Drive Performance with Data Onboard

You may remember this chart from the Corsair Performance 3 256GB SSD review a few weeks back. In this test we grabbed some random files off the QNAP TS-809 Turbo NAS that my family has taken over. This test was fairly straight forward - fill around 50% of a drives capacity and then run a simple, but thorough benchmark. The results speak for themselves - the SandForce SF-1200 based MemoRight FTM-25 256GB drive slows when data is present on the drive, but the Corsair Performance 3 256GB drive keeps roughly the same performance level with and without data on the drive. The fill test was born.

It is important to point out that the SandForce SF-1200 isn't the oddity in this small test group. We've known for a long time that all SSDs slow as they fill with data. The odd ball out of the group was the Corsair Performance 3 with the Marvell 88SS9174-BKK2 controller.

On the first page we talked about the amount of testing that goes into a review and that some tests are published and some are not. The next thing I would like to point out is that all of our tests are publically available and easily obtained. You can read about the previous testing methods in this article. That document is going to need a revision soon.

Being transparent with our testing methods and using software easily accessible not only keeps us honest, but also allows you to test your products at home to see if they are working as they should. I hate to say it, but there are review sites out there that have been proven to 'fudge the numbers' in order to attract readers. Doing things like changing a benchmark perimeter in order to achieve a higher performance result is not that uncommon. It is dishonest, though.

So, we have a new benchmark. Let's show you what it does and how to set it up.