Optimal Place for SSD in Laptop: HDD or Optical Drive Bay?

When considering upgrading a high-end laptop, it’s important to understand the best locations for different types of drives. Manufacturers often provide options like mSATA or m.2 ports for integrating NVMe SSDs or 2.5-inch SSDs. However, owners of older laptops frequently ask about whether it's better to use an optical drive bay for an SSD.

Foreword

The optical drive bay is typically SATA 2, which operates at 3 Gb/s, compared to the SATA 3 6 Gb/s used for SSDs in dedicated slots. This means that if you place an SSD in the optical drive bay, you'll sacrifice performance. Even if you use a cheap SSD, the performance drop won't be significant, but it will still occur. On the other hand, using the dedicated SSD slot will preserve your laptop performance.

Why Should You Use the Dedicated SSD Slot?

I have personal experience with a laptop that originally had a SSD and a HDD in the optical drive bay. This setup didn't perform well, due to the limited bandwidth of SATA 2. In contrast, keeping the SSD in the dedicated slot significantly improves performance and reliability. If your laptop supports an SSD in its HDD bay, it's always a better and safer choice.

Alternatives to Optical Drive Bays

To maximize space and optimize performance, consider investing in a USB optical drive reader. This allows you to utilize the front bays for other devices, such as additional hard drives or SSDs. USB optical drive readers can also save desk space and reduce cable clutter.

Understanding Your Laptop Case

The placement of drives is highly dependent on your laptop’s case design. If you don’t have the manual, you can usually find it online for your specific case model. The manual will outline the mounting spots for all components.

Optical drives must be mounted in the front of the case to be accessible. In contrast, SSDs are much smaller and lightweight, making them suitable for placement in various locations on the back panel of the case. Even though HDDs are also smaller, they are heavier and require more secure mounting spots to prevent vibration and noise.

Selecting the Right Bay for Your Drives

By design, an SSD can sometimes fit where an HDD can, but an HDD typically won't fit where an SSD can due to size and weight differences. The green and black drive on the left in the image is an SSD, while the blue drive is a HDD.

Conclusion

I hope this information helps clarify the best practices for SSD placement. If you have any further questions, please feel free to ask. Safe rebuilding!