The ADATA Ultimate SU750 1TB SSD Review: Realtek Does Storage, Part 1
by Billy Tallis on December 6, 2019 8:00 AM ESTMixed Random Performance
Our test of mixed random reads and writes covers mixes varying from pure reads to pure writes at 10% increments. Each mix is tested for up to 1 minute or 32GB of data transferred. The test is conducted with a queue depth of 4, and is limited to a 64GB span of the drive. In between each mix, the drive is given idle time of up to one minute so that the overall duty cycle is 50%.
The two DRAMless SSDs have the worst overall performance on the mixed random IO test. The ADATA Ultimate SU750 comes out a bit ahead of the Toshiba TR200, but it's still roughly half the performance of a mainstream SATA drive with a DRAM cache.
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| Power Efficiency in MB/s/W | Average Power in W | ||||||||
The SU750 has by far the worst power efficiency score on the mixed random IO test. It's again the most power-hungry SATA drive, while the somewhat slower Toshiba TR200 stands out with remarkably low power consumption that keeps its efficiency score close to the mainstream SATA drives.
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The performance of the SU750 takes a hit when writes are first introduced to the mix, but it recovers and then some for the 80/20 read/write mix. After that, performance is pretty flat where most SSDs steadily pick up the pace as the workload becomes more write-heavy. There's a power consumption spike during the 90/10 phase that is similar to what we saw during the random read test, likely indicating another bout of poorly-timed background work by the controller.
Mixed Sequential Performance
Our test of mixed sequential reads and writes differs from the mixed random I/O test by performing 128kB sequential accesses rather than 4kB accesses at random locations, and the sequential test is conducted at queue depth 1. The range of mixes tested is the same, and the timing and limits on data transfers are also the same as above.
The ADATA Ultimate SU750 is the slowest drive on the mixed sequential IO test, coming in at about 15% slower overall than the other two entry-level drives (and the SK Hynix Gold S31).
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| Power Efficiency in MB/s/W | Average Power in W | ||||||||
Likewise, the power efficiency of the SU750 is in last place, but not by a huge margin like it was for random IO. Total power consumption by the SU750 is actually a bit below average, but not as low as it ought to be for this level of performance.
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The SU750's performance trend through the mixed sequential IO test is fairly typical for a low-end drive: it loses performance during the early phases as writes are added to the mix, and doesn't really gain it back later on. The Toshiba TR200 and SK Hynix Gold S31 both show very similar performance curves that are consistently a bit faster the the SU750, but the TR200 is always drawing much less power.
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sonny73n - Friday, December 6, 2019 - link
Realtek does audioRealtek does networking
Realtek does storage
Debbie does Dallas
RadiclDreamer - Friday, December 6, 2019 - link
Realtek may do all of these things, but it does them all poorly.FunBunny2 - Friday, December 6, 2019 - link
"Realtek may do all of these things, but it does them all poorly."Debbie wasn't so hot either. :):)
boozed - Friday, December 6, 2019 - link
I don't know that I'd call them poor. Good value, reliable (in my experience) and good enough for the vast majority of users.Other options are available for enthusiasts.
eek2121 - Friday, December 6, 2019 - link
The trouble is that you are talking about a few dollars for a much faster and more power efficient drive. This controller appears DOA as it brings nothing unique to the table.Samus - Saturday, December 7, 2019 - link
With what Intel charges for network controllers, it’s astonishing Realtek is in business when you consider how superior an Intel NIC is while being a few dollars more. And wireless is a whole different story. I’d put Realtek at the absolute bottom of the list. Atheros/Qualcomm, Intel, Agere, Lucent, Broadcom, all have better reliability, support (which is shocking when you consider how vastly used Realtek products are) and generally - performance, than competing Realtek solutions.I think where Realtek scores is availability. Their volume shows commitment to OEM’s that require dependable shipping schedules. This can be as important is BOM pricing, and when you look at the numbers, it seems (and I’m speculating) Realtek designs products for volume production more than anything else. The incredibly low pin count and a 2 channel controller back this up. We are talking about possibly the most basic SATA SSD controller in production and that means they will be able to make a shitload of them really fast really cheap.
And unfortunately OEMs will bite because they know 90% of the people buying this crap don’t care about the inner margin performance of an SSD. Most people buy on price, reliability and warranty.
This shitty SSD May have all 3 bases covered considering the quality binning of Micron NAND.
close - Saturday, December 7, 2019 - link
"a few dollars more" adds up when buying by the truckload. With millions of devices that have a network chipset that's quite some money.jabber - Sunday, December 8, 2019 - link
Yeah amazing how many people don't realise how shaving just 50 cents off a product that will sell hundreds of thousands to millions will save a company a fortune and help with profit.A good example is to watch the documentary "Building a Faster Horse" on how Ford designed and built the 2016 iirc Ford Mustang. Every single part and component was scrutinised to see if it could be either removed/simplified or made cheaper.
That's why Realtek exists still. Their parts are 50c cheaper than Intels.
Manch - Monday, December 9, 2019 - link
Ford been making the Mustang cheaper and cheaper while charging more and more. Started with the Getrag MT-82 grenade and got worse with the crap IRS, corner cutting everywhere. Add on top of it a horrid design (Looks like a 2 door Focus) and they wonder why they're losing customers.hanselltc - Saturday, December 7, 2019 - link
Killer