Solid State Drives (SSDs) are becoming increasingly popular due to their massive performance boost and leading the way in storage technology in comparison to traditional Hard Disk Drives (HDDs).

SSDs are, simply put, taking over. As they offer lightning-fast read and write speeds, capacities up to 4TB, low power consumption and low heat output, they effectively influence system performance and the user experience.

First of all, it’s useful to note why traditional mechanical Hard Disk Drives (HDDs) are so limited. HDD technologies have been around since the 1950s and, as such, are limited to a transfer rate of 5400RPM and beyond – a limiting factor next to the speeds capable through an SSD. This is due to the fact that they rely on a spinning disk to access data, while SSDs employ reusable flash memory chips which are significantly faster in comparison.

The most notable performance benefits of using an SSD can be felt when running applications and loading up games. SSDs can quickly read information from their large memory cells, meaning any program can load up in a fraction of the time – if not more – compared to an HDD. Virtual environments for developers also have a much smoother experience when using an SSD, with boot times often occurring in mere seconds depending on the size and speed of the drive.

Equally, access times are vastly improved when compared to HDDs. Data can be read and written at 200MB per second, dramatically increasing overall system speeds when used in comparison with slower spinning disk drives. This can both improve gaming performance and reduce the time needed to load up heavy applications and software.

Other benefits include better energy efficiency than HDDs, which are renowned for their electric hunger and the associated cooling demands they require in order to function effectively. For those who need silent operation, SSDs have no spinning parts that inflict additional noise, with only a brief signal produced when the drive is powered down or read from.

The pricing for physical SSD drives is ever narrowing due to the rapidly dropping production costs, making them accessible to most users who could benefit from the performance increase. As such, it’s safe to say that Solid State Drives are the future of storage, effectively revolutionizing the way we use data for speed, stability and reliability.