The test system used in this review was an HP 8200 Elite. The computer came equipped with an Intel Core i5-2400 CPU, 4GB of DDR3 1333MHz memory, Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3250312AS 250GB SATA 6 Gb/s hard drive, NVIDIA Quadro FX580 512MB PCIe graphics card and an Intel 82579-LM gigabit network card. For the operating system, I installed a fresh copy of Windows 7 Enterprise.
To test the performance of the Kingston HyperX, I ran a series of benchmarks using CrystalDiskMark 3.0.1, HD Tach RW 3.0.4.0, ATTO Disk Benchmark 2.46, AS SSD, HD Tune Pro 4.61 and Iometer. For comparison, I've also included test results from the OCZ Vertex 3, OCZ Agility 3 and Plextor PX-128M2S.
As I mentioned earlier, the HyperX SSD is based on SandForce's SF-2281 controller. Like other SandForce controllers, the SF-2281 features a technology called DuraWrite, which uses data compression to lower write amplification and extend the life of the drive by reducing the number of program-erase cycles. This data compression also plays a big part in the controller's performance. The more the data can be compressed, the faster an SSD like the HyperX is able to read and write. Looking at the screenshot above, you can see that there is a considerable performance difference when writing incompressible (0%) and compressible (100%) data. However, thanks to the HyperX's synchronous NAND, its read speeds aren't affected nearly as much.
CrystalDiskMark 3.0.1:
First, I ran a few quick tests using CrystalDiskMark. This benchmark tool measures the performance of a storage device by testing its sequential read and write speeds as well as its random read and write speeds using blocks 512K and 4K in size.
 Kingston HyperX 120GB |
OCZ Vertex 3 120GB |
According to Kingston, the 120GB HyperX SSD is capable of reading at 555MB/s and writing at 510MB/s when connected to a SATA 6 Gb/s port. While faster than the OCZ Vertex 3, the drive's sequential read and write speeds came up a bit short of these numbers when using CrystalDiskMark's default (random) test data.
 Kingston HyperX 120GB - All 0x00, 0Fill |
OCZ Vertex 3 120GB - All 0x00, 0Fill |
Like the Vertex 3, the HyperX performed much better when using highly compressible 0x00 (0 Fill) data. This time around, the drive was able to read at 487.1 MB/s and write at 448.4 MB/s.
HD Tach RW 3.0.4.0:
Next, I used HD Tach to test the HyperX's read, write and burst speeds as well as its seek times and CPU usage.
Looking at the screenshot above, you can see that the HyperX SSD had average read and write speeds of 370.2 MB/s and 346.8 MB/s respectively, as well as a burst speed of 371.7 MB/s.
ATTO Disk Benchmark 2.46:
I also used ATTO Disk Benchmark to test the HyperX's sequential read and write speeds. The tests are run using blocks ranging in size from 0.5KB to 8192KB and the total length set to 256MB.
 Kingston HyperX 120GB |
 OCZ Vertex 3 120GB |
When tested with ATTO, the HyperX's read speeds topped out at about 559 MB/s and its write speeds at 479 MB/s.
