Samsung has been so busy setting world speed records for its PCIe NVMe SSD drives that its new 860 QVO SATA 6 SSD is easy to overlook.
The 860QVO SATA 6 now comes in 1, 2 or 4TB SSDs offering up to 550/520Mbps sequential read/write speed. Prices start from $149.99.
Now SSD drives are not all too exciting especially as the PCIe versions can get over 3000/3000Mbps but they cost a lot more too. But they use the latest Samsung V-NAND 4bit MLC, have a 3 year (or terabytes
The Samsung SATA 6 is a 2.5” upgrade device to breathe life into a PC/Notebook with a slow, oh so slow, hard disk. You can easily replace a larger 3.5” HDD with this too.
| Category | Samsung 860 QVO SATA 6 SSD |
| Storage Memory | Samsung V-NAND 4-bit MLC |
| Controller | Samsung MJX Controller |
| DRAM |
4GB LPDDR4 for 4TB 2GB LPDDR4 for 2TB 1GB LPDDR4 for 1TB |
| Sequential Read/Write Speed | Up to 550/520 MB/s |
| Random Read/Write Speed | Up to 97K/89K IOPS |
| Management Software | Magician Software for SSD management |
| Total Bytes Written warranty |
1,440TB (4TB) 720TB (2TB) 360TB (1TB) |
| Warranty |
Three (3) Year Limited Warranty 1.5 million hours MTBF |
860 QVO SATA 6 Setup (Windows only)
You can’t simply swap out the existing hard disk drive because it has all your data on it and buried deep in the Window registry is the Product Key that you need to activate Windows.
Clean setup – the preferred method
A clean install always gives the best results. The downside is that you must reinstall Windows and all your existing software.
With your existing system intact
Download Magical Jelly Bean Finder (MJBF – there is a Mac version as well) and use it to find the Windows 10 CD Key – it looks like this DA246-4VFG4-RBS8C-YRZYV-YY49C. Write it down and also put a copy in a plain text file.
MJBF may also be able to find other installed software keys like Office, Antivirus etc. Also, copy these down.
Next, go to Windows ISO downloader and download the ISO Tool to make a bootable Windows install USB flash drive.
Power off and remove the existing boot hard disk. The new disk should plug straight into the cables – if not you can’t proceed and will need to take the SSD back to the store
Put the bootable USB drive in the USB-A port and switch on. The computer BIO should recognise it as a bootable device (if not you need to go into the bios and set it accordingly)
It will install a clean new Windows on the SSD –you activate this with the MJBF key.
Most PCs have two SATA ports so you can put the old drive on the second port and copy data over.
Or Clone your drive (not preferred as existing issues are copied over)
Samsung also provides its Data Migration software, which allows you to clone over your data from an existing drive to your new SSD. Similar products include the CrucialBX500 and Seagate SATA 6 SSDs.
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