Solid-state drives (SSDs) are increasingly favored by more and more users due to their high speed and high performance. However, with the multiple SSD particle types on the market, such as SLC, MLC, TLC, and QLC, many consumers are often confused when purchasing. What exactly are the differences between these particle types? Which one is right for your needs? This article will provide a comprehensive analysis of SLC, MLC, TLC, and QLC SSDs to help you make more informed purchasing decisions.
Sorted by speed and price: SLC>MLC> TLC>QLC>PLC
Sorted by capacity: PLC>QLC> TLC>MLC>SLC
At present, the mainstream application solutions are TLC and QLC. SLC and MLC are mainly aimed at military, enterprise-level and other applications, and have the characteristics of high-speed writing, low error rate, and long durability.
Basic principles and definitions
To understand the different types of SSD particles, we first need to start with their most basic storage principles. SSDs rely on flash memory chips to store data, and the smallest storage unit of data is called a "cell". According to the amount of data that can be stored in each cell, flash memory particles are classified differently:
SLC(Single-Level Cell): Each cell stores 1 bit of data.
MLC(Multi-Level Cell): Each cell stores 2 bits of data.
TLC(Trinary-Level Cell): Each cell stores 3 bits of data.
QLC(Quad-Level Cell): Each cell stores 4 bits of data.
We can compare cells to a piece of grid paper, and data is equivalent to soybeans placed in a grid. SLC can only hold 1 soybean per grid, MLC can hold 2, TLC can hold 3, and QLC can hold 4 soybeans. At the same cost, as the amount of data stored per cell increases,Storage space is gradually increasing, but the stability and longevity issues that come with it have become more complex。
After understanding the basic principles, let's take a closer look at the characteristics of each particle type.
SLC: Single-tier storage unit
SLC is the earliest type of solid-state storage, storing 1 bit of data per cell. Due to the small amount of data stored, its voltage change range is small, which makes it excellent in write speed and has a long lifespan, with a theoretical erase life of up to 100,000 times. However, because the data stored in each cell is limited, more cells are needed to reach a certain storage capacity, which leads to high storage costs. Nevertheless, SLC particles are mostly used in enterprise-level high-end products and professional application scenarios due to their high speed and durability, such as servers and data centers.
MLC: Multi-tier storage unit
MLC stores 2 bits of data per cell, which has improved storage density compared to SLC, and the same number of cells can store more data, thus reducing the cost. However, because each cell needs to distinguish more voltage states to store 2-bit data, its lifetime and speed are reduced compared to SLC, and the theoretical erase number is 3000-5000 times. However, MLC strikes a good balance between performance and cost, so it is often used in consumer-grade high-end products.
TLC: Three-tier storage unit
TLC stores 3 bits of data per cell, which further increases storage density and makes costs lower. However, correspondingly, its lifespan is further reduced, with a theoretical erasure of 1000-3000 times. TLC is suitable for daily use of solid-state drives, although the speed is slightly lower than SLC and MLC, but with the continuous advancement of technology, the performance of TLC has been greatly improved, and it has now become the mainstream particle in the market.
QLC: Four-tier storage unit
QLC stores 4 bits of data per cell, and it has the highest storage density, which means more data can be accommodated in the same physical space at the lowest cost. But at the same time, its life and speed are also the lowest among these types of particles, and the theoretical erase number is only 150-300 times. QLC is mainly aimed at users who need a lot of storage space and are more price-sensitive, although the lifespan is relatively short, but it is enough for ordinary home and commercial offices.
Performance vs. application scenarios
Different types of particles have different performance and are suitable for different scenarios.
In terms of performance, SLC is undoubtedly the best, with the fastest write and read speeds, followed by MLC, then TLC, and QLC with the lowest performance. However, it should be noted that the performance of SSDs is not only affected by the type of particles, but also closely related to the main control chip and cache design. SSDs equipped with high-quality main controls and independent caches can further improve the overall performance on the basis of particle performance.
Based on the above performance and characteristics, SSDs with different particle types are suitable for different scenarios:
SLC: Due to its high speed,High durability and reliability, suitable for high load and high reliability requirementsEnterprise-grade applications, such as servers, databases, etc., these scenarios require extremely high data read and write speed and stability.
MLC: It has a good balance between performance and cost, and is suitable for advanced users who have certain requirements for performance and cost balance, such as gamers and creatives, who need faster speed to meet game loading or material processing needs, and have certain cost considerations.
TLC: The performance and cost are relatively moderate, suitable for most ordinary home users and office users, and can fully cope with daily file storage, web browsing, office software use, etc.
QLC: Low cost and can provide a lot of storage space, suitable for users with limited budgets and need a lot of storage space, such as scenes with intensive data storage but low read frequency, such as storing a large number of movies, photos, etc.
summary
The four types of SSD particles, SLC, MLC, TLC, and QLC, each have their own characteristics and applicable scenarios. The type of SSD you choose depends on your specific needs and budget:SLC is suitable for high-end professional applicationsMLC is cost-effective, TLC is suitable for ordinary home use, and QLC is suitable for entry-level needs of large-capacity storage.
1. In terms of production cost, SLC>MLC>TLC>QLC
2. In terms of read and write speed, SLC>MLC>TLC>QLC
3. In terms of service life, SLC> MLC> TLC>QLC
Service life:
SLC theoretical lifetime = 120*100000/10=1200000 days = 3287.67 years;
MLC theoretical life=120*3000/10=36,000 days=98.6 years;
TLC theoretical lifetime = 120*500/10=6000 days = 16.44 years;
QLC theoretical lifetime = 120*150/10 = 1800 days = 4.93 years.
Number of erases:
SLC (single-layer storage unit) theoretical erase times 100,000 times, MLC (double-layer storage unit) 3000-10000 times; TLC (Layer 3 Storage Unit) 500-1000 times; QLC (quad-layer storage unit) only 150 times, so the life of such a hard drive is very intuitive.
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Posted on5 days ago
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