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INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

micron m510dc 480gba

   Consumer reports over the last couple of years have shown that consumers of all types check mostly two things when out to get a new SSD, price (more specifically price/capacity) and performance. The same fortunately doesn't apply for enterprise users since performance and endurance are the two primary concerns but i doubt there's a single company out there that wouldn't like to save some cash when getting new storage media. This has left room for strong competition even in the enterprise market so this is perhaps the only time since the introduction of SSDs (as we know them at least) that we've seen pretty much every major player in the market invest in such models. Micron of course couldn't stay this one out and since their M500DC SSD line (introduced just over a year ago) although it proved to be a worthy opponent to other similar models did cost quite a bit they went ahead and introduced the new M510DC line.


   Micron Technology, Inc., is a global leader in advanced semiconductor systems. Micron’s broad portfolio of high-performance memory technologies—including DRAM, NAND and NOR Flash—is the basis for solid state drives, modules, multichip packages and other system solutions. Backed by more than 35 years of technology leadership, Micron’s memory solutions enable the world’s most innovative computing, consumer, enterprise storage, networking, mobile, embedded and automotive applications. Micron's common stock is traded on the NASDAQ under the MU symbol.


   The M510DC line of SSDs seems a lot like a double edged sword since on one hand it doesn't share the same writes per day endurance as the M500DC (2 vs 3 DWPD) but on the other using the latest 16nm 128Gbit synchronous MLC NAND flash by Micron it can offer the same capacities but at a lower cost. Although both use the same 88SS9187 NAND flash controller by Marvell (supports ECC, RAID, SMART, TRIM, AES hardware encryption) another important difference between the M510DC and the M500DC lines is that the first is read centric optimized and thus designed for sequential workloads while the second is built for mixed read/write and random workloads. As we speak the M510DC line is available in 120GB, 240GB, 480GB, 800GB and 960GB and they have a MTTF rating of 2 million hours with an operating temperature from 0°C and up to 70°C. The M510DC line also packs the same eXtended Performance and Enhanced Reliability Technology used in the M500DC (XPERT) which includes features like RAIN data parity protection (redundant array of independent NAND), ARM/OR adaptive DSP technology (Advanced Read Management/Optimized Read), DataSAFE (data path protection) and full power loss protection. Micron is also the very first manufacture in the market to offer TCG enterprise hardware encryption (TCG-E) with their M510DC line which effectively renders the drive useless without its unique encryption key (however due to certain region restrictions the M510DC is also available without TCG-E).

 


 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

featspecs

 


 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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As you can see the M510DC arrived inside a white box with nothing on the exterior aside this sticker which contains the model capacity, serial number and barcode (this is the non TCG-E version).

 

 

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I was surprised to see a 7mm to 9.5mm bracket inside the package along with the drive (this is mostly used in laptops).

 


 

THE M510DC 480GB

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The 7mm thick enclosure of the M510DC is identical in size with pretty much every SATA SSD in the market currently.

 

 

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Once again the sticker placed on the drive includes the drives model number, serial number, barcode, capacity, electrical specifications, country of manufacture, firmware version, certification and warning logos and the form factor (this also may mean that Micron is planning for an 1.8" model of the M510DC just like they did with the M500DC).

 

 

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At the rear of the drive we find the typical SATA data and power connectors.

 

 

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Micron uses regular Philips screws to secure the enclosure so accessing the interior was extremely easy.

 

 

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On the bottom end of the PCB we see four 128Gbit 16nm synchronous MLC NAND flash modules and a 512MB DDR3@1600MHz DRAM module.

 

 

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As expected the top end of the PCB has most components.

 

 

micron m510dc 480gb 11tmicron m510dc 480gb 12tmicron m510dc 480gb 13tmicron m510dc 480gb 14t
Here we see yet another 128Gbit 16nm synchronous MLC NAND flash module (all add up to 640GB so over provisioning is roughly 33% in our sample), another 512MB DDR3@1600MHz DRAM module, 13 tantalum power capacitors and the Marvell 88SS9187 NAND flash controller.

 


 

TEST BED

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

cpuz3930ksystem

 

TESTING METHODOLOGY


   After over 7 years of testing sold state drives i have concluded that it's almost impossible for any single benchmark suite to accurately measure their performance and that's why in certain benchmark suites we see amazing read/write performance numbers with some drives while in others things are quite different. The reason behind this is that some benchmarking suites are configured to read and write random chunks of data while others read and write constant (sequential) ones. So that's why i always use a very wide selection of benchmarking suites including AIDA64, HD Tach RW, HD Tune Pro, Crystal Disk Mark, Sisoftware Sandra Pro, AS SSD, IOmeter and ATTO. To get the most accurate results each test gets repeated a total of 6 times with the average performance numbers recorded into our charts. Also as of February 25th 2015 our results will also include the Storage Networking Industry Association’s (SNIA) IOMeter tests. These tests include a 12 Hour write test used to “simulate” performance degradation over time and a mixed workload test which basically shows what you can expect when using an SSD continuously for roughly two hours. Unfortunately due to the time required for these tests we repeat them a total of 3 times and not 6 as the above.


   Many people have made inquiries about our charts in the past so once again please do keep in mind that the Charts have the average performance numbers of each drive recorded and not the peak (highest) ones. Also although every single one of these programs can help potential buyers choose the right drive for their needs you should also remember that from any kind of benchmark up to real world usage the gap is not small (and usually most differences will go unnoticed by most people). All tests were performed in a fresh Windows 7 Ultimate x64 installation with every update installed up to September 28th 2015.

 


 

TEST RESULTS - AIDA64 / ATTO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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TEST RESULTS - HD TACH RW / HD TUNE PRO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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TEST RESULTS - SISOFTWARE SANDRA PRO / CRYSTAL DISK MARK X64

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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TEST RESULTS – AS SSD / IOMETER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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TEST RESULTS – IOMETER SNIA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

micron m510dc 480gbb

   Although we haven’t had the chance to test the M500DC by Micron the M510DC proved to be a worthy opponent against both enterprise grade and consumer oriented SSDs (at least the ones in our charts) and on top of that it’s the fastest model in our 12 hour IOMeter SNIA chart. Unfortunately the drive doesn’t do extremely well in terms of read performance but it makes sense for Micron to have focused more in durability for an enterprise grade model and here the M510DC shines since with a DWPD of 2 it’s over 5 times as durable as many of its opponents in the market currently (some may argue that this doesn’t change much since even a DWPD of 0.3 or 1 is adequate but it’s never bad to be better). Another good feature is the addition of TCG-E (our model didn’t feature it) and although it may take a while before this technology is used on a massive scale still its benefits are undeniably many especially for mission critical applications.


   By now most consumers are aware that the durability and extra features of enterprise grade products also reflect on their price and since the M510DC 480GB is one such product it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that it currently retails for USD322.37 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 374Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) a price tag which is actually not bad for such a product. In the end the M510DC is not the best performing enterprise grade SSD line in the market currently but it does combine very good performance with excellent durability numbers, relatively good price tag and a 5 year warranty and thus it’s well worth our Platinum Award.

platinumPROS


- Build Quality (2 Million Hours MTBF)
- Endurance / Durability (2 DWPD)
- Very Good All Around Performance
- Top In Our 12 Hour IOMeter SNIA Test
- Power Loss Protection (13 Tantalum Capacitors)
- TCG-E Support
- 5 Year Warranty
- Available In 960GB

 

CONS


- Overall Performance Could Be Better
- Price (For Some)