ADATA S596 Turbo
The new ADATA S596 Turbo series is available in 32GB, 64GB, 128GB and 256GB capacities and is said to be up to 20% faster than the previous S596 generation models. They also feature static wear-leveling technology and support for the Windows 7 TRIM command. Here are some more technical specifications regarding the controller, memory and cache:
Controller = JMicron JMF616
Cache = Hynix HY5PS1G1631C-FPS6 (128MB)
Memory = Intel 29F32G08AAMDB (32GB 34nm MLC)
Read/Write = 220MB/s - 60MB/s (32GB model)
The S596 Turbo 32GB model is the only drive in this round-up to feature the newly released JMicron JMF616 controller, which is fitting given that ADATA was the first manufacturer to adopt the controller.
Backing up the JMicron JMF616 controller is a 128MB DDR2 memory chip from Hynix (H5PS1G63EFR-25C) designed to work at 400MHz. The drive features eight 4GB NAND flash memory chips from Intel, model 29F32G08AAMDB0, which is relatively low-end and has been featured on older budget SSD drives such as the Solid and Agility series from OCZ.
While the larger 128GB and 256GB models boast relatively impressive read/write throughputs of 260MB/s - 210MB/s, the smaller and more affordable drives are not nearly as impressive. The 64GB ($139) model which could have been featured in this article but was not supplied features a read/write throughput of 260MB/s - 130MB/s – roughly 40% slower. Meanwhile the 32GB ($82) version we're testing today features a read/write throughput of just 220MB/s - 60MB/s. This makes the drive 15% slower than its 128GB counterpart for reads a whopping 71% slower when writing data.
ADATA is backing this product with a 3-year warranty and also includes a 2.5 to 3.5-inch mounting bracket for installation in desktop computers. At around $2.56 per gigabyte the ADATA S596 Turbo 32GB drive is well priced as far as solid-state drives are concerned. However, its true value will be seen when comparing it to other sub-$150 SSD drives in our benchmarking phase of the review.