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mSATA specs on XPS 8500
Does anyone know whether the mSATA connector specs on the SPS 8500 motherboard are SATA II or SATA III? I'm going to use a SSD as the boot drive for my XPS 8500 and am trying to determine whether to put a SSD on the motherboard's mSATA connector or to use the motherboard's only SATA III connector/port for a SSD (which now has the factory Seagate hard drive on it) and move the Seagate to one of the available SATA II ports. Any recommendations? Does it make a difference where the Seagate HD is connected (SATA II or SATA III)?
Thanks.
DoctorDED
rdunnill
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July 7th, 2013 22:00
'As far as I know' an mSATA or a regular SSD will have similar performance. Using the mSATA socket frees your SATA III port for other uses, but note that you will need a pair of M2 screws to fasten the mSATA device. (You can get these on eBay.)
An mSATA SSD is more compact and will not take up a drive bay, nor will it require a SATA cable and power connection.
rdunnill
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July 7th, 2013 18:00
I suggest connecting the Seagate to a SATA II port.
AFAIK the mSATA is SATA III. I have a Plextor 128gb installed in mine.
DoctorDED
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July 7th, 2013 19:00
Thank you for your response. However, I still don't understand which approach is preferable---install a mSATA SSD on the motherboard mSATA connector, OR install a SSD using the SATA III connector and move the Seagate HD to a SATA II port/connector? Which of these will yield the best result, or will they be equivalent in performance? Finally, what does the "AFAIK" reference mean from your reply? Thank you,
DoctorDED