Handtops, UMPC - OQO 01+ with Solid State 32GB

04/10/07 + fil

I found this here: link

We have considered the possibility in upgrading 01+'s to have the 32GB Solid State drives in them. With this, we feel the device could be revived. The 01+ with 32GB Solid State would retail for $1295 and ship inside of a week with XP Pro. The other consideration is using our new EVDO upgrade option that allows you to surf online with Rev A speeds and no cables or external USB Modems.

I'm curious if this is something that you think would be a good idea for us to pursue?

Kindest Regards,
adam AT NOSPAM buildyourumpc.com

Very interesting offer.

I sent a request asking about an SSD upgrade for my 01+ instead getting a whole new device with the SSD.

Recent Blog: OQO best for Web surfing

05/08/07 + tknguyen

I removed the 4 screws from the drive before I can pry off one side of the metal casing from the flash drive. On the OQO you need to take 3 screws out before you can remove the back which is just a thin metal sheet.

Recent Blog: Extra USB port for Flipstart

edited: May 08 2007 + fil

So is this MCBOE32G8APR-0XA00 the same as the Dell 32 Gb SSD? link

32 GB Solid State Parallel ATA Hard Drive for Dell Latitude D420 Notebook - Customer Install

The 32 GB Solid State Parallel ATA Hard Drive from Dell™ provides an ideal data storage solution for you. The drive uses only nonvolatile memory to store data instead of the spinning platters and moving heads. This results in fast access times and data transfer. This small form-factor drive has no moving parts. As a result it acts as a reliable storage device. The drive has a PATA interface but comes with an adapter that allows it to connect to a SATA controller. This product has been tested and validated on Dell systems and is compatible with select Dell Latitude™ D420 Notebook. It is supported by Dell Technical Support when used with a Dell system.

Manufacturer Part# : HR466
Dell Part# : 341-4872

* Offers data storage capacity of up to 32 GB
* Incorporates nonvolatile memory resulting in high transfer speeds
* Includes an adapter which allows connection to a SATA controller

I have a 10% discount coupon and I can get it for $494 before tax and shipping ($534 with free shipping).

I'm wondering if I'm pioneering again.

The 128 Gb SSD seems like Utopia to me for a handtop and I can wait for that.

Recent Blog: Apple iPhone Switch

05/08/07 + tknguyen

I am not sure the 32 GB MCBOE32G8APR-0XA00 is the same as the Dell's. In fact I ordered the 32GB from Dell about ten days ago and I cancelled the order when the 32 GB was available from New Egg. If you can wait, you will get a new generation of SSD that is faster and cheaper. I do not see any faster performance on my 01+ using the SSD relative to the old hard drive.

Recent Blog: Extra USB port for Flipstart

05/08/07 + fil

Boot isn't faster?

Caching doesn't seem faster?

Recent Blog: Apple iPhone Switch

05/08/07 + tknguyen

On my normal use with the visual basic programs I wrote to do some calculations I do not feel any faster performance. However I did time my 01+ for certain tasks and this is what I found
Wake up from standby 4-5 s for both HHD and SSD.
Time to standby: 6-7 s (HHD), 4-5 s (SSD)
Time to shutdown: 15-16 s (HHD), 11-12 s (SSD)
Bootup: about 70 s (HHD), about 40 s (SSD)

However I could not copy my old hard drive to the SSD so the settings of the two systems are not exactly the same (I used Xplite and TuneUp utilites to "optimize" both system.)

Recent Blog: Extra USB port for Flipstart

05/09/07 + fil

Those numbers look right, especially boot time is reduced almost half.

I hope a performance expert pops into this thread to give you some insight on other checks for performance sake.

I've seen some thread about SSDs at jkontherun and the Q1, maybe that will give you some insights.

Recent Blog: Apple iPhone Switch

05/09/07 + kyone

The most obvious time an SSD will beat a standard HDD is when there is a need for HDD intensive use. That is most evident with the bootup. The other test are not as related. It will be even more obvious in Vista as it will be even quicker loading all the data from the super fetch from HDD into RAM when booting. Other tests would be to run large applications for the first time after boot.

Try Hibernate tests...

05/09/07 + MeanSquare

The thing to remember is that an SSD will only affect performance that's hard-drive related. Processing speed, calculations, moving things about in memory (as long as it doesn't involve the page file) will be exactly the same. Boot, hibernation, program loading, file operations should all be faster; often about half of what they were with a conventional drive.

Keep in mind too that, unlike the conventional drive, an SSD doesn't need defragging so file performance over the long term will stay at about the same level where HDD performance decreases.

Recent Blog: MeanSquare's Review of the Sony UX (with comparison to OQO)

09/17/07 + miracle

Reviving a somewhat old topic, but is using a CF card as your 'SSD drive' not the same? Or are there obvious differences or so?

edited: Sep 17 2007 + jobjob

a little bit off topic, but does this fit in my 01?

link

09/17/07 + tknguyen

You can only put a 5 mm thick hard drive in the OQO 01. The 80 and 160GB drives are 8 mm thick.

Recent Blog: Extra USB port for Flipstart

09/18/07 + fil

miracle said: "Reviving a somewhat old topic, but is using a CF card as your 'SSD drive' not the same? Or are there obvious differences or so?"

Two points with CF...
1. The OQO cannot recognize a CF card to be bootable, so this is a no go AFAIK.
2. Even the fast Ultra II cards are slower than their SSD counterparts and they don't last very long (failure rates)

Recent Blog: Apple iPhone Switch

09/18/07 + miracle

fil said: "
Two points with CF...
1. The OQO cannot recognize a CF card to be bootable, so this is a no go AFAIK.
2. Even the fast Ultra II cards are slower than their SSD counterparts and they don't last very long (failure rates)"

Thanks for the explanation Fil. Although point one might be solved by using a CF-to-IDE adapter, point 2 is a definite turndown. So, aside from the speed boost you get with SSD compared to a normal hard drive, what other reasons are there to seriously consider SSD? I would imagine the battery would last a bit longer, but how much? Is it worth really the considerable higher price tag?

09/18/07 + tknguyen

I put a 32GB SSD into my OQO 01+. It cost me more than $500.00. For me I do not think it is worth it since for my application I do not use the hard drive a lot. However it is up to you to decide whether the higher price tag is worth it.

Recent Blog: Extra USB port for Flipstart

edited: Sep 19 2007 + 2disbetter

On a device like the 01 (or 01+) your plagued by it's bogged down speed, and as such anything that can help fill in that gap would help the overall machines pep. The Sony UX saw a almosted halfed windows boot time when compared to a regular hdd.

Battery life is preserved as well, all though I'm not sure what kind of extended battery life you can expect. Heat is also dissipated a smidge with a ssd.

2d

Edit: IMO if you have the money to do this, it should be considered a crucial upgrade.