back to article Samsung in second SSD slowdown SNAFU

Samsung's wiping egg off its face after a patch for an under performing solid state disk didn't work, necessitating the issue of a second patch. The drive in question is the 840 EVO, a device we last year mentioned, screams along at impressive speeds and packs a handy and workstation-worthy 1TB. But once the drive hit the …

  1. bazza Silver badge

    Can we just lose FLASH already?

    It's about time some of the promised replacements actually made it from the lab to the market.

    1. Richard 12 Silver badge

      Re: Can we just lose FLASH already?

      Ferro-electric NVRAM is on the shelves already, but the density is still very low and the price high.

      I've not seen any FeNVRAM bigger than 256kbit yet. It compares very well with SRAM and battery/supercap backup, but not Flash.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Joke

        Re: Can we just lose FLASH already?

        KB?

        Oh, so if I buy 2 I can have a really fast Amiga! :D

        1. Sureo

          Re: Can we just lose FLASH already?

          "Oh, so if I buy 2 I can have a really fast Amiga!"

          Well, a very famous person said you would never need more than 640K!

      2. Nigel 11

        Re: Can we just lose FLASH already?

        More to the point, why can't we be offered an 80Gb SLC drive for the price of a 240Gb TLC (consumer grade) drive? Because for many applications, speed and durability are needed, and another 160Gb is not.

        I wonder if Memristor tech will be equally frought during its first few iterations?

        1. bazza Silver badge

          Re: Can we just lose FLASH already?

          Memristor doesn't have a wear life problem like FLASH does. And it's apparently a whole lot quicker too.

          If HP ever bring memristor to market then we can kiss FLASH and all the irritating attendant complexities goodbye. And good riddance too.

  2. Sebastian A

    Well dang...

    I have one of these drives but never ran performance tests after the initial ones just after the install. I'll need to re-run them to see how bad it is. In hindsight, things do seem somewhat slower but I'd always blamed that on the inevitable aging and bloat of the Windows install and apps rather than the drive itself.

    1. Danny 14

      Re: Well dang...

      another note, if you have an 840 (not evo) then update the firmware and run diskfresh, that cured the slow reads for me. When all this furore hit I tested mine and was shocked by the 50Mbs read troughs. After a flash and a refresh things were back up to 300 and have stayed that way a few months later (no real troughs either).

      I suppose that is all the evo fix does - flash the firmware and read/rewrite the data.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Linux?

    Can't see anything for Linux on that Samsung driver site. I take it that legacy OSs still persist on vendors providing binary lumps on their own websites rather than being part of the core OS and supported by the core OS developers.

    How quaint.

    1. BlartVersenwaldIII

      Re: Linux?

      They provide a bootable DOS ISOs that contains a) updated firmware files and b) a DOS version of the "performance restoring" tool I believe; these should work in any machine unless there's BIOS/UEFI problems.

      http://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/minisite/SSD/global/html/support/downloads.html

      However, if their "solution" is continually shifting files around and thus requires a resident process of some sort then I imagine linux and OSX users will be SOL for the foreseeable.

      1. nanchatte

        Re: Linux?

        The article mentioned a new version of Magician is to be issued. Magician is a Windows only solution. I hope th e 830 series is not affected. I shall be avoiding the 840 in my next series of builds.

    2. A Known Coward

      Re: Linux?

      Linux firmware update is there, halfway down the page (uses DOS based boot disc ISO):

      https://www.samsung.com/global/business/semiconductor/minisite/SSD/global/html/support/downloads.html

  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Return it as not fit for purpose

    If goods don't perform as advertised then you are entitled to a refund under the sales of goods act

    1. BlartVersenwaldIII

      Re: Return it as not fit for purpose

      Indeed, and the problem seems like it was there from the start so shouldn't have any difficulty organising a return even after the 6 month cutoff.

      Sad to see Samsung fumbling like this but I can't say I feel that sorry for them; they pushed a brand new NAND technology without adequate testing. On top of that the 3D V-NAND was meant to drastically lower the prices for SSDs... but didn't. Samsung instead priced 3D V-NAND like MLC and MLC like SLC. If there was anyone instrumental in lowering SSD prices over the last 18 months, it was Crucial, who are still using un-sexy MLC and positively snore-worthy Marvell controllers.

      1. BlartVersenwaldIII

        Re: Return it as not fit for purpose

        Ugh, comment-writing fail as I was yet to reach my minimal caffeine threshold. I did of course mean TLC rather than 3D V-NAND. 850 Evo is of course 3D V-NAND TLC but this drive slowdown issue appears to affect all flavours of TLC regardless of the fab process - i.e. both the 840 and 850 Evo models.

      2. FOAW

        Re: Return it as not fit for purpose

        Mine is in its way back to Amazon. As far as I'm concerned it's faulty and I've been more than patient waiting this long.

        Probably the last Samsung product I buy. Already had a problem with their phone firmware and TV drm bug.

        Theu used to be a good product manufacturer but as of late they've gone very much down hill in terms of quality and service.

    2. nanchatte

      Re: Return it as not fit for purpose

      Where I am, there is a sticker on the inner wrapper that states opening the bag signals the user's compliance with the EULA. In the typically length EULA there is a statement along the lines of performance may degrade from the time of purchase after "continued use" and "depending on use."

      Here in Japan, the govt. pretty much always sides with the business. No returns for that reason available here unless purchased through a foreign sent like Amazon.com

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Samdung.

  6. Ashton Black

    Balls....

    I just bought one of these, as a replacement for my aged X-25 (64Gb). *sigh*. Damn me and my lack of research.

  7. damian Kelly

    If you stick this POS in your iPod classic then you will suffer endless headaches too, having to take the bloody thing apart again to sort out firmware

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Ah well, too late for a retraction of all the great reviews, and there is a new one out now.

  9. TheBully

    Got 8 of these

    I have 8 of these 120GB ones in a HP DL380 G6 (RAID 10) and performance has not been what I envisioned...

  10. DerekCurrie
    Unhappy

    Concept: Just Don't Buy Samsung

    Why would any of this surprise anyone? You want cheap knockoff junkware? You buy Samsung. You suffer the consequences. Been there, done that. Hated it.

  11. TCMuffin

    850 PRO SSD destroyed by firmware update

    ...and for an encore...Samsung's Magician software has applied a firmware update to the flagship 850 PRO SSD (mine is the 1Tb version costing £450 and is only 3 weeks old) which has destroyed the SSD. Samsung's response is to offload the problem to its service provider Hanaro (http://www.hanarocom.com/) which is asking Samsung customers to RMA the drive (complete with sensitive data) for replacement.

    1. FOAW

      Re: 850 PRO SSD destroyed by firmware update

      Get a refund if at all possible.

      Change make/manufacturer and don't look back.

      Ive switched to the MX100 for the time being. May just stick with it until an m.2 drive catches my eye.

  12. TCMuffin

    FB group for people who've suffered Samsung's SSD 850 Pro firmware death

    We have started a FB page to collate the worldwide experience of Samsung 850 PRO users with this deadly firmware update...65 people who have had problems with the firmware update have joined since the group was created yesterday afternoon and if anyone else has an experience they'd like to share, please join us...

    https://www.facebook.com/groups/897460120304659/

  13. robertcirca

    Samsung SSD 830

    I have got an SSD 830 in my notebook. When i look at fotos taken last year it takes up to 5 seconds before the next picture shows up. My old notebook with a standard 500GB hardddisk shows the foto as soon as i press the cursor-to-the-right button.

    I used to be a Samsung addict. However now, I am glad not to have one of these new Samsung TV sets that snoop your conversations in the living room. And my next SSD will definitely not be a 8xx series disk.

    robert / germany

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