Storage was the least priority for me when building a pc but when I finally got my first SSD which is an OCZ Arc 100, everthing was real fast. I am now exploring more about SSD's and I am eyeing on to get an M.2 SSD since I am planning to build a mini ITX system. I've searched for those affordable M.2 SSD's and found this. BIOSTAR M200 At $54 for the 120Gb variant, it's the most affordable I could find. Would like to hear your thoughts about it. Is the price worth it or there something better that could match the price? Thank you.
That's a SATA drive, not NVME so it may not be much quicker than your older drive. (if it's a speed boost you're after from it).
If you're after super fast, the Samsung PM961 drives are sweet! I picked up a 512GB one recently and it's basically faster than everything else in my computer. One thing to note, M2 cards are tiny, about the size of a stick of gum, so it feels a bit odd to be spending so much on something so small.
Since I would be building a mini ITX setup, I need to have anything as tiny as possible. Having an M.2 means less drive cage and cables for better airflow.
Depending on how it's mounted to the board (i.e. if it's perpendicular) - an 2242 drive may help even more in your quest for minimalism - basically half the length of the 2280 drives (the 42 and the 80 being the length in mm) - there is a bit of a premium for them compared to 2280m but worth considering if it's going to help. I've used a Mydigital one in a laptop with no complaints (and will be using it in a tiny little enclosure soon). Transcend do them as well. I can't comment for or against Biostar - but generally if you're not after performance, SSDs can be much of a muchness. Make sure you're ordering from a retailer you're happy with, and that it comes with a warranty you're happy with, and don't worry too much about the brand unless you can find specific evidence to say it's a poor drive for some particular reason.
I would never know until I read your comment that there is actually something much smaller than m.2. I've checked the availability of 2242's locally and only brands available are plextor, adata and transcend and they cost like $18 more than that of Biostar, for the 120Gb variant. So far, I never had any problems with Biostar that's why I keep buying it. Thanks man.
