[PLUG] Samsung SSD QVO/EVO/PRO - most reliable?

[Keith Lofstrom]

I will soon upgrade my ancient Thinkpad X61 and T60

laptops to a small-footprint Ubuntu LTS variant.  I will
replace the 500GB hard drives with Samsung 1TB SSD.  

The laptops are CPU-limited; I don't expect them to be
much faster with the SSDs.  I do expect them to run
cooler and more reliably with SSD, safer against falls
and vibration and moisture.  Higher reliability saves
time-is-money repair hours in the future.

I will not fill them more than 80%; drive firmware can
reallocate bad "sectors" easily.  Still, online reviews
claim that 1-bit SSD cells are more reliable than multibit
NAND; I will pay extra for durability and lifetime.

2.5 inch Samsung 1TB SSD drives come in three flavors
direct from Newegg:

870 QVO (4 bit NAND) $110
870 EVO (2 bit NAND) $160
860 PRO (1 bit)      $200

All drives will likely be faster than my laptops' ancient
SATA1 interface.  All have 5 year warranties.  The prices
are reasonable ...

 ... Decades ago, I spent $2000 for a 5.25in 600MB Seagate
     SCSI drive; *ALL* drive prices are reasonable!!! ...

... but I hope the drives will outlast my supply of spare 
Thinkpads.  So THE QUESTION(s):

Will the 860 PRO be significantly more reliable than the
QVO or EVO 870?  Or is the 870 series more reliable than
the 860 series, making the 870 EVO the best bet? 

Keith

P.S. I won't purchase right away; I'll wait for hospitals
to clear before increasing freight traffic and risking
driver lives.  But it is good to plan ahead.

P.P.S.  I read and write papers and chapters; I don't use
laptops to watch movies.  I keep my old Thinkpads for
their trackpoint "mice", decent keyboards, and 4:3 screens.
I would use 5:4 laptops if they sold them.  16:9 screens
are good for reading fortune cookies, not text pages.

P.P.P.S.  Refurb 600MB Seagate Wren ST4702N SCSI hard
drives are available for $300.  What A Bargain!

P.P.P.P.S.  Kids, get off my lawn.

-- 
Keith Lofstrom          keithl at keithl.com