Transcend TS16GSSD34E: SSD ExpressCard for those on the Go...
by Dave Robinet on October 25, 2007 12:15 AM EST- Posted in
- Storage
Conclusion
The Transcend TS16GSSD34E is truly a mixed bag. For $170 USD (street) price, the user receives a device which provides a decent storage option for laptop users with an ExpressCard slot, though the sheer size of the ExpressCard and USB adapter assembly makes it a bit cumbersome to frequently use as an external USB device while traveling.
The true value of the SSD34E is in its use as an ExpressCard device. Any "road warrior" who has used a laptop with a USB stick has found it awkward at times - and the SSD34E resolves this issue by having the storage fit inside the laptop's slot. When a user wants to share the data with someone else, they simply pop it out of the slot, attach the USB adapter, and the SSD34E can be used in whatever setting a USB stick can. This allows for something which has thus far eluded laptop users - a means of having easy and fast removable storage at their fingertips the entire time, without sacrificing any of the convenience of their physical laptop footprint.
Performance-wise, the SSD34E was a bit of a disappointment although it does come very close to matching Transcend's performance figures. Its 16GB of capacity is much larger than most standard USB stick sizes which can be purchased in bulk at your local electronics store, though again, the overall cost was certainly substantially higher than those units. On a per-gigabyte basis, however, the 16GB SSD34E shows up fairly well.
It's tough to recommend a unit like the TS16GSSD34E, as the write performance is just too serious a drag on what would otherwise be a solid package. The use of ExpressCard packaging is an excellent idea - and an idea which has been under-represented in the market place today. The 16GB of space could certainly make this device far more useful than a conventional memory stick, and the $170 street price means that the product hovers around the $11 per gigabyte mark. We certainly expect better performance out of a device that we would use frequently so there just are not enough redeeming qualities to fully recommend the TS16GSSD34E at this point in time. However, a faster controller design or a lower price would certainly have us changing our conclusion.
The Transcend TS16GSSD34E is truly a mixed bag. For $170 USD (street) price, the user receives a device which provides a decent storage option for laptop users with an ExpressCard slot, though the sheer size of the ExpressCard and USB adapter assembly makes it a bit cumbersome to frequently use as an external USB device while traveling.
The true value of the SSD34E is in its use as an ExpressCard device. Any "road warrior" who has used a laptop with a USB stick has found it awkward at times - and the SSD34E resolves this issue by having the storage fit inside the laptop's slot. When a user wants to share the data with someone else, they simply pop it out of the slot, attach the USB adapter, and the SSD34E can be used in whatever setting a USB stick can. This allows for something which has thus far eluded laptop users - a means of having easy and fast removable storage at their fingertips the entire time, without sacrificing any of the convenience of their physical laptop footprint.
Performance-wise, the SSD34E was a bit of a disappointment although it does come very close to matching Transcend's performance figures. Its 16GB of capacity is much larger than most standard USB stick sizes which can be purchased in bulk at your local electronics store, though again, the overall cost was certainly substantially higher than those units. On a per-gigabyte basis, however, the 16GB SSD34E shows up fairly well.
It's tough to recommend a unit like the TS16GSSD34E, as the write performance is just too serious a drag on what would otherwise be a solid package. The use of ExpressCard packaging is an excellent idea - and an idea which has been under-represented in the market place today. The 16GB of space could certainly make this device far more useful than a conventional memory stick, and the $170 street price means that the product hovers around the $11 per gigabyte mark. We certainly expect better performance out of a device that we would use frequently so there just are not enough redeeming qualities to fully recommend the TS16GSSD34E at this point in time. However, a faster controller design or a lower price would certainly have us changing our conclusion.
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strikeback03 - Wednesday, October 31, 2007 - link
Any chance of comparing one of these to a 16GB Corsair FlashVoyager? The Corsair would seem to be more useful unless you always leave the card in a laptop, the Corsair is less expensive, and IIRC quotes higher speeds as well.Also the Extract Archive chart on page 5 - is that really supposed to say 4000 seconds?
JoeBleed - Monday, November 12, 2007 - link
What file system format was used on this drive and the regular USB memory stick?The reason i ask is that i find NTFS under 2k and XP to perform much better than FAT 32.
darkfoon - Saturday, October 27, 2007 - link
On page 5 of the article, at the bottom, the ClipDrive is called the "MSI ClipDrive" however, throughout the rest of the article its been called the MXI ClipDrive.I assume that MSI is a typo, however I've never heard of the MXI brand, so I'm a little confused, I suppose.
ksherman - Thursday, October 25, 2007 - link
This is an ExpressCard SSD, but uses the USB standard to communicate with the computer (even when in the ExCard slot)?! That seems odd, wouldn't the express slot provide faster performance?Dave Robinet - Friday, October 26, 2007 - link
Expresscard uses either USB or SATA as means for communication (page 1 diagram shows that a bit better), so not really - if they'd chosen SATA as the communication method, then it would have better throughput, though.Regardless, the card doesn't approach the maximum transfer rate of the USB bus, so it's a non-issue.
Thanks for reading!
defman - Thursday, October 25, 2007 - link
Some info on how this would perform as a Windows Readyboost device would be nice....dvinnen - Thursday, October 25, 2007 - link
I was thinking it would make for a good ReadyBoost device for the laptop as well. Some info on how it performs there would be nice.Also, is it USB2 that is holding the speed back? If so they really should of done a dual bus, cardbus for when in a laptop, usb for when using the adapter...
Dave Robinet - Friday, October 26, 2007 - link
No, USB isn't holding the speed back at all. You've got loads more room in the USB2 bus for additional performance from the card - it just isn't there.As for ReadyBoost... given the performance of the card, it's doubtful that it would have made an improvement worth spending the additional money on. Good suggestion, though - if we do another Expresscard device in the future, I'll make sure to include it.
Thanks for reading!
-dave
Weiman - Thursday, October 25, 2007 - link
My thoughts exactly.yyrkoon - Thursday, October 25, 2007 - link
One one hand you have the ability to have more storage with potential for less power draw, fast access times, and the ability to just connect it and not have an external power source to worry about.On the other hand, you had a VERY slow product, that barely outperform the average USB v2.0 device, with limited amount of storage potential.
Price does not look terrible though, but I would imagine you could just as easily buy a Corsair 16GB thumb drive for the same price, and not worry about one of these . . . although if this were bootable(did not see it in the article).