What is ssd solid state drive?

01 Definition of solid State Drives

Solid state drives can be split into two parts, solid state and hard drive.

The hard disk is the main storage medium of the computer and acts as a warehouse. Your long-held collection of documents, pictures, videos and other data sits quietly on your hard drive.

In contrast to the mechanical hard disk, which requires disk rotation and magnetic head reciprocating motion to read and write data, solid state hard disk in the process of reading and writing data, the internal electronic components can be completed without movement. That's because solid-state drives store data from arrays of solid-state electronic memory chips known as flash memory grains.

Internal structure of solid state drive

Therefore, solid state drive is defined as a computer storage medium made of flash memory particles, English name SolidStateDisk, SSD for short.

Solid state Drive (SSD) structure is relatively simple, consisting of storage unit and control unit. It can be taken apart, so most of the SSD performance reviews we see are accompanied by internal disassembly diagrams.

02 Advantages of solid state drives

Now that you know what SSDS are and what they look like, let's talk about the experience you can get from using SSDS when you're using them.

Fast read and write speed: Because of the use of flash memory as the storage medium, the SSD read speed is faster than the mechanical hard disk. Solid-state drives use no head and have almost zero seek time. The speed of both continuous and random reading and writing is amazing. It is faster to boot up, copy large files, and start software and games.

Mechanical hard disks require head seeking

Low chance of accidental data loss: Because SSDS are made from flash memory particles, there is no mechanical movement inside the SSD when it is working. When moving at high speed or even tilting over, the internal components will not be damaged due to inertia. The probability of data loss is also very small in the event of shock and collision.

Zero noise: There is no mechanical motor and fan structure inside the SSD, and the noise value is 0 dB during operation. If you need a quiet environment, solid state drives are the way to go.

03 The shortcomings of solid state drive

By summarizing the advantages above, it can be found that the experience of using SSDS is more than double that of traditional mechanical hard disks. But isn't there a downside to solid-state drives? Let's talk about some of the disadvantages of solid state drives.

Low cost performance: in 2020, the price of solid state hard disk has been equal to about 1GB/RMB price, but compared with the traditional mechanical hard disk 0.28GB/RMB, the cost performance still needs to be improved.

Limited capacity: Most flagship solid-state drives on the market are 1~2TB, while the capacity of mechanical hard drives can reach up to 16TB.

Limited data retention cycle: The data stored in the SSD will not disappear in the short term, but if it is not used for five or six years, the hard disk data may be lost. The data on a mechanical hard drive can be stored for a decade or more.