There’s only one Neutron left for us to review and that’s Corsair’s awesome Neutron GTX 120GB. Corsairs’ Neutron Series is without a doubt one of our all-time favorites. Neutron delivers killer incompressible performance, class leading access times and gobs of IOPS Performance.

If you’re multi-tasking user that often deals with compressed data like videos, music and other compressed data then you really can’t do much better than Corsairs’ Neutron GTX series. Neutrons have the smoothest most consistent performance of any drives we’ve ever reviewed as well as the most consistent performance over time as the drive becomes well used. Consistency is valued more than any other trait in the enterprise sector and because the LAMD Amber FSP at the heart of Neutron was born from the enterprise sector it’s really no surprise that Neutrons have superior consistency over time than any other consumer based drives.

Neutrons’ performance at high queue depth levels is nearly unparalleled and as such provides lightning quick operating system performance. The 120GB GTX we are reviewing today would be ideal for your next operating system. If you want more capacity the GTX series is available in capacities of 240GB and 480GB as well.

Neutrons haven’t been on the market for very long yet but, in the short time they have been available they have already made a name for themselves by having one of the lowest failure rates of any Solid State Drive ever produced. This is further testament to Link_A_Medias’ enterprise FSP background where failure is not an option. Currently Corsair has exclusive rights to market Link_A_Medias’ LM8700 Amber FPU and as such, if you want Ambers’ performance and consistency then you will have to own a Neutron.

Here’s what Corsair has to say about Neutron:

Neutron Series GTX SSDs: extreme-performance solid-state drives

Neutron Series GTX is our flagship line of SSDs, designed for high-end desktop and notebook PCs. Powered by an advanced Link_A_Media (LAMD) SATA 3 SSD controller, the GTX excels at both random read/write speeds and sequential write speeds, and provides amazing responsiveness for all types of data-intensive work.

Designed for Multi-Multi-Tasking.

Neutron Series GTX is designed to support complex data-intensive work that involves accessing multiple files simultaneously — video production, large-scale graphics editing, or running multiple office applications at once. Neutron GTX’s extremely high random IOPS performance gives you the nearly instantaneous response you need for your high-end desktop or notebook PC.

Save fast, save often.

Neutron GTX’s flagship credentials include incredibly fast sequential write speeds, regardless of file type. SSDs compress data on the fly as they save, and many solid-state drives slow down significantly when writing data that’s already compressed. Neutron GTX is different: saving large videos and images happens so quickly, the first time it happens, you might have trouble believing that it’s really working.

Performance that pushes the limits of SATA 3 6Gb/s

Neutron Series GTX is designed to take full advantage of the latest high-speed standard to get the most performance out of the latest PCs. It’s also fully backward compatible with SATA 2.

Broad compatibility with PCs, notebooks, and ultraslim notebooks

Neutron Series GTX SSDs follow the universal 2.5” standard, and easily mount in desktop PCs with 2.5” drive bays. Or, mount it in a hard drive bay using the included 3.5” adapter.

The 7mm form factor fits both standard notebooks as well as the latest generation of slim notebook designs. If you’re considering upgrading your notebook to something slimmer, your Neutron can move with it.

Features

Professional-grade LAMD SSD controller

The LAMD controller is designed to deliver both super-high IOPs — important for data-intensive tasks like video and image editing — as well as superior sequential read speeds for lighting fast file access.

Great sequential read speeds, regardless of file type

SSDs compress and decompress files on the fly. Some solid-state drives hit a performance bottleneck when opening files that can’t be further compressed. This includes video, audio, and image files — and if your PC is also your entertainment center or you work with media files as part of your job, lesser SSDs can slow you down. Neutron’s real-world performance design focus means impressive file loading times even with non-compressible data.

Install it almost anywhere

Neutron follows the universal 2.5” standard, for quick installation into most notebooks. It fits into place on newer PCs which have built-in 2.5” drive support, and with the included 3.5” adapter, you can install it in a standard hard drive bay.

Many newer slim notebooks get that way at the expense of height restrictions for SSDs. Neutron is just 7mm high, so it can go where some other SSDs can’t.

Built for SATA 3 6Gb/s

Neutron Series is designed to support the latest high-speed standard to get the most performance out of the latest PCs. It’s also fully backward compatible with SATA 2.

Maintains its Performance Over Time

Neutron Series SSDs support the Windows 7 TRIM command. This allows them to store only the data they need and perform memory optimization to ensure the fastest possible write speeds.

Solid-State Reliability

Because SSDs have no moving parts, they can handle shock, vibration and temperature changes far in excess of traditional hard drives. That's important for desktop PCs, and essential for notebooks.

Cool and Quiet, with Low Power Consumption

Traditional mechanical hard drives spin at thousands of revolutions per minute. This takes power, and generates noise and heat. Since SSDs have no moving parts, there's no noise or vibration, and the lower power consumption helps keep things cool inside your PC. It can also save battery life on notebooks.