Solid-state drives (SSDs) store data directly in flash memory chips and record data storage location and operations with a controller unit. On the other hand, mechanical hard drives write data on disk surfaces, rotate disks and move mechanical arms for data operations, just like the primitive principles of phonographs in modern days.
Reading speed of SSD drives and mechanical hard drives
The average read/write speed of mechanical hard drives is 60-80 MB/s and the speed rarely exceeds 200 MB/s as it is restricted by the disk's rotation rate and the time required for pointer addressing. SSD drives differ greatly between models and brands, with an average speed of about 150-300 MB/s and a maximum speed of 500 MB/s as data is accessed directly via flash memory chips and controller. If you want rapid booting and to run large games quickly, you can load the main program on an SSD drive.
Write cycles of SSD drives and mechanical hard drives
For mechanical hard drives, writing is like writing with a pencil, with an infinite number of write cycles.
For SSDs, it is like writing with a pen. Effective data must be copied onto a draft paper in the SSD, an original page must be torn, and then new data and effective data from the draft paper must be put back in.
Noise levels of SSD drives and mechanical hard drives
Due to the high-speed rotating disk, mechanical hard drives are generally noisier.
Due to differences in mechanism, SSD drives do not have high-speed rotation noise and the data is stored directly in flash memory chips, resulting in no noise.
Shock resistance of SSD drives and mechanical hard drives
Due to the precise sensing between the head and disk, which may cause structural collisions among different machines, mechanical hard drives have poor shock resistance and prone to location offset and address disorder. That's why it is recommended to use them in desktop computers at home.
SSD drives involve the controller inducing addressing and there is no need for light devices or magnetic heads. They have a higher shock resistance level and are suitable for frequently used portable laptops.
Data recovery capability of SSD drives and mechanical hard drives
Due to the storage mechanism of mechanical hard drives, which stores data in sector-by-sector binary storage with corresponding addressing addresses for each data, data recovery is easy.
However, when storing data in flash memory chips of SSD drives, to ensure that the average life of multiple flash memory chips is the same (with limited erasure and writing times), in addition to the controller of the SSD drive, all types of data storage locations are recorded and maintained dynamically via the hard drive controller's FTL linkage list. Therefore, for data recovery software, data recovery based on the position recorded before the operating system will not work.
