up vote 9 down vote favorite
1
share [g+] share [fb]

I'm planning to purchase a Crucial M4 256G SSD.

There are 2 versions though, 7mm and 9.5mm, at the same price on Newegg.com

My current laptop is 9.5mm SATAII. However, I plan to purchase a new laptop as soon as Ivy Bridge quad-core laptops (the 35W i7-3612QM interests me most) are available, which will certainly have SATAIII (and I plan to use a legacy HDD in optical bay). However, I'm not sure if it will come with a 7mm or 9.5mm slot.

My question is, will a 7mm SDD fit in a 9.5 mm slot? Is there any disadvantage?

(BTW, comments are welcome if you feel Crucial M4 is not a good choice. I chose this after I read rumors about SandForce. I also do not see any reason to switch to Intel 320 Series as Crucial seems to have good reliability as well.)

link|improve this question
2  
Yes- as long as its not bigger. There is usally a caddy that holds the HDD. this is where the SSD will have to be put... so it will fit snug to specification, and usually when you put the cover on, the screws hold the caddy in place.. – ppumkin Jan 6 at 19:50
@ppumkin You mean 7mm will be able to fit into the 9.5mm slot just as if it is a 9.5mm one? I just viewed the photos on Newegg and it seems all screw's relative position to the connector are the same for both version. – Gene Jan 6 at 19:54
Yea- its the thickness. It can be smaller than spec. But some 2.5" like 750GB are thicker and dont always fit.. The srews are positions absolutley to the sata port.. so that it will fir perfectly.. there is no need for convertors or anything. It is a standard that has to be follwed- or it will say- you need another caddy or something psecial- which is very rare. enjoy the ssd :) – ppumkin Jan 6 at 19:57
1  
@ppumkin Thank you for your answer. Why not answer my question, instead of commenting, so that I can accept your answer? :) – Gene Jan 6 at 19:59
feedback

1 Answer

up vote 9 down vote accepted

enter image description here

Yes the 7.5mm, 9.0mm will fit into all 2.5" standard SATA bays, because the side screws will align the SATA port to the port on the motherboard. The same applies for thicker HDD's - but not all thicker ones will fill ie- wont be possible to screw the cover back on.

enter image description here

It is highly likley (only on some models of Acer do not use this) that there will be a caddy. You will need to put this on the SSD to maintain the correct alinement's and avoid damage to SATA port. enter image description here

Then the cover that goes over the HDD bay, will usually keep the cradle in place, stopping the drive from falling out of the connector.

XP Key courtosey of Google and some bloke who decided to publish it to Google Images.. All rights reserved..?

PS: Enjoy the SSD. I love the speed improvement, especially on loading apps and games. Amazing!

link|improve this answer
As long as it has a caddy, you're fine! – Shinrai Jan 6 at 21:10
feedback

Your Answer

 
or
required, but never shown
discard

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.