Intel 520 Series 240GB Solid State Drive Review

1. Introduction2. Intel 520 Series 240GB SSD3. Intel 520 Series 240GB SSD (Super High Res Gallery)4. Testing Methodology5. CrystalDiskMark6. ATTO Disk Benchmark7. AS SSD8. PCMark 79. IOMeter10. Real World Testing11. Closing Thoughts12. View All Pages

The Intel 520 Series drive arrives in a very distinctive branded box with the name and capacity listed on the front.

The drive and accessories are protected inside a strong brown cardboard box. The bundle is extensive … Intel have included a sata cable, power cable, mounting screws, 3.5 inch tray, literature on the product and a ‘speed demon' sticker.

The drive is sealed inside a sealed, anti static bag. No shock with the appearance of the drive, as it follows the corporate Intel design we have seen many times before in the past.

Getting access to the PCB is straightforward, although we don't recommend you do this with your own drive in case of warranty invalidation. That is why we are here after all.

The Intel 520 Series has been codenamed ‘CherryVille' and as the images above show, there is branding in the corner marked ‘Cherryville' and ‘Silk Top'/ ‘Silk Bottom'. Silky bottoms with your SSD? Very kinky! Intel also have their logo right in the center of the PCB too.

Intel are using 25nm ‘compute quality' NAND flash memory (29F16B08CCHE2). This is Multi-Level cell memory.

The Sandforce-2281VB1-SDC controller. This drive uses ‘an LSI SandForce Flash Storage Processor with an Intel co-defined and validated firmware release for an Intel-unique implementation.'

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