard SSD that's supposed to be faster than the company's other lineup of budget drives. In terms of performance, CNET said that the SSD was able to sustain a copy speed of 447 Mbps for reading and 437 Mbps for writing, which is among the fastest records for SSDs in the market today.
But like the the Samsung SSD 850 Pro, the OCZ VX500 can only be had for quite a steep price, with four available capacities: 128 GB, 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB at $63.99, $92.79, $152.52, and $337.06, respectively.
WD Black 2 Dual Drive
Western Digital thinks consumers can have both an HDD and an SSD in one device, and this is exactly what it's offering with the WD Black 2 Dual Drive. Unfortunately, it's far from being a truly "hybrid" drive, since the two drives can't be married into a single partition. Regardless, the WD Black 2 Dual Drive boasts fast performance, and nearly 1.2 TB of storage space combined.
The WD Black 2 Dual Drive costs $199.95 on Amazon.
Crucial MX200
The Crucial MX200 is one of the most affordable SSDs around, but its inexpensive price point doesn't tarnish its performance and speed. It even uses the newfangled 3D Flash Memory technology that boosts application performance with low latency, and provides a layer of security with data encryption. Available capacities are 275 GB, 525 GB, 750 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB.
For those looking for a quick, cheap, and easy storage solution, the Crucial MX200 is more than passable.
The Crucial MX200 costs $101.17 on Amazon.
Transcend SSD370S
Those looking for a balance between performance and affordability should look no further than the Transcend SSD370S, purported to be the least expensive SSD on the market today. But despite its low price, the drive boasts a high endurance rating and supports data encryption. The only possible downside is that it only comes with a three-year warranty, against five- or 10-year warranties flaunted by more high-end SSDs.
But for those unworried by the short warranty period, the Transcend SSD370S is an excellent buy, as well as a decent entry point for those transitioning from HDDs to SSDs.
The 1 TB Transcend SSD370S costs $320.88 on Amazon.
Are you using an SSD not mentioned in this list? Feel free to tell us in the comments section below!
