Published work
Technical Analysis
More than 500 reviews, articles, guides and white papers, written to make storage technology legible and useful. 425 carry my byline and are listed below. The rest are white papers, press releases and technology-trend posts I wrote for enterprise SSD and server makers.
Start with the publication archive, then explore reviews and investigations that marked important shifts in SSD technology.
Where it ran
Three desks. One standard
Open any byline to read the published work.
Storage Editor, 2018–2022
Tom’s Hardware
In-depth SSD reviews, performance benchmarks, and storage analysis for one of the world’s most-read PC hardware publications.
Read published work ↗Managing Editor, 2013–2018
The SSD Review
Controller deep-dives, educational features, and comprehensive drive analysis for an audience that already knew the spec sheet was not the story.
Read published work ↗Volunteer storage editor, 2012–2018
Overclock.net
Step-by-step guides, technical tutorials, and the Storage Essentials thread that became home base for a performance-hardware community.
Read published work ↗Featured reviews
Unveiling the truth in tech
Datacenter
Intel Optane SSD DC P5800X
The fastest SSD ever made. A new generation of Optane and a faster controller, measured as a powerhouse rather than a headline.
Read the review ↗
Client NVMe
SK hynix Gold P31
The first SSD with 128-layer NAND, and a bar-setter for efficiency that the rest of the market had to answer.
Read the review ↗
PCIe Gen4
Crucial P5 Plus
Micron’s 176L B47R TLC with the company’s own Gen4 controller: high performance, priced to sell, and tested as such.
Read the review ↗The wider ledger
Notable articles
Investigations, exclusives, and the pieces that still get cited.
Not-So-Solid State: SSD Makers Swap Parts Without Telling UsBuying SSD storage can be an uncalculated risk. This is why.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Upgrading Your Laptop with PCIe 4.0 Storage: Which SSD Is the Best?Is a PCIe 4.0 SSD worth its high cost in a Tiger Lake laptop? Tested inside one.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Testing Phison’s PS5016-E16 NVMe ControllerAn exclusive PCIe 4.0 deep dive, before the rest of the platform was ready.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Zombie Loading: Intel Patches Slow Down SSDs as AMD Gains GroundThe ZombieLoad, RIDL and Fallout fixes, measured on storage across Intel and AMD platforms.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Phison’s New PCIe 4.0 Controller Tested: 7.4 GBps of PotentialThe PS5018-E18, Phison’s fastest NVMe controller yet, measured while still in development.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Phison PS5018-E18 With Micron 176L TLC: Unleashing the BeastThe second-generation E18 paired with Micron’s B47R 176-layer replacement-gate TLC.Tom’s Hardware ↗
SSD vs HDD Tested: What’s the Difference and Which Is Better?Should you buy an HDD or an SSD? The whole argument, measured.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Here’s How We Booted Windows 10 in 4.9 SecondsPower button to desktop in 4.93 seconds. Then the invitation: beat us.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Which PC Boots Up and Shuts Down Faster: AMD or Intel?Intel Z490 versus AMD X570, timed from power button to desktop and back down.Tom’s Hardware ↗
Platform Storage Face-Off: AMD Upsets IntelStorage performance should not sway a platform choice too far. The numbers still matter.Tom’s Hardware ↗
TechInsights Outlines the Future of 3D NAND FlashTechInsights’ senior technical fellow on where 3D flash goes next, from FMS 2020.Tom’s Hardware ↗
The SSD Review Power Testing, Now Powered by QuarchDual-rail voltage and current sampled simultaneously. Power as the ultimate truth.The SSD Review ↗
Complete Guide to Speeding Up Your PC’s Boot TimeMany people buy an SSD to cut their boot time. Under 10 seconds is possible.The SSD Review ↗
SSD Interface Comparison: PCI Express vs SATASATA had become the bottleneck. What PCIe meant for SSDs, with two Plextor M6e reviews.Overclock.net ↗
The archive
Every byline, 2011–2022
425 bylined pieces from Tom’s Hardware, The SSD Review, TechnologyX and Overclock.net, 40 of them Editor’s Choice reviews. Every card opens the original.
Editor's ChoiceWD Black SN770 SSD Review: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (Updated)The WD Black SN770 uses a DRAM-less design and fast 3D TLC flash to create a responsive and cost-efficient gaming SSD.- Editor's ChoiceIntel Optane SSD DC P5800X Review: The Fastest SSD Ever MadePowered by a new generation of Optane and a faster SSD controller, Intel’s Optane SSD DC P5800X is a powerhouse PCIe 4.0 SSD that outperforms every drive on the market.
Inland Prime M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Entry-Level on the CheapThe Inland Prime is an affordable, convenient entry-level NVMe drive with a solid warranty.
Seagate IronWolf 525 SSD Review: The PCIe 4.0 NAS UpgradeLeveraging a Phison E16 and BiCS4 TLC, the Seagate IronWolf 525 was built to endure demanding NAS workloads.
WD Black SN750 SE SSD Review: Cost-Effective Storage for GamersBuilt on a DRAM-less architecture and paired with BiCS4 96L TLC, the WD Black SN750 SE delivers mainstream performance at competitive prices.
MSI Spatium M470 SSD Review: Ready for PlayLeveraging Phison’s E16 controller and BiCS4 TLC and low pricing, the MSI Spatium M470 is a solid PCIe Gen4 SSD built for gamers.
Editor's ChoiceKingston KC3000 M.2 SSD Review: The Fastest Flash You Can Get (Updated)Thanks to a mix of Micron’s 176L TLC flash and Phison’s solid engineering, Kingston’s KC3000 proves one of the fastest SSDs to have crossed our labs.
4TB Team Group T-Force Cardea Z44Q SSD Review: Affordable High-Capacity Gen4 PerformanceWith Phison’s E16 and Micron’s 96-Layer QLC flash, the Z44Q delivers high capacities and entry-level Gen4 performance for gamers on a budget.
Editor's ChoiceWD Blue SN570 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Bleeding-Edge BargainThe WD Blue SN570 offers snappy mainstream NVMe performance with a DRAM-less architecture and BiCS5 TLC flash.
PNY LX3030 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Chia Plot Master FlexLeveraging Phison’s PS5012-E12S and QLC flash in SLC mode, the PNY LX3030 delivers high performance and endurance for Chia farmers and enthusiasts.
SanDisk Professional G-Drive SSD Review: Fast, Resilient Pro StorageSanDisk Professional G-Drive SSD delivers fast performance, ultra-rugged resiliency, security, and portability.- Crucial P5 Plus M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Affordable Gen4 Performance (Updated)Leveraging Micron’s 176L B47R TLC and the company’s latest PCIe Gen4 NVMe controller, the Crucial P5 Plus is a high-performance SSD priced to sell.
Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD Review: Small Size with XL PerformanceKingston’s XS2000 is a responsive, well-priced portable SSD built on Silicon Motion’s new SM2320 controller and Micron’s 96L TLC.
Editor's ChoiceTeam Group T-Force Cardea A440 SSD Review: A Speedy Value for PC or PS5The T-Force Cardea A440 is a responsive PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD that is hot with speed, but cool on temps when used with the included heatsinks.- Upgrading Your Laptop with PCIe 4.0 Storage: Which SSD is the best?We dive deep to see if upgrading a Tiger Lake laptop with a PCIe 4.0 SSD is worth the high cost.
Acer FA100 NVMe SSD Review: Low-cost, DRAM-lessPowered by a DRAM-less NVMe SSD controller, the Acer FA100 delivers faster-than-SATA performance at a relatively low cost.- Editor's ChoiceSK hynix Gold P31 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: High-Performance, Unprecedented Efficiency (Updated)With SK hynix’s latest 128L 4D NAND TLC flash, the Gold P31delivers strong performance at a low price.
Editor's ChoiceCorsair MP600 Pro XT SSD Review: Corsair’s Best Just Leveled UpBuilt for prosumers and gamers with a taste for speed, the MP600 Pro XT delivers awesome performance with Micron’s 176L TLC flash.
Editor's ChoiceSeagate FireCuda 530 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Performance Above All (Updated)The Seagate FireCuda 530 is built for professionals and enthusiasts searching for the most reliable and fastest SSD that they can get their hands on.
Silicon Power XD80 SSD Review: Mainstream Performance at Low CostSilicon Power’s XD80 offers up mainstream performance, high endurance, and cool operation at low prices.
MSI Spatium M480 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Classy Looks and SpeedMSI’s Spatium M480 offers up fast, cool Gen4 performance along with secure AES 256-bit hardware encryption support at premium prices.
16TB Sabrent Rocket XTRM-Q SSD Review: Twice the Storage, Twice the PriceWith two 8TB M.2 NVMe SSDs connected to the Thunderbolt 3 interface, the Rocket XTRM-Q offers up massive capacity at a massive price.
Unsavory Flash Swap: Re-Testing Crucial’s P2 SSD After QLC DowngradeNow shipping with QLC flash, Crucial’s P2 is significantly slower than the original sample that we initially reviewed.
Editor's ChoiceGigabyte Aorus Gen4 7000s M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Nanocarbon Cooled for Speed (Updated)Gigabyte Aorus Gen4 7000s is a fast and secure PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD that utilizes nanocarbon coating to aid its cooling.
Mushkin Gamma M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Fast, Cool and AffordablePowered by Phison’s PS5018-E18, Mushkin’s Gamma delivers fast performance and data security without breaking a sweat.
Sabrent Rocket NVMe 4.0 M.2 SSD Review: A High-Performance Value (Update)Sabrent’s Rocket NVMe 4.0 offers unparalleled speed and endurance for the price.
Team Group T-Create Expert SSD Review: Ultimate Endurance for Chia Crypto PlottingTeam Group T-Create Expert is an expensive and enduring NVMe SSD for content creators and Chia farmers looking for lasting performance.
Cigent K2 Secure Portable SSD Review: Stop Ransomware in Its TracksCigent pairs secure software with heavily encrypted storage, for those who need to meet data compliance standards.
Inland Performance Plus M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Fast and CoolInland’s Performance Plus is the company’s fastest NVMe SSD, and it undercuts the best SSDs on price.- Phison PS5018-E18 Controller With Micron 176L TLC Preview: Unleashing the BeastWe take a look at Phison’s second-generation PS5018-E18 with Micron’s latest and innovative B47R 176-layer replacement-gate TLC flash.
Adata SE900G Portable RGB SSD Review: RGB Invades PortablesAdata’s SE900G is a fast, USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 portable SSD featuring RGB lighting.
Intel Optane Memory H20 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Running Optane and Flash in HarmonyIntel’s Optane Memory H20 is a responsive SSD the merges the company’s Optane Memory with high-density QLC.
Samsung 980 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Going DRAMless with V6 V-NAND (Updated)Samsung introduces the 980, an efficient and price-optimized M.2 NVMe SSD featuring the company’s V6 V-NAND and Pablo DRAMless NVMe SSD controller.
Enmotus FuzeDrive P200 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: AI Storage Beats SSD CachingEnmotus uses AI to significantly boost the FuzeDrive P200’s performance and endurance beyond the norm.
G-Technology ArmorLock Encrypted NVMe SSD Review: Your Phone is the KeyThe G-Technology ArmorLock Encrypted NVMe SSD comes with secure, always-on 256-bit AES-XTS hardware encryption and is ready for almost any use case.
Patriot Viper VP4300 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Killer Looks, Fast PerformancePatriot pairs InnoGrit’s high-speed PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe controller with Micron’s 96L TLC and gives you both a heatsink and graphene label to keep it cool.
Adata XPG Gammix S70 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Big Heatsink, Hot PerformanceAdata’s XPG Gammix S70 is a fast PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 SSD powered by a new InnoGrit NVMe SSD controller and Micron’s 96L TLC flash.
Editor's ChoiceSabrent Rocket 4 Plus 4TB M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Bus-Saturating Performance in StyleSabrent’s Rocket 4 Plus is a high-performance M.2 NVMe SSD powered by Phison’s PS5018-E18 NVMe SSD controller and Micron’s 96L 3D TLC NAND flash.
Editor's ChoiceWD Black SN850 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Top-Tier Storage for Gamers and Pros (Updated)With all-new, robust hardware, WD’s Black SN850 delivers bleeding-edge performance and reliability.
Editor's ChoiceSanDisk Extreme v2 Portable SSD Review: Twice the Speed, Better SecuritySanDisk’s Extreme v2 is a fast and secure portable NVMe SSD for content creators and travelers who need a consistent and reliable storage solution.
Editor's ChoiceCorsair MP600 Pro M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Faster Speed, Less EnduranceCorsair’s MP600 Pro is a fast and secure M.2 NVMe SSD that keeps cool with innovative cooling solutions.
Silicon Power UD70 M.2 SSD Review: Low-Cost PCIe Gen3 SpeedThe Silicon Power UD70 poses a serious threat in the value market due to its potent combination of Phison’s E12S SSD controller and Micron’s 96L QLC flash.
Team Group EX2 SATA SSD Review: Affordable but LackingLeveraging Silicon Motion’s SM2258XT and SanDisk BiCS4 TLC, Team Group’s EX2 is a responsive, low-cost SATA SSD that comes in popular capacities.
Intel SSD 670p M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Scaling QLC to New HeightsIntel’s SSD 670p is a secure, responsive M.2 NVMe SSD featuring the company’s new 144-Layer QLC flash. It also comes backed with a five-year warranty.
Editor's ChoiceSamsung 980 Pro M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Redefining Gen4 Performance (Updated)Powered by a new 8nm NVMe SSD controller and the company’s V6 V-NAND, Samsung’s 980 Pro is purpose-built for the prosumer.
Crucial X6 Portable SSD Review: Affordable and ResponsiveBuilt on Silicon Motion SM2259XT and Micron’s 96-Layer QLC flash, Crucial’s X6 is an affordable portable SSD that comes in capacities of up to 2TB.
WD My Passport SSD Review: Sleek, Slim, and Secure StoragePowered by WD’s Blue SN550E, WD’s My Passport SSD delivers both data security and responsive performance in a very pocketable design.
Editor's ChoiceSamsung 870 EVO SATA SSD Review: The Best Just Got Better (Updated)Powered by the company's 6th-gen V-NAND flash and MKX ‘Metis’ controller, Samsung’s 870 EVO is a top-ranking SATA 6Gbps SSD for consumers and prosumers alike.
Lexar Professional NM700 M.2 SSD Review: Sluggish Performance From Dated HardwareBuilt on Marvell’s 88SS1092 and leveraging Samsung V-NAND, Lexar’s Professional NM700 brings respectable endurance and PCIe Gen3 performance to the table.
Seagate FireCuda 120 SATA SSD Review: Fast, Expensive, and EnduringPowered by Phison’s S12 SATA controller and Kioxia’s BiCS4 TLC flash, the Seagate FireCuda 120 delivers responsive performance and reliability in high capacities.
Silicon Power US70 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: The Ultra-Value M.2 StickSilicon Power’s US70 is a low-cost PCIe 4.0 X4 NVMe SSD rocking Phison’s PS5016-E16 controller and Kioxia’s 96L TLC flash.- Not-So-Solid State: SSD Makers Swap Parts Without Telling UsAdata’s recent change of controller and NAND on its best-selling SSD makes for a slower experience.
- TechInsights Outlines the Future of 3D NAND FlashJoengdong Choe, Senior Technical Fellow at TechInsights, Inc. outlines the future of 3D flash at FMS 2020.
- Phison's New PCIe 4.0 Controller Tested: 7.4 GBps of PotentialPhison’s PS5018-E18, the company’s fastest NVMe SSD controller yet, is still in development.
New X-NAND Tech Detailed: SLC Speed at QLC Capacity and PricingNEO Semiconductor has plans to enable SLC performance on next-gen QLC through advanced X-NAND architecture.
Sabrent Rocket Q4 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: PCIe Gen4 Speed at Gen3 PricingPowered by Phison’s first-gen PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe controller and Micron’s 96L QLC flash, Sabrent’s Rocket Q4 offers up faster-than-Gen3-performance at lower-than-Gen4-pricing.
Micron Now Shipping 176-Layer 3D TLC NAND FlashMicron is shipping 176 layer replacement gate TLC NAND flash for mobile, enterprise, and client storage.
WD Black P50 Game Drive Portable SSD Review: USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 SpeedPowered by a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 bridge controller and a WD Black SN750 NVMe SSD, WD’s Black P50 Game Drive offers up near Thunderbolt 3 performance at more affordable prices.
Adata Switches to Slower Controller, NAND on SX8200 ProAdata is now shipping the XPG SX8200 Pro SSD with lower-clocked hardware than the initial release model, without changing its specification sheets or retail listings.
Editor's ChoiceAdata XPG Gammix S50 Lite M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Low-cost PCIe Gen4 GoodnessAdata’s XPG Gammix S50 Lite leverages an affordable PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD controller that enables PCIe Gen3-beating performance and high endurance ratings.
Exclusive: Phison’s E18 NVMe SSD Controller Hits 1.2 Million IOPSPhison is refining its new E18 NVMe SSD controller and has reached up to 1.2 million random IOPS.
Editor's ChoiceIcy Dock ToughArmor MB840M2P-B Review: Quick and Tool-less NVMe SSD SwapsIcy Dock’s ToughArmor MB840M2P-B incorporates fast hot-swap capability with a secure, tool-less M.2 drive installation.
WD Black AN1500 NVMe AIC SSD Review: For RGB Addicts Who Need SpeedBuilt for gamers and enthusiasts, WD’s Black AN1500 offers responsive PCIe Gen4-like performance on Gen3 platforms, with tasteful RGB lighting effects.
Corsair Force MP400 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Speedy, Spacious QLCCorsair’s Force MP400 offers up high-performance, large capacity, and blacked-out looks, but lackluster endurance.
Editor's ChoiceSanDisk Extreme Pro v2 Portable SSD Review: High-dollar Design and PerformanceSanDisk’s Extreme Pro combines a robust and secure design with high-speed 20 Gbps performance capability for when you’re on the move.
Editor's ChoiceCrucial X8 Portable SSD Review: a Speedy Value (Updated)Crucial's X8 delivers 1GBps sequential speed in a sleek, affordable package.
Crucial P5 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Premium Design Runs Hot (Updated)Boasting Crucial’s first consumer NVMe SSD controller and Micron’s 96L TLC NAND flash, Crucial’s P5 is the company’s fastest and most innovative SSD to date.
Samsung 870 QVO SATA SSD Review: Taking Baby Steps With QLC (Updated)Powered by new hardware and packing capacities up to 8TB, the second-gen QLC Samsung 870 QVO SATA SSD aims to be a top storage pick for your PC.
Team Group T-Force Cardea Ceramic C440 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Ceramic-Cooled SpeedsterTeam Group’s T-Force Cardea Ceramic C440 is a high-end PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD that leverages Ceramic Technology to keep cool, even under the heaviest of workloads.- Which PC Boots Up and Shuts Down Faster: AMD or Intel?We put Intel's Z490 platform head-to-head with AMD's X570 to see which system boots the fastest.
Adata Swordfish M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Affordable, Secure StorageAdata’s DRAMless Swordfish combines a low cost per gigabyte with solid performance and hardware encryption.
Phison's New E18 SSD Controller Rivals Samsung 980 Pro With 7 GBps of ThroughputPhison’s hot new PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD controller flashes some nasty digits on social media.
Editor's ChoiceSabrent Rocket XTRM-Q Portable TB3 SSD Review: Sleek, Spacious and SpeedyThough costly at the highest capacities, Sabrent’s Rocket XTRM-Q offers up high performance over both USB 3.2 Gen 2 and Thunderbolt 3.
WD Blue SN550 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Best DRAMless SSD Yet (Updated)Packing the latest BiCS4 96L TLC, WD’s Blue SN550 is a DRAMless NVMe SSD that is capable of delivering speeds of up to 2.4 GBps.
Samsung T7 Portable SSD Review: Colorful and Secure StorageSamsung’s Portable SSD T7 lacks touch-based security but provides a much better value proposition than its more expensive counterpart. Plus, it comes in three different color options.
Editor's ChoiceTeam Group T-Force Cardea Zero Z340 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Enduring, Affordable and CoolTeam Group T-Force Cardea Zero Z340 touts Phison’s new E12S and Micron’s 96L TLC to deliver impressive performance and endurance. Plus, a graphene and copper heat spreader keeps it cool.
Seagate FireCuda 510 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: One Expensive FishSeagate’s FireCuda is built on a proven and reliable architecture that offers up both fast performance and high-endurance.
Kingston KC2500 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Mature Flash Makes for Great PerformanceKingston’s KC2500 boasts responsive performance, high reliability, and secure XTS-AES 256-bit encryption for professional use.
Adata Falcon M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Soaring above SATAAdata’s Falcon brings DRAMless performance to new heights with peak speeds of up to 3.2/1.5GBps read/write, plus it has flashy looks and competitive pricing to go along with it.
Crucial P2 SSD Review: Beating SATA Dollar for DollarCrucial’s P2 is a power efficient entry-level NVMe SSD that offers up multi-gigabyte performance at a low price point.
WD Black SN750 SSD Review: A Not so Fresh Refresh (Updated)WD's new Black SN750 offers a surprisingly good performance upgrade through firmware and software tweaks.
8TB Sabrent Rocket Q M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Cranking QLC Performance Up a NotchSabrent’s 8TB Rocket Q pushes QLC to higher speeds and capacities than even Intel or Micron, but it comes with reduced write endurance.
addlink X70 RGB M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Cool, Fast and FlashyWith a diamond-cut RGB accented heatsink, responsive performance, a high endurance rating and a 5-year warranty, addlink’s X70 RGB is a shiny SSD with a lot of grunt.
LaCie Rugged SSD Pro Portable SSD Review: Fast, Compact and DurablePotent performance at a high price
HP P700 Portable SSD Review: Clever Cable ManagementHP’s P700 is a 10 Gbps portable SSD that features a cleverly designed storage box that snaps onto the SSD to conveniently carry the included cable and adapter on the go.
Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Responsive and Efficient DRAMless StorageLacking DRAM, but making up for it in price, Lexar’s NM610 is a capable entry-level SSD for nearly any builder’s budget.
LaCie Rugged BOSS Portable SSD Review: PC-Free Content OffloadingLaCie’s Rugged BOSS SSD offers content creators a computer-free way to backup or manage their pictures and videos when in the field.
Patriot P300 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Low Price, No FrillsPatriot’s P300 aims to fill the void between SATA and high-end NVMe performance with a low price and multi-gigabyte per second performance.
Editor's ChoiceAdata SE800 Portable SSD Review: Compact, Waterproof 10Gbps StorageAdata’s SE800 is a compact and lightweight 10Gbps portable SSD that keeps your data safe from the elements.
Seagate FireCuda Gaming Dock (4TB) Review: Dock-Full of StorageThe Thunderbolt 3-powered Seagate FireCuda Gaming Dock is a quality-built storage hub that boasts some RGB apeal for the mobile gamer.
WD My Passport Portable Hard Drive Review: Slim, Spacious and SecureWD’s My Passport is a high capacity portable HDD boasting top-notch security
Seagate's IronWolf 510 is the World’s First Purpose-Built NVMe SSD for NASSeagate’s IronWolf 510 M.2 NVMe SSD boasts strong endurance and multi-gigabyte performance for 24/7 NAS use.
Seagate IronWolf 110 SATA SSD Review: Expensive, but EnduringSeagate’s IronWolf 110 is a high-endurance, enterprise-grade SATA SSD designed for network-attached workloads. Available in a broad range of capacities, it's a reliable choice if your budget allows.
Editor's ChoiceLaCie Rugged SSD Review: Tough, Secure, and FastLaCie’s Rugged SSD is a secure, professional-grade 10Gbps portable SSD that speeds up file transfers and provides a responsive 4K video editing experience on the go.
Team Group MP33 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: NVMe performance at SATA pricesGamer on a budget? Team Group’s latest DRAMless NVMe SSD is efficient and hit multi-GBps speeds at prices as cheap as SATA.
Adata Launches the SE760: Simply a Fast External SSDAdata’s launches a sleek external SSD with a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 for high performance.
Editor's ChoicePatriot Viper VPR100 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Enduring RGBLove it or hate it for its RGB, Patriot’s Viper VPR100 delivers mainstream performance and class-leading endurance in an attractive package.
Samsung T7 Touch Portable SSD Review: Sleek, Secure Pocketable StorageSamsung’s T7 Touch delivers high speeds and convenient security to those on the go.
WD Red SA500 Review: 4TB of SSD Storage for Your NASThe WD Red SA500 brings the speed of SATA SSDs to your NAS.
Silicon Power P34A60 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Mid-Range Performance at Rock-Bottom PricingSilicon Power's P34A60 brings SATA-like pricing to the speedy NVMe interface.
Editor's ChoiceSK Hynix Gold S31 SATA SSD Review: SK Hynix Barrels Into US MarketSK Hynix barrels into the U.S. SSD market with compelling performance and pricing.
Editor's ChoiceSeagate FireCuda 520 SSD Review: Big Performance in an Expensive PackageSeagate's latest drive is fast, but expensive.
Editor's ChoiceSanDisk Extreme Pro Portable SSD Review: Non-Stop SpeedWith a weather-resistant, rugged shell and consistent performance in the 10Gbps range even with massive workloads, this drive impresses.
Seagate Launches FireCuda Gaming and BarraCuda Fast SSDsSeagate unloads the fast flash at CES 2020.
SK Hynix to Introduce New NVMe SSDs With 128-Layer '4D NAND'SK Hynix wants to grab a piece of the SSD market pie.
Adata XPG Spectrix S40G M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Bright Lights, Big CapacityAdata's XPG Spectrix S40G shines bright and comes packing up to 2TB of capacity.
MyDigitalSSD BPX Pro NVMe SSD Review: Big on Endurance, Small on PriceThe BPX Pro is a great SSD for prosumers and media content creators, with competitive pricing, an impressive performance-to-endurance ratio, and solid efficiency.
Intel SSD 665p M.2 NVMe SSD Review: QLC Flash RefinedIntel kicks QLC up a notch with more performance and 50% more endurance
Editor's ChoiceAdata XPG SX8200 Pro Review: Go Pro on a Budget (2TB Update)Today we tear into the XPG SX8200 Pro, Adata’s highest-performing NVMe M.2 SSD yet.
Lexar’s New NVMe SSD Hits 7GBps, the Fastest yet for a PCIe 4.0 SSDLexar demos a new PCIe 4.0 SSD that is faster than any model on the market.
Kingston A2000 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Security, Endurance, and Low PricingKingston's A2000 may not be the fastest SSD on the market, but it offsets that with enhanced security and low pricing.
New PCMark 10 Storage Tests DebutPCMark 10's new storage tests place a heavy emphasis on new SSD testing methodology.
Editor's ChoicePatriot Viper VP4100 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Wicked Fast With an Edgy DesignPatriot's Viper VP4100 brings the goodness of NVMe to the M.2 slot with an edgy design.
WD Introduces Blue SN550 M.2 SSDs up to 1TBNVMe SSDs are out-shipping everything and WD aims to ride that wave.
Editor's ChoiceCorsair Force MP600 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Stealthy PCIe 4.0 SpeedNext-gen speed, but do you need it?
Mushkin Helix-L M.2 NVMe SSD Review: NVMe on a BudgetMushkin’s Helix-L is an entry-level NVMe drive that offers high-speed performance for a low cost. While it doesn’t excel in prosumer workloads , it's a great bang-for-the-buck buy for budget gamers.
Editor's ChoiceIntel SSD 660p 2TB Review: a QLC Bargain (Update)Intel's SSD 660p routinely sells for as little as 8 cents per GB yet offers really strong performance.
Team Group T-Force Delta Max RGB SATA SSD Review: RGB ExcellenceWhile limited to SATA speeds, the Delta Max RGB still delivers responsive performance and its looks are unmatched. If you're after an eye-catching SSD, Team Group’s latest RGB SSD is hard to beat.
Seagate's Mach.2 Technology Doubles HDD Performance, Microsoft Jumps AboardMicrosoft has adopted Seagate's dual-actuator HDD technology.
Seagate Backup Plus Ultra Touch Portable HDD Review: Secured in StyleSeagate's Ultra Touch Portable hard drive sports a textured, two-tone look and performs as we'd expect. But it's the software that really ads value.
Silicon Power Bolt B75 Pro Portable SSD Review: Affordable, but Not ProWith good looks and a nice price, the Bolt B75 Pro has its merits. But we’re not sure Silicon Power’s latest external lives up to its “Pro” name.
Editor's ChoiceSamsung 970 EVO Plus SSD Review: More Layers Brings More PerformanceSamsung's new 970 EVO Plus takes on the SSD market with new flash and speeds that reach up to 3.5 GB/s.
Crucial BX500 SSD Review: The DRAMless Invasion Continues (Updated)Crucial's BX500 is designed to bring blazing SSD throughput to your PC at a low price, but it has a few caveats.
Editor's ChoiceAdata XPG Gammix S11 Pro M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Fast, Flashy and AffordableWith an attractive heatsink, impressive speeds, and a nice price, this ADATA drive is easy to recommend.
Klevv CRAS C700 RGB M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Bright Like a DiamondKlevv's flagship M.2 drive impresses with good looks and sustained speeds, but it's also bulky and no available in every region.
Plugable Thunderbolt 3 NVMe External SSD Review: Extreme Speed, Lower PricePlugable's Thunderbolt 3 drive now ships in capacities up to 2TB, at a price that easily undercuts the competition.
Seagate Announces Thunderbolt 3 Gaming Dock and New FireCuda SSDsSeagate backs up a truckload of flash, and introduces a gaming dock, too.
Editor's ChoiceTeam Group T-Force Vulcan SATA SSD Review: Flashy, Fast and AffordableThe Vulcan is a highly logical choice for a speedy, pretty budget boot drive.
WD Launches New Red SSDs for NAS, 14TB Red HDDsWD bulks up its storage offerings for NAS users.
Micron Unveils the X100 – World’s Fastest SSD with 3D XPointAt Micron Insights, in addition to the announcement of their 5300 and 7300 series SSD, the company unveiled the world’s fastest SSD with their own 3D XPoint, the X100.
Micron Announces Portable SSD and 96L TLC Powered Enterprise SSDsCrucial Memory and Micron, their parent company, have got some big announcements today. At Micron Insight in San Francisco, the company announced a bunch of new products, including their first portable SSD under the Crucial brand as well as two new enterprise SSDs.- SSD vs HDD Tested: What’s the Difference and Which Is Better?Should you buy an HDD or SSD? Here's all you need to know.
Lexar NM600 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Affordable and EfficientLexar's latest NVMe drive competes on price, while sipping power and delivering decent performance. Its main drawback is capacity, topping out at just 480GB.
Mushkin Pilot-E M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Taking FlightMushkin's new high-end M.2 drive boasts high endurance, fast performance and 256-bit AES encryption. Can it best the plethora of similarly equipped competition?
Adata Ultimate SU750 SATA SSD Review: Not Quite The Ultimate SSDAdata’s Ultimate SU750 has decent performance for a SATA drive, but it slurps power and competitors give you a lot more for the same price.
Editor's ChoiceMicron 9300 Series Enterprise NVMe SSD Review: Finding Balance in PerformanceNVMe devices have taken off these past few years, but adoption is accelerating in 2019. They now surpass both SAS and SATA as the preferred interface and are getting faster with each generation. That's a trend that won’t go away any time soon because we a
Lexar NS200 SATA SSD Review: Plain Jane SATALexar’s NS200 provides solid SATA-level storage performance, but competitors offer slightly better speeds for around the same price.
Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: One Tiny, But Speedy SSDWith performance that is 6 times that of any SATA SSD, yet a footprint that can take up just 16 x 20 mm, the BG4 is a great option for OEM computer integration.
Adata XPG SX6000 Pro M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Paying More for LessThis SSD's DRAMless design is meant to cut costs, but is its performance really worth the money?
Lexar SL100 Pro Portable SSD Review: Pro Pricing, Semi PerformanceLexar's latest external SSD sports read and write speeds that are about double what you can get from most portables. But is that enough to make up for its high price?
Toshiba Talks 5-Bit-per-Cell Flash, Demos First PCIe 4.0 Enterprise SSDsToshiba is working on Penta-Level Cell (PLC) flash that stores five bits per cell.
LaCie Mobile Drive Portable HDD Review: Pretty PortableLaCie's Mobile Drive is the nicest-looking portable drive available. But unless you want to test drive the included free month of Adobe CC, there are better options.
Editor's ChoiceLaCie 2big RAID 16TB Review: Big on Reliability and CapacityWith spacious capacities and a 10Gb/s USB 3.1 Type-C interface, LaCie’s got a new professional desktop RAID device that is ideal for the creative pro looking to up their storage game.
Maxiotek Shows off New NVMe SSD ControllersMaxiotech shows off its latest SSD controllers at the Flash Memory Summit 2019.
Phison Brings the PCIe 4.0 Pain: E18-Powered SSDs to hit 7 GBps and One Million IOPSPhison was the first SSD vendor to bring a blazing-fast PCIe 4.0 SSD to market, but it has a new controller in the works that will hit 7 GB/s and one million IOPS.
Silicon Motion Displays its First PCIe 4.0 SSD ControllersNow that AMD's Ryzen 3000 series chips have brought support for PCIe 4.0 to the desktop, the race is on for new, faster SSDs.
WD Blue SN500 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Leaving SATA in the Dust (Updated)WD's Blue SN500 brings SATA-like pricing to a speedy NVMe SSD.
Crucial P1 NVMe SSD Review: QLC Flash Gone Mild (Updated)The Crucial P1 breaks the SATA 6Gb/s barrier with its NVMe interface and delivers up to 2/1.7 GB/s of sequential read/write throughput.
Editor's ChoiceSilicon Power P34A80 PCIe Gen3x4 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: TLC Performance at QLC Prices
Team Group MP34 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: A Killer ValueWith very good performance at surprisingly reasonable pricing, plus high endurance, Team Group's MP34 is a very good value-focused NVMe M.2 SSD.
Mushkin Pilot M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Speed on a BudgetMushkin has an SSD at the speed and capacity to fit almost anyone’s storage needs. And if speed is your need, the NVMe Mushkin Pilot is the drive to choose.- Platform Storage Face-Off: AMD Upsets IntelWe put AMD and Intel systems head-to-head to find out which platform provides the top performance with storage devices.
- PCIe 4.0 SSD Exclusive: Testing Phison's PS5016-E16 NVMe ControllerWill 5 GB/s of throughput have a real impact on common desktop workloads, like gaming? Let's see.
Seagate BarraCuda 510 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Competitive Performance Meets Bad PricingSeagate's new BarraCuda 510 brings competitive performance, but pricing needs a makeover.
Patriot Viper VPN100 NVMe SSD Review: A Tactical UpgradePatriot's latest SSD comes with a powerful and proven design from Phison, an impressive heatsink, and write endurance to handle any task.- Zombie Loading: Intel Patches Slow Down SSDs as AMD Gains GroundWe've tested the impact of the new Zombieload, RIDL, and Fallout vulnerabilities on storage performance with both Intel and AMD platforms.
Kingston KC2000 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Top Notch Components and SecurityKingston designed its new KC2000 SSD for gamers, prosumers, and corporate users alike with top-notch security and solid performance that spans up to 3.2/2.2 GB/s.
Intel Optane Memory H10 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: QLC Flash Meets Optane CachingIntel's Optane Memory H10 fuses the speed of Optane with the capacity and cheap pricing of QLC flash, all on one M.2 stick.
Editor's ChoiceGigabyte Aorus RGB M.2 NVMe SSD Review: RGB Comes to M.2Gigabyte's Aorus RGB M.2 SSD brings the bling, and an elegant heatsink, to the M.2 form factor.
Intel Optane vs Samsung Z-NAND: SSD Memory Face-OffWe pitted Intel's Optane against Samsung's Z-NAND in a 7-round death match for your data.
Editor's ChoiceSamsung 983 ZET SSD Review: Z-NAND Takes On OptaneSamsung's new Z-NAND powered 983 ZET goes toe-to-toe with Intel's Optane.
Plugable USBC-NVMe SSD Enclosure Review: Tool-Free NVMe With USB Type-CPlugable's USBC-NVMe enclosure lets you slap in a M.2 SSD for fast, portable storage.
MyDigitalSSD M2X NVMe Enclosure Review: Put NVMe in Your PocketMyDigitalSSD's new MX2 enclosure unleashes the NVMe beast with the USB 3.1 Gen 2 speeds up to 1,000 MB/s.
LaCie Rugged RAID Pro 4TB Review: A Tough HDD Built for SpeedLaCie’s Rugged RAID Pro is a fast external HDD built to take on the elements, has an integrated UHS-II SC card reader, and comes with a data recovery protection plan.
HP SSD EX950 NVMe M.2 SSD Review: Geared for GamingHP’s SSD EX950 is a wicked fast NVMe M.2 SSD that ranks as one of the best on the market.
Toshiba Announces BG4 NVMe SSD SeriesToshiba announces the BG4 SSD Series at CES 2019.
G-Technology G-Drive mobile Pro SSD Review: The New Thunderbolt 3 SSD ChampG-Technology's Thunderbolt 3 and NVMe external SSD is ready to take the performance crown from Samsung's speedy X5.
Samsung 1TB 860 QVO SSD Review: QLC Comes To SATASamsung's new 860 QVO comes in 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB capacities with QLC flash.
Sony G Series Professional SSD Review: Endurance Comes At A PriceSony isn't the first name that comes to mind when we think of SSDs, but the company does have a new G Series Professional SSD on the market.
Team Group T-Force Delta RGB SSD Review: RGB SSD Done Right, KindaTeam Group's T-Force Delta RGB SSD is yet another example of the newfound RGB LED brightness in the storage market.
Samsung Announces QLC SSDs And Second-Gen Z-NANDSamsung made a few important announcements about its memory and storage products at its Samsung Tech Day event.
Corsair Force MP510 SSD Review: A Force to Be Reckoned WithThe Corsair Force MP510 offers more value than its predecessor along with better endurance ratings than other consumer flash-based SSDs.- Here’s How We Booted Windows 10 in 4.9 Seconds (Now, Beat Us)With these tweaks, you can go from hitting the power button to seeing the desktop in under 5 seconds.
Kingston HyperX Fury RGB SSD Review: RGB Comes To Entry-Level SSDsKingston's new Fury RGB SSD brings the bling but doesn't bring the performance to match.
Kingston HyperX Savage EXO Review: Fast Flash In A Slim PackageToday, we take a look at Kingston’s latest USB 3.1 Gen 2 external SSD, the HyperX Savage EXO.
Silicon Motion SM2262EN Controller PreviewSilicon Motion designs some of the best performing SSD controllers out. SSDs like the ADATA S11, Intel 760p, and HP EX920 deliver incredible performance and value with the SM2262 powering them. But, today we have in our hands something a bit better than that, a little gem if you will.
Patriot Evlvr Review: Evolving Your WorkflowPatriot’s Evlvr is significantly cheaper than competing devices, but with lower cost comes lower performance.
Toshiba XG6 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Higher Density and Improved EfficiencyToshiba's 96-layer 3D TLC BiCS flash breaks surface in the new XG6 SSD.
Intel SSD 660P M.2 NVMe SSD Review (1TB)On the Test Bench today, we take a look at Intel’s latest NVMe creation, the Intel SSD 660p NVMe M.2 SSD. The 660p, as we will refer to is as from this point on, represents the beginning of the end of days. Okay, just kidding, it really doesn’t.
Samsung 1TB Portable SSD X5 Review: Leading Edge PerformanceSamsung's 1TB Portable SSD X5 brings the speed of the Thunderbolt 3 interface and the NVMe protocol to a speedy external SSD.
Editor's ChoiceAdata XPG Gammix S11 960GB NVMe SSD Review: Top Dollar Performance At Bottom Dollar PricesAdata's 960GB XPG Gammix S11 is a fast, high-capacity SSD that comes with great pricing.
Mushkin Source SATA SSD Review (500GB): A Cheap UpgradeMushkin has been updating infusing its product line with 3D NAND, but that’s not all they have been up to. While doing that, they have been pushing to make SSDs cheap again.
Gigabyte UD Pro 512GB Review: Gigabyte Joins The SSD ClubGigabyte is known for its top-quality Ultra Durable motherboards, graphics cards, and recently its premium AORUS gaming brand, but just like other companies, the company is hungry to expand. With the help of Phison, the company developed a new line of UD
Corsair Force MP300 M.2 NVMe SSD Review (240GB)Corsair has SSD options for almost any need in the market. Want an entry-level SATA based SSD? The Force LE has you covered. Need high performance? You can choose from the Neutron NX500 or Force MP500 depending on the form factor and capacity that works best for you.
Phison E12 NVMe PCIe 3.0 x4 Controller Preview: Phison Turns Things Up a NotchAs many of you know, Phison is a well accomplished SSD controller manufacturer. Over the years they have designed some very competitive turnkey solutions for those who don’t have the means to do it themselves, or, helped those who can save some money by simply buying their end product rather than develop their own.
Toshiba OCZ RC100 M.2 NVMe SSD Review (240GB/480GB) – Is This The Start Of A New Trend?Today, we are going to be taking a look at something a little more unique, and possibly the start of a new trend for later SSDs. Today, we are reviewing the Toshiba OCZ RC100 which, unlike other DRAMless SSDs before it, utilizes a new technology built into the NVMe specs list, Host Memory Buffer technology.
ADATA XPG SX8200 M.2 NVMe SSD Review (480GB): A Killer ValueToday, we are going to take a look at ADATA’s newest top dog, the XPG SX8200. The XPG SX8200 was built for high demand applications including multimedia editing, gaming, rendering, and ADATA even states overclocking, although we’re not quite sure what benefits this has for overclocking vs other SSDs.
MyDigitalSSD Pocket Vault eXpress (PVX) Thunderbolt 3 USB-C External SSD Now AvailableLast December, MyDigitalSSD teased their Pocket Vault eXpress (PVX) and now that it is June, it has finally made its way to retailers. The PVX is an ultra-portable Thunderbolt 3 External SSD that combines PCI Express 3.0 technology with a Thunderbolt 3 USB-C interface for a variety of uses at home or on the go.
Intel Optane DC Persistent Memory Announced: Now Sampling, Up to 512GB DIMMSToday Intel held a memory and storage event to announce their latest product and we were there to get the inside scoop on what that is, Optane DC Persistent Memory.
Crucial MX500 M.2 SATA SSD Review (500GB)In December of 2017, we got to take a look at Crucial’s latest SATA SSD, the MX500. With a superb mix of performance, features, accessories, price, and warranty the MX500 earned our Top Value award with ease. There really wasn’t anything holding it back except for maybe one thing, availability.
WD Black & SanDisk Extreme Pro M.2 NVMe SSD Review (1TB) – True Enthusiast Class Performance from Western DigitalThey’re here, they’re finally here! The drives that we have been waiting for, for what seems like so long. At least we at the SSD review have been waiting so long for.
Plextor M8V SSD Review (256GB)Today we are going to take a close look at the Plextor M8V. Just like the top of the line Plextor M9Pe we just reviewed last week, this new value-oriented SSD from Plextor promises to come into the market guns blazing. It is filled with Toshiba’s BiCS3 TLC NAND and powered by an SMI 2258 controller.
Plextor M9Pe M.2 NVMe SSD Review (1TB)First revealed back at Computex 2017, Plextor is back at it again with a new product. Today, we have in our hands their top of the line PCIe NVMe SSD, the M9Pe. While it is not out quite yet, its release is right around the corner.
Intel SSD DC P4510 Enterprise NVMe SSD Review (2TB/8TB)Intel has recently expanded their lineup to include some higher capacities and new form factor SSDs that are infused with their latest 64-layer 3D TLC NAND flash memory. With this announcement, we were able to get our hands on some of their latest tech, 2TB and 8TB samples of their DC P4510.
MyDigitalSSD SBX M.2 NVMe SSD Review (128GB/256GB/512GB)Things have changed a lot since we have started reviewing SSDs. They have gone from the highest priced parts, only few could afford, to something that almost everyone can buy for a reasonable price…depending on how much space you really need that is.
ADATA XPG Gammix S10 M.2 NVMe SSD Review (512GB)Last year, ADATA’s gaming branch, XPG, released their newest product line, the Gammix series, and within that, they released the XPG Gammix S10 M.2 NVMe SSD. This SSD is quite sleek and high-end looking, with its flashy red with black heatsink and blacked out PCB, but its performance doesn’t quite match its looks.
Intel SSD 760P M.2 NVMe SSD Review (512GB)Intel has just expanded their 3D NAND infused product portfolio with the release of three new SSDs, the Intel SSD 760P, Intel SSD Pro 7600P, and the Intel SSD E 6100P.
Micron Launches 5200 Series SATA SSDs With Latest 64-layer 3D NAND TechnologyToday Micron Technology, Inc. announces the launch of the Micron 5200 series of SATA SSDs, the first series of enterprise SSDs that are available for purchase today with 3D 64-layer NAND. Built heavily on the 5100’s architecture, the new 5200 series is simply a well-refined product. As such, it promises to deliver industry-leading performance, consistency, capacity, reliability, and overall infrastructure value.
Crucial MX500 SSD Review (1TB) – The Best Value In SATAIt has been a year and a half since the release of the Crucial MX300 and that means it is time for an update. Unlike what we were expecting, we didn’t receive an MX400, but rather a Crucial MX500.
WD Blue 3D SSD & SanDisk Ultra 3D SSD Review (1TB) – Twins That Rival the BestIt has been quite a time since we have seen an update to the SanDisk Ultra product line; it has been long overdue. WD’s Blue SSD product line, on the other hand, looks to be right on track.
Crucial BX300 SSD Review (480GB) – Now Featuring 3D MLC NANDIt seems like it was just yesterday that I was holding the Crucial M4 in my hands and I was ready to upgrade my first gen i7 system with my first SSD ever, let alone with the first SATA 6Gb/s SSD ever.
Crucial’s FREE Momentum Cache Works on Any NVMe SSD! – Our First Look at RAM Caching on NVMe SSDsYou heard that right. This is the first time we are exploring RAM caching on an NVMe SSD in this fashion. While many RAM caching softwares exist, no other SSD manufacturer has yet to enable RAM caching for NVMe SSDs in quite the way Crucial has.
Toshiba TR200 SSD Review (240GB/480GB/960GB)If you have been following the storage market over the past year, you may have noticed that OCZ has yet to release any products since the VX500. As a matter of fact, with the NAND shortage, there have been fewer SSD releases across the industry.
Plextor M8Se NVMe SSD Review (512GB)It has been quite some time since we have reviewed a product from Plextor. In September of 2015 we took a look at the M6V, an entry-level SATA based SSD and before it, their flagship M6e Black edition, one of the very first NVMe SSDs in the market in the beginning of 2015. But, as of late, nothing…at least until now.
ADATA Ultimate SU900 SSD Review (512GB) – 3D MLC, But At What Cost?Last year, we reviewed ADATA’s Ultimate SU800. It was the second SSD in the market to utilize Micron’s 3D TLC NAND and paired with an SMI SM2258 controller, it made out to be a fairly good performer. This year we now have the Ultimate SU900 in hand. Just as the name suggests, it does rank above the SU800.
BIOSTAR G330 SSD Review (256GB)BIOSTAR isn’t the first name to come to mind when thinking about SSDs. Even for us, we didn’t even recall ever seeing a BIOSTAR SSD until today. They aren’t entirely new to the game, however. Last year at about this time, they released their first SSD, the G300.
Corsair Neutron NX500 NVMe SSD Review (400GB)Back in February, Corsair released one of the fastest NVMe SSDs into the market, their Force MP500. This SSD delivers more than enough performance to cover the needs of the majority of PC enthusiasts, however, with a rather typical 3-year warranty and fairly high price tag, it was just shy of earning our Gold Seal.
Intel DC P3520 Enterprise NVMe SSD Review (1.2TB) – With 3D NAND Comes ValueJust a few years ago the enterprise SSD market was born and over these few years, we have seen SSDs evolve quite a bit to the point at which they are today.
Team Group T-Force Cardea M.2 NVMe SSD Review (240GB)If you’re a fan of SSDs, you won’t be surprised with the latest thought process that SSDs need to be cooled. As of late, there seems to be a common theme that some type of SSD cooling is better than no cooling at all and, with respect to that thought, I would agree entirely.
Maxiotek MK8115 Controller Preview – MLC & TLC NAND Put To The TestIn May of 2016, we published a report from Computex that described the latest ADATA line and their continued willingness to support a number of SSD controllers within their SSD designs. The report is here. Within their line was a new notebook SSD that was being aimed directly at the consumer with what was expected to be a very low price point.
Kingston DCP1000 Enterprise NVMe SSD Review (1.6TB) – 7GB/s & 1 Mil IOPS in a Single HHHL SSDConsidering that data center SSDs affect so much of what we do everyday in today’s world, their technological marvel is really overlooked. Where the hard drive once filled our largest data centers worldwide, today’s data centers contain SSDs that either complement original HDD implementation, or take the place of hard drives completely.
Kingston DC400 Enterprise SSD Review (800GB/960GB)Enterprise-class SATA SSDs are offered by nearly all the big name SSD manufacturers in the market.
WD Black PCIe NVMe SSD Review (512GB) – Does It Live Up To Its Lineage?WD Black hard drives have long been the go-to hard drive for many storage consumers. They satisfy the needs of those looking for fast, reliable storage and although they are priced on the high side, they come with a 5-year warranty, which is hard to beat. However, with the release of so many SSDs into the market, WD had been falling behind.
MyDigitalSSD BPX M.2 NVMe SSD Review (480GB) – An Unmatched ValueMyDigitalSSD isn’t one of the big-name brands you may be used to, but don’t mistake a lack of brand awareness with their quality. MyDigitalSSD has been selling quality products for a while now and we have reviewed quite a few of them over the years. Many of which, have earned our Gold Seal, Editor’s Choice, and Top Value awards.
Micron 5100 MAX & ECO Enterprise SSD Review (960GB/1920GB)By now, if you are an avid reader or haven’t been stuck under a rock for the past 7-8 years, you know what a difference an SSD provides an end user. But, for years now, SSDs have been not only revolutionizing the way we compute in our homes but everywhere else as well.
Corsair Force MP500 M.2 NVMe SSD Review (480GB) – Is The Force Strong With This One?Corsair has a history of releasing high-quality products into the PC market. Whether you are a gamer or an avid PC builder, we’re willing to bet you have had experience with them.
Patriot Hellfire SSD Review (480GB) – Fast & EfficientMost well known for their DRAM and USB drives, Patriot memory isn’t new to offering performance and gamer oriented products. Years ago, they jumped on the SSD bandwagon, but they seemed to fall off at one point or another. As of last two years, however, they hopped back on and they now offer SSDs for every segment of the market.
Phison Demos Entry-level NVMe E8 Controller – CES 2017 UpdateWhen talking about high-performance storage and the controllers that power them, you can be sure that Phison will be in the conversation. Many companies have taken advantage of their E7 NVMe controller to bring out enthusiast class SSDs, such as the Patriot Hellfire, Corsair MP500, and MyDigitalSSD BPX (all of which are in our queue to review).
ADATA Reveals XPG 950 and Demos Latest NVMe SSDs in RAID – CES 2017 UpdateIn December, ADATA announced the first ever SSD to feature Micron’s latest 3D MLC NAND, Ultimate SU900, which is a huge announcement because Samsung will no longer be the only player in the market with 3D MLC NAND ( ie 850 PRO).
WD Unveils WD Black PCIe NVMe SSD – CES 2017 UpdateAfter stepping into the WD suite at CES this year we saw quite the array of storage products. From traditional mechanical disks and NAS storage devices to USB drives and the like, WD has devices for anybody’s needs. Recently we reviewed their first SSD product, the WD Blue SSD and at the same time, they launched the green series too.
Seagate and LaCie Showcase Latest SSD Products – CES 2017 UpdateLaCie, as many of you know, is Seagate’s premier/professional product brand. At CES they have on display their latest product updates, which feature upgraded interfaces and performance improvements. The Rugged Thunderbolt USB-C can connect to USB 3.0-compatible computers as well as to USB-C and Thunderbolt 3 models.
Kingston Reveals World’s Largest Flash Drive and More – CES 2017 UpdateCES 2017 and all the chaos that comes with it has just begun. One of our first booth tours is with Kingston, where they just revealed the world’s largest flash drive, the DataTraveler Ultimate GT.
Intel 600P M.2 NVMe SSD Review (512GB) – Is It THE Budget NVMe SSD to buy?Back in April of 2015 Intel was the first company to release an NVMe SSD into the consumer marketplace. The Intel 750 was the new standard in PCIe performance storage.
Samsung Magician 5.0 Released – Is Less More?SSD toolboxes are quite useful for monitoring your SSD’s health, updating its firmware, and more often than not, have some other features built into them to optimize the operating system and/or boost the SSD’s performance. Almost every company has one, but one company is more well known for theirs over anyone else.
PNY CS2030 M.2 NVMe SSD Review (240GB) – Our First Look at Phison’s E7 ControllerThe PNY CS2030 M.2 NVMe SSD comes out of the blue for us. The day it was released, we were more surprised than anyone. Not a whisper in the world about it had crossed our ears like it normally would. Not even our colleagues knew about it.
Samsung 960 EVO M.2 NVMe SSD Review (250GB/1TB)Last month we took a look at the best performing SSD, Samsung’s 960 PRO. Packed with Samsung’s latest MLC V-NAND, new Polaris controller, and put together with their engineering expertise, it easily sped off to the top of our charts. Not only that, but it did so without even utilizing their latest NVMe 2.0 driver.
Toshiba OCZ TL100 SSD Review (120GB/240GB)SSDs are state of the art memory components. Over the recent years we have seen the market grow and diversify. With the explosion of TLC SSDs in the marketplace these days it is a race to the bottom more than ever.
ADATA Ultimate SU800 SSD Review (512GB) – More 3D TLC For The MassesThe ADATA Ultimate SU800, despite the name and in contrast to the last ADATA SSD we had reviewed (SX930), is not an enthusiast oriented SSD, rather, it is an entry level/ budget SSD. The SX930 utilized a JMicron controller and enterprise-grade MLC+ NAND.
Samsung 960 Pro M.2 NVMe SSD Review (2TB) – Breathtaking SpeedSize, weight, speed, latency, endurance, power consumption, price, warranty, etc. All these characteristics help to define storage media and are what classify some drives as entry level, others as mainstream, and a for a select few, enthusiast/prosumer.
WD Blue SSD Review (1TB) – WD Steps Into The RingMany of us know Western Digital as one of the largest HDD manufacturers in the market and that they have, for the most part, solely relied on HDD storage sales to become the giant they are today. In recent times they’ve adopted flash into their products.
Toshiba OCZ VX500 SSD Review (256GB/512GB/1TB) – A New MLC Contender In The Recent Sea of TLCThe OCZ Vector has been the top performing SATA SSD from the company for the past few years. Utilizing their proprietary Indilinx controller and most recently, Toshiba’s A19 NAND, they provided for strong performance for mainstream consumers as well as enthusiasts, but it did have its drawbacks in recent times.
Toshiba HK4E Enterprise SSD Review (800GB)What’s this? Another Toshiba HK4 series SSD review? Yes! This time around we are going to take a look at the higher endurance model of the HK4 family, the HK4E. The HK4E is rated for three drive writes per day rather than one like the HK4R.
Crucial MX300 SSD Review (1050GB) – Micron 3D NAND Meets RAID 0Whether it be on cars or computers, enthusiasts are always looking for ways to improve performance, ways to just one up their friends, or even just ways to spend money on their hobby when they have nothing else to do with it. Who doesn’t like having the best of the best at times? We know we sure love it.
LiteOn Demos Open Channel on Protoype U.2 SSD and Unveils EP3 M.2 NVMe SSD – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateFrom the emergence of new flash storage server companies to more participation from the big players in flash, we are seeing FMS grow year after year as more and more gain interest in speedy memory. We see companies delivering break through products and solutions as well as industry wide trends forming.
Phison Displays Next Gen Controllers and More – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateMaking our way over to the Phison booth we were greeted with some new products. First up is the S11T, which will help OEMs and other customers reduce their BOM cost. It is an industrial grade SATA 6Gb/s controller that is DRAM-less. It supports MLC/TLC 2D and 3D NAND. It features their SmartECC, end-to-end data path protection, and SmartZip technologies.
Maxiotek Shows Off Latest DRAM-less Controllers – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateMaxiotek is a new name in the controller industry, but not new to the game. Maxiotek is the result of JMicron’s SSD controller and external enclosure departments splitting. The company is full of engineers and are working hard on delivering reliable controllers to the masses. Here at Flash Memory Summit they have on display quite a few new controller products.
OCZ RD400 Sales Through the Roof – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateSince their acquisition by Toshiba, we have seen the OCZ booth get smaller and smaller at trade shows. This year at FMS, it is narrowed down to a single display. Not only has their booth been shrinking, but we have notices that their naming conventions have been shrinking as well.
Kingston Displays World’s Fastest 2.5” U.2 SSD – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateSo many products at FMS revolve around delivering the most performance you could image. While we were impressed with the many server storage solution providers, we are always more focused on the SSD manufacturers and devices themselves, which is why we went over to speak with Kington to see what they had at their booth this year.
Transcend Demos SuperMLC and New Products – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateMany vendors at FMS this year are introducing evolutionary products and Transcend is no different. While at their booth we spotted them demonstrating the performance of their SuperMLC NAND. SuperMLC was originally developed to deliver industrial customers the high performance and reliability that SLC offers, but at a lower, more cost effective price point.- Liqid SSDs and Software Enable 50GB/s and 10 Million IOPS Performance – Flash Memory Summit 2016 UpdateLiqid is a newer SSD solutions company that revolves around making innovative and disruptive technology for the bare-metal cloud to enable hyperscale agility to the masses. What does this mean? Well, through their reference SSD designs and software architecture they are able to deliver what is some of the best performance we have seen at FMS 2016 so far.
Microsemi Provides the Industry’s Highest Density, Lowest Power PCIe SwitchMicrosemi, has announced today that they are now offering a new PCIe Gen3 Switch, its Switchtec PFX PCIe switch. The Switchtec PFX PCIe switch provides for the the industry’s highest density and lowest power for data center, defense, communications, and industrial applications.
Toshiba’s ZD6000 Dual Port NVMe SSD Powers DDN IME14K All-Flash Application and File System Accelerator SoftwareToshiba, has just announced that their ZD6000-series NVMe SSDs will now be featured in DDN’s latest servers to provide for the capacity, quality, and reliability needed for the latest application acceleration and burst buffer technologies. Their collaboration enables the DDN IME14K to deliver redundancy, low latency, and game changing performance at the application layer, providing impressive compute ROI.
Corsair Neutron XTi SSD Review (480GB)It has been nearly two years since we have reviewed the Corsair Neutron XT. At its release it was the first SSD we analyzed with the Phison S10 controller and after putting it through the paces, we were quite impressed with its performance at first show.
WD Announces World’s First 64 Layer 3D NANDThis week Western Digital Corp. announced that it has successfully developed its next generation 3D NAND technology, BiCS3, with 64 layers of vertical storage capability. Pilot production of the new technology has commenced in the Yokkaichi, Japan joint venture facilities and initial output is expected later this year.
Crucial Expands MX300 Line With More Capacities & Form FactorsJust a month after we reviewed the Limited Edition 750GB model, Crucial is now announcing the release of more capacity options for the MX300 family. It is now available in 275GB, 525GB, the original 750GB, and 1TB.
Kingston SSDNow UV400 SSD Review (480GB)Today we are going to look into the performance of yet another entry level SSD. This trend, to offer entry level products, is very strong now and since TLC NAND is readily available, almost every manufacturer out has one of these cost effect drives in their portfolio.
Samsung 850 EVO SSD Review (4TB) – Bigger than Ever!!!Samsung is a force to be reckoned with in the SSD market. With such a large share, they are the biggest player there is. This allows them to push the boundaries of what products they can deliver and when. In today’s case, Samsung has just released another update to their 850 EVO line, this time it is huge.
Micron 9100 MAX Enterprise NVMe SSD Review (2.4TB)It has been quite some time since Micron has released a new PCIe SSD into its product portfolio. With the many new NVMe products being released in the market, it was about time Micron caught up, and not only did they catch up, their latest drives look to be some of the best out.
Samsung EVO Plus microSDXC UHS-I Card Review (256GB) – So Much V-NAND!Released earlier last year, the Samsung EVO Plus line of microSD cards has been quite a success. In light of this, Samsung has decided to continue the momentum and push boundaries by expanding the capacity availability.
Toshiba HK4R Enterprise SSD Review (1920GB)SATA SSDs are all the rage in data centers. Unlike their PCIe bothers, these SATA SSDs don’t often need to have high endurance figures and lightning fast IOPS performance. Instead, they typically just need to be cheap, reliable, and what is becoming more important lately, high capacity.
SSD of the Week – PNY CS2211 XLR8With summer comes more time to play games for many and today we wanted to bring back to light a high quality SATA SSD for our readers who want that extra edge when playing. The CS2211 is manufactured by PNY and is part of their XLR8 line, aka, their top performing gamer/enthusiast class products.
Mushkin Triactor SSD Review (480GB) – Another Barebones TLC OptionBack in 2014 we took a good look at the Mushkin Reactor. At the time, it was the best value 1TB SSD you could buy. You could even argue that it was THE SSD which made high value, high capacity SSDs the norm. Now, Mushkin is trying to take value a step farther by introducing a cheaper alternative into the market.
Mangstor Introduces P2P capabilities and 5.4TB model to MX-Series NVMe SSDsMangstor Inc., a leading developer of high performance next generation non-volatile memory storage solutions, today announced that its MX-Series family of NVMe-based PCIe SSDs now features higher capacity 5.4TB models as well as Peer-to-Peer (P2P) capabilities.
Crucial MX300 SSD Review (750GB)For what seemed like an eternity Samsung has been the leader in manufacturing 3D NAND. Starting with the release of the Samsung 850 Pro two years ago, they have paved the way for innovation. 3D NAND brings greater capacity, power efficiency, and lower cost to the consumers.
SanDisk X400 SSD Review (512GB)Targeted towards read-intensive workloads, boot, and logging applications in both servers and mobile computing, the X400 is SanDisk’s top-tier client SATA SSD available in both M.2 and 2.5″ form factors. Based on the marketing material it seems that SanDisk has put a lot of value into this drive, not only with its feature set, but performance and efficiency.
Techman SSD XC100 Series NVMe SSD Review (3.2TB)High capacity and high-performance SSDs are starting to pop up every which way in the enterprise segment and competition is getting heated. Thanks to PMC with their latest Flashtec NVMe controllers, third party SSD vendors are able to develop these high capacity, high performance devices faster than ever with features catered to their target buyers.
Micron Announces Next-Gen NVMe 3D NAND 1100 & 2100 Series Client SSDs – Computex 2016 UpdateToday Micron Technology, Inc. introduced the Micron 1100 SATA and Micron 2100 PCIe NVMe. These are two new solid state drive (SSD) product lines designed to tackle client computing workloads from web browsing and email, to video editing and auto CAD design.
OCZ RD400 NVMe SSD Review (256GB/512GB/1TB)More MB/s, more IOPS, and lower latencies are what storage enthusiasts dream of. CPUs, RAM, and GPUs are all pushing faster speeds than ever, but storage has typically been a bottleneck for enthusiasts, even after the introduction of SSDs.
Intel 540s SSD Review (480GB) – SMI Controller With SK Hynix MemoryAs the SSD industry continues to grow, manufacturers try to maintain their consumer presence with more value-oriented consumer products. Such is the case with Intel’s latest step into the TLC segment by introducing their newest 540s SATA 3 SSD a few weeks back.
Micron Simplifies Path to Next-Generation All-Flash Data Center with Introduction of Micron Accelerated SolutionsOn Tuesday Micron Technology, Inc. introduced to us new NVMe SSDs for the enterprise market, however, that was just one of many announcements. They also announced the creation of Micron Accelerated Solutions, a set of purpose-built, scale-out solutions for open source and software-defined data centers.
Micron Accelerates Data Center Storage with New NVMe PCIe SSD PortfolioMicron announces a new PCIe solid state drives that leverage the high-performance NVMe protocol. The new Micron 9100 and 7100 PCIe SSDs provide data center customers with purpose-built storage products for implementing an agile, scale-out IT infrastructure.
Samsung 850 EVO SSD With 3rd Gen 48 Layer V-NAND Performance ComparisonOut with the old, in with the new is how the saying goes! Although, in this case, the old really isn’t that old and is still quite bleeding edge technology. This doesn’t stop Samsung though. Today we are going to take a look at the performance of Samsung’s 3rd generation 48-layer 256Gb TLC V-NAND.
SSD of the Week – 960GB MyDigitalSSD BP5e Slim 7 Just $190!Are you interested in getting a 1TB class SSD for dirt cheap? If so, today we stumbled across a great SSD of the Week deal for all our readers.
SSD of the Week – Adata Premier SP550It has been a while since our last SSD of the Week post, but after seeing the current prices of the Adata Premier SP550, we just had to bring it back. The Adata Premier SP550 is an entry-level SSD designed to meet the needs of those who want to upgrade to flash storage, but need to pinch pennies at the same time.
Zotac Premium Edition SSD Review (480GB)Zotac has been in the computer industry since 2006 and has made quite the name for itself in the gamer market. Better known for their graphics cards, motherboards, and Mini-PCs, Zotac isn’t typically a name one would associate with solid state drives, especially high-performance ones.
OCZ Trion 150 SSD Review (240GB/480GB/960GB)Entry-level SSDs have been a hot commodity for many companies as of late. In the past few months, we have seen many new TLC based options released into the market. Today, OCZ is back at it again with a new release, this time around it is an update to their entry-level SSD series, the OCZ Trion 150.
OWC Mercury Electra MAX 6G SSD Review (2TB)OWC has been around for quite a while and is usually on the ball when it comes to creating flash products for Mac systems. They have robust storage portfolio for any media creation workflow with products designed and manufactured in the USA.
HGST Ultrastar SN100 Enterprise NVMe SSD Review (3.2TB)With the introduction of the Samsung XS1715, back in 2014, we were able to review our first ever PCIe SSD in a 2.5″ form factor. Utilizing the NVMe interface, it provided from some jaw dropping performance. At the time Intel also had (and still has) multiple 2.5″ form factor PCIe SSDs within their Intel SSD Data Center family lineup.
PNY CS1311 SSD Review (120GB/480GB)Yet again, we see a new entrant to the ultra-cheap, entry level SSD market. Aimed at those who are looking for a nice step up from a HDD, but have to pinch pennies, PNY has released a TLC packed contender, the CS1311.- PNY CS2211 SSD Review (240GB/480GB)Just last week we announced PNY’s latest SSD products for the new year, the CS1311 and CS2211. It just so happens that today we have some in our hands for review. The CS1311 is your basic, entry level SSD jam packed with TLC NAND for those looking for a cheap SSD upgrade from an HDD.
Toshiba’s Client and Enterprise Lineup – CES 2016 UpdateToshiba’s show room was packed with NVMe goodness and a bit more. To start off, while Toshiba does not target the consumer retail market under their name they do target OEM and enterprise customers with their client and enterprise products.
OCZ Showcases RevoDrive 400 and Trion 150 – CES 2016 UpdateAfter a long delay to the convention center today we were finally able to make it to the OCZ showroom where one of their newest products caught us by surprise. Along with the Vector 180 and Trion 100, OCZ showcased their Trion 150.
Kingston Demos E1000 PCIe NVMe SSD Capable of 1.25 Million IOPS and More! – CES 2016 UpdateCES has been quite interesting so far, with many new consumer storage devices on the horizon. This year, however, Kingston hasn’t announced anything new on the SSD front, that is, for consumer storage. They did, however, show off some of their newest enterprise products including the E1000 PCIe NVMe AIC and announced a new client SATA SSD, the KC400.
LaCie Unleashes New 1TB External Chromé SSD and Porsche Design Desktop Drives – CES 2016 UpdateLaCie, the premium brand from Seagate Technology, has just unleashed the fastest USB storage solution on the market at CES 2016! Designed by Neil Poulton the LaCie Chromé is a sleek combination of style and performance. The polished aluminum enclosure attaches to a removable magnetized display stand and the back features magnetized cable management.
SanDisk Release World’s Thinnest 1TB M.2 SSD and Extreme 510 External SSDToday SanDisk unveiled a few products for 2016, among them are a new client SSD and a rugged waterproof external drive. Their client product, the X400, is the first single-sided 1TB SATA M.2 form factor SSD that measures in at a mere 1.5mm height.
Micron’s Future Without Mark Adams – Storage Visions 2016 UpdateOf course Storage visions is where we learn what the future will hold in terms of storage. Right now, who better to look at than Micron about this subject? Just yesterday Micron, one of the biggest players in both the DRAM and NAND, released a press statement entailing that their president Mark Adams has resigned due to personal health reasons.
Samsung to Release 750 EVO in US Market, 4TB Consumer SSDs and More – Storage Visions 2016 UpdateIn a quick meeting with Samsung today we learned some interesting things coming up in 2016. Other than the release of the Samsung Portable SSD T3 we’ve mentioned here, Samsung aims to expand the release of the 750 EVO to the United States.- MyDigitalSSD BP5e Slim 7 Series SSD Review (960GB) – Unequaled Value with TLCThe competition between value based SSDs is getting ever more fierce this holiday season. Comparing back to just a few weeks ago we see most manufacturers offering great prices to entice more sales before year’s end. Building upon this steam is MyDigitalSSD with their latest model, the BP5e Slim 7 Series.
Black Friday SSD Sales 2015 – SanDisk Ultra II @ $0.21/GB and More!Black Friday is finally here and deals are a plenty! Of course, we at The SSD Review are looking after you and have created a guide to help you navigate through this Black Friday’s SSD deals. After checking out Amazon this morning, this is what we found.
SSD of the Week – AMD Radeon R7 Just $0.29/GB!This week we were looking around for the best deal at the ~250GB capacity range of SSDs. Hands down, it turned out to be the AMD Radeon R7. At a low price of just $69.99 it is even cheaper than many of its competitors and delivers great performance! The Radeon R7 is a 2.5″ 7mm form factor, SATA 6GB/s SSD.
Crucial BX200 SSD Review (480GB/960GB)Crucial has always been quite aggressive with their value driven strategy in the SSD market and it has resulted in success for many of their products. This has led to their most recent product launches of the MX200 and the introduction of a new entry-level product line earlier this year with the BX100.- The SSD Review Power Testing – Now Powered by Quarch TechnologyOne of the big marketing points for SSDs, besides their shear speed, is their low power consumption compared to their mechanical rivals. SSDs are not only more power efficient during workloads, but they are able to read and write so quick, that most of the time they are in an idle state.
OCZ Announces Host Managed SSD Technology in Saber 1000 ModelsToday, OCZ is introducing HMS technology in their Saber 1000 2.5” SATA 6Gb/s SSDs. What is HMS? HMS or Host Managed SSD technology is a new frontier for SSDs and the initiative is referred to as Storage Intelligence.
SSD of the Week – Kingston HyperX PredatorWell, it has been some time since we have reviewed the Kingston HyperX Predator. Back in March we were lucky enough to not only review one of these drives, but also two in RAID 0! The HyperX Predator is currently their top tier storage product.
Intel SSD DC P3608 Review (1.6TB) – Over 5GB/s and 850K IOPS!A year ago Intel launched their first line up of NVMe SSDs. The DC P3700, DC P3600, and earlier this year they officially launched the DC P3500.- BitFenix AEGIS Core mATX Case ReviewThe BitFenix AEGIS is quite an interesting microATX case. Its shield-inspired front is stylistic and they claim that it also helps to keep down noise. It is offered in bold colors and just like many cases as of late, its designed has been heavy influenced by watercooling capability and modularity.
SSD of the Week – The Samsung 850 EVO Once AgainToday we have a SSD that has been a recurring topic for SSD of the week this year. The Samsung 850 EVO was last covered when the 1TB capacity reached an amazing value of $0.33/GB. This week, however, we are focusing on value of the mid-size capacities along with the recently released 2TB capacity.
SSD of the Week – Is the 2TB CUK Cyclone a Samsung 3D V-NAND, SandForce or JMicron?Okay, so this Week’s SSD of the Week is a bit extraordinary and even leaves us a bit confused. Just when we thought the 2TB SSDs from Samsung had no competition we stumbled across a new 2TB SSD while looking for deals on Amazon! It is called the CUK Cyclone by a seller called Computer Upgrade King.
Samsung SM863 & PM863 SSD Review (960GB)Samsung’s latest enterprise SATA device offerings come in the form of the PM863 and SM863 SSDs. Both come with Samsung’s latest 3D V-NAND technology and are developed for small and medium sized business with a large focus on QoS and value.
Adata Premier SP550 SSD Review (240GB)Early last month we reviewed Adata’s newest SATA 6Gb/s contender in the enthusiast market segment, the XPG SX930. Utilizing a JMicron controller and premium MLC NAND, it delivered good performance at a decent price point. Today we are going to shift gears and take a look at their latest entry level SATA 6Gb/s SSD, the Premier SP550.
SSD of the Week – Kingston HyperX SavageFor his week’s SSD of the Week we turn to Kingston, a well-established maker of memory products for over 25 years. Furthermore, Kingston has been the world’s number-one memory module manufacturer for the third-party memory market for over 10 years. Kingston’s HyperX line of products bring forth both the high performance and looks that gamers and enthusiasts demand.
Lexar Professional 2000x SDXC UHS-II Card Review (64GB)A little over a year ago we were able to take a close look at a new breed of SD cards thanks to SanDisk releasing the world’s first UHS-II SD card, the SanDisk Extreme Pro. The standard was so new, besides the Fujifilm XT-1, no other camera even supported the form factor at the time.
SSD of the Week – Eluktronics Eluktro Pro-X Performance – A Samsung SM951 in Disguise?Well, we are back from this year’s Flash Memory Summit and thought we would get back into gear with a new SSD of the Week. As you all know, the Samsung SM951 is one of the best things since sliced bread in an M.2 form factor.
Phison Announces PS5007-E7 PCIe NVMe Controller and More – Flash Memory Summit 2015 UpdateThe Phison PS5007-E7 PCIe NVMe controller is not something new to us. We have seen it before, first FMS last year and then again at Computex where we saw it on demo delivering 2.7Gb/s read. Finally, at FMS this year they officially announce its availability with it being demoed continuously writing at 1.3GB/s.
JMicron Displays Controller Lineup – Flash Memory Summit 2015 UpdateBack at Computex we weren’t able to cover JMicron’s latest plans and products, but now at FMS we were able to catch a meeting with them. On display was their current lineup of controllers and while not as high performance as some we have been seeing, for them it is about efficiency, stability and driving down cost.
Lite-On Debuts EP2 NVMe M.2 PCIe SSD and More – Flash Memory Summit 2015 UpdateWhile officially announced last week, Lite-on debuted their latest addition to their enterprise SSD portfolio, the EP2. The EP2 is a PCIe 3.0 x4 M.2 NVMe SSD that will be available in capacities up to 2TB! That is right, by utilizing a M.2 110mm form factor, the EP2 will be available in capacities up to 2TB.
PMC Demos New Flashtec NVMe Controllers and NVMe over RDMA – Flash Memory Summit 2015 UpdateThis year at FMS we are not only seeing much more innovation in end storage products themselves, but the entire storage ecosystem as well. Over at the PMC booth there are multiple demos showing how they aim to address the oncoming migration to PCIe in enterprise storage.
OCZ Demos Z-Drive 6000 NVMe SSD Dual-Port Performance – Flash Memory Summit 2015 UpdateThis year at FMS it really shows just how close Toshiba and OCZ are based upon their booth location. Right near the entrance you have Toshiba’s grand display, but at first glance the OCZ section is almost impossible to see. After circling back twice, their section finally caught our eye.
ADATA XPG SX930 SSD Review (120GB/240GB/480GB)ADATA has memory products for all sections of the market, from consumer to industrial. As of late they have released a new consumer SSD, the XPG SX930. It is marketed towards the gamer and overclocker crowd at a pretty competitive price point.
SSD of the Week – Transcend SSD370 at $0.27/GB!It has been a bit since our last SSD of the Week where we covered the Eluktronics Eluktro Pro Performance drives. Continuing our coverage of value drives we are taking a look at the Transcend SSD370 today because for a limited time Amazon is offering it at a great price.- Intel and Micron Produce 3D XPoint Memory – 1,000 Times Faster Than NANDIntel Corporation and Micron Technology, Inc., are announcing the first new memory category since NAND flash was introduced in 1989, revealing their 3D XPoint technology. This major breakthrough in memory process technology enables non-volatile memory speeds of up to 1,000 times faster than NAND! Digital data services and connected device growth continues to explode, creating ever-more-massive new data amounts.
HGST Ultrastar He8 HDD RAID Review (8x8TB) – 64TB Analysis on the Adaptec 8805 RAID AdapterBig data is BIG. We create billions of gigabytes of data on a daily basis, from uploading a photo to Facebook or emailing a new project document, all this data is stored in data centers across the globe. Big data is usually divided between high performance and storage.
Micron M510DC SSD Review (480GB) – Cost Effective EnduranceJust as the consumer market is starting to flood with many lower cost value based SSDs, we are starting to see more and more low cost read-centric SSDs in the enterprise market.
OCZ Trion 100 SSD Review (240GB/480GB/960GB)Not four months after launching their flagship consumer SSD, the Vector 180, OCZ is launching a new value-oriented TLC SSD named the Trion 100. Our first look at the Trion 100 was at Computex 2015 where we saw that, while it is a value offering, its performance will be anything but.- Complete Guide To Speeding Up Your PC’s Boot Time – Under 10 Seconds is PossibleAs you know, many people buy SSDs to not only speed up their computing experience, but also speed up the boot time of their machines.
Intel 750 PCIe SSD Review (400GB)The Intel 750 is the first NVMe SSD released into the consumer market. It offers users some pretty killer performance at a price point that is roughly twice that of top performing SATA SSDs. Back in April we were able to review the 1.2TB model.
Samsung SM951 M.2 NVME SSD Review (256GB)The Samsung SM951 is one of the fastest SSD solutions out for those with a need for speed. It offers speeds that put most SSDs to shame and does it in a small M.2 2280 form factor. Last week we took a look at the 512GB variant that utilizes the AHCI host controller interface.
SSD of the Week – 1TB Samsung 850 EVO Just $0.33/GB!We have covered the Samsung 850 EVO in our SSD of the Week before, however, it was to highlight the 500GB capacity.
SanDisk CloudSpeed Eco SSD Review (960GB)When it comes to enterprise SSD storage solutions SanDisk is one of the largest manufacturers out there with a broad range of product to cover the many needs of the this ever growing market.
Samsung SM951 M.2 PCIe SSD Review (512GB)In 2013 we were able to get a hold of Samsung’s first go at an OEM M.2 PCIe 2.0 x4 SSD, the XP941. Once word got out about this SSD’s speeds many storage enthusiasts thirsted for it.
SSD of the Week – OCZ Vector 180When consumer SSDs were still in their infancy OCZ was quick to fill the market with SandForce force powered SSDs. This quick release of products came at a price. Due to issues with firmware consumers wound up with unreliable SSDs.
SSD of the Week – Crucial BX100In today’s SSD of the Week we look back at Crucial’s new entry-level SSD that we reviewed a couple of months ago, the BX100. This SSD was one of the first value oriented SSDs released following CES.- Kingston HyperX Savage SSD Review (240GB)Back in January, at CES 2015, Kingston revealed their fastest SSD yet, the HyperX Predator. Luckily for us we were able to not only review this SSD, but we were able to run two in RAID 0 and it turned out to be quite the performer.
Eluktronics Eluktro Pro Performance SSD Review (250GB/500GB/1TB)Eluktronics isn’t a name brand you think of when you start looking for a new SSD. Up until just recently we didn’t even hear about this company, let alone know they offered some very price competitive SSDs.
SSD of the Week – Intel SSD 750 SeriesToday we have something very special for SSD of the Week. A new enthusiast class SSD that outshines any of the same form factor PCIe SSDs. By utilizing the new NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory Express) interface, Intel’s 750 series of SSDs are leagues above the current PCIe interface in efficiency and speed.
Kingston HyperX Predator M.2 PCIe SSDs in RAID 0 – You Thought One Was Fast?More M.2 PCIe SSDs are starting to hit the consumer marketplace. Not only do they offer a compact form factor builds and mobile platforms, but they also provide speeds that demolish their SATA based competition.- Intel 750 PCIe SSD Review (1.2TB) – 1st Consumer 2.4GB/s NVMe SSD Set To Change The IndustryYou know how we said in previous reviews that the enthusiast market hasn’t had much action and is just starting to take off? Well, right when we thought we were starting to see some fast PCIe SSDs, Intel decides to step in and release a beast.
- OCZ Vector 180 SSD Review (240GB/480GB/960GB)OCZ has completely revamped their brand image for the better since they have been purchased by Toshiba. They have unified their product designs and now all their products are easily recognizable and powered by in house Indilinx Barefoot 3 controllers paired with Toshiba’s A19 Toggle MLC NAND.
- EXCLUSIVE: Kingston HyperX Predator M.2 PCIe SSD Review (480GB)This year is starting to look like a great one for consumer SSD storage. Competition is increasing, prices are lowering, and speeds are getting much faster…well they will be.
ASRock X99 WS-E Motherboard ReviewFrom motherboards sporting M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 slots to others with support for a ridiculous amount of SATA ports, ASRock has jumped into the fast lane in the past few years with great motherboards that feature great connectivity options when it comes to fast storage. One of their latest Intel X99 boards proves to be no different.
EDGE Boost Pro Micro SSD Review (1TB)Typically, we see a lot of 2.5″ 7mm, M.2, and mSATA SSDs for review on our site, but rarely do we see 1.8″ SATA SSDs. As a matter of fact, our first and only 1.8″ SSD review was the Mushkin Chronos GO Deluxe, that we reviewed back in May 2013.
Fractal Design R5 Mid-Tower Chassis ReviewChoosing the right computer case can take quite some time, especially nowadays when the market is flooded with choices. You have a plethora of size and design options.
SSD of the Week – Portable SSD T1Last week we took a look at the Patriot Ignite, a new contender in the market that offers high capacity and performance for a great price.
Silicon Motion SM2256 Controller with Samsung TLC NAND ReviewControllers are the heart and soul of every SSD. Without one, an SSD would be a useless PCB with some components slapped on it. It is responsible for everything from garbage collection and wear leveling to error correction and hardware encryption. In simple terms, all these operations can be quite complicated to implement as well as expensive to develop.
Crucial MX200 SSD Review (500GB/1TB)The Crucial MX200 is yet another in the many steps that Crucial has taken on over the past few generations, their SSD lines building slowly upon the last since their first release so long ago. Replacing their M4, the M500 introduced a plethora of new features such as hardware encryption, data path protection, and power loss protection.
PNY CS2111 XLR8 SSD Review (480GB)If you have been into computers any time over the past few decades, you probably know of PNY. They are an American company that manufactures graphics cards as well as all things flash. Over the past few years they have joined in on the SSD industry, offering some very competitive products.
Patriot Ignite SSD Review (480GB) – Async Flash Takes On a Whole New LookUp until recently, Patriot Memory seemed to have moved back from the SSD scene and become focused on phone accessories and portable devices for their retail makeup. Today is a new day, however, and Patriot enters the SSD arena once again.
ADATA Premier Pro SP900 M.2 6Gbps SSD Review (256GB)While we are awaiting next gen SSDs featuring SF-3700 controllers, we are still seeing some SF-2200 based SSDs released in the market. A few years ago, SandForce SSDs saturated the marketplace as they were the go to for most companies, however as of late, this has changed. A lot more options are out there for companies to choose from.
Thermaltake Toughpower 1500W Gold PSU Unboxing & OverviewThermaltake has been making power supplies for quite some time. They have models for all segments of the market, from entry level to PSUs that meet even the most extreme enthusiast’s demands. In fact, we’d venture to say, if you’ve been building systems for a while, odds are you’ve used a Thermaltake PSU at one point or another.
SSD of the Week – Kingston SSDNow V300In our last week’s SSD of the Week we covered ADATA’s SP610, a great performing SSD featuring a SM2246EN controller. For this week’s SSD of the Week we have found some great deals on Kingston’s SSDNow V300 SSDs.
Kingston HyperX Cloud II Pro Gaming Headset ReviewGaming headsets are a dime a dozen. You can go out and buy one for $20 or shell out a few hundred. What Kingston had done with their original HyperX Cloud last year was that they created a quality headset for a value price. Now, they have built upon its success and have released the HyperX Cloud II.
Plextor M6e Black Edition SSD Review (256GB) – Back in Black!SATA 6Gb/s has been a bottleneck for SSDs over the past few years, utilizing multiple SSDs in RAID arrays has been best practice to overcome it. Plextor had seen this problem and originally released the M6e early last year in attempt to target the gamer market.
Kingston SDCA3 microSDHC/SDXC UHS-I U3 Card Review (64GB)For the latest and greatest action cams or even cellphones like the Note 4, microSDXC cards are essential. With 4K video output becoming a norm and high bit rates following it, flash memory with high write speeds is in great demand.
Thermaltake Water 3.0 Ultimate CPU Cooler ReviewSystem cooling is very important in high end systems. Gamers and enthusiasts are always looking for another way to push their system to its limit, whether it be by operating system tweaks or overclocking their CPU for every last bit of performance. With CPUs hitting overclocks in the 4.5GHz to 5GHz range, CPU cooling is very important.
New Headset & Peripherals By Turtle Beach – CES 2015 UpdateTurtle Beach had a great booth at CES this year, from live demo floors to private rooms, their set was rockin’! While there we were able to speak with David Lowey, senior director of corporate communications and public relations. He spoke to us about a brand new wireless headset for the Xbox One and their latest move into PC peripherals.
ADATA Shows Off SandForce SF3700 SSD and New TLC SSD – CES Update 2015Last week we were eager to meet with ADATA’s team at CES 2015. In their suite they had not only some new lighting and hard drive products, but some very interesting SSDs on display. One of these is an enterprise M.2 drive featuring a SandForce SF3700 controller.
Patriot Showcases Ignite SSD and More – CES 2015 UpdateCES has been great so far, there are a lot of new products that have been unveiled and we look forward to reviewing everything we can get our hands on. We stopped by Patriot’s suite in the Bellagio to see what they had up their sleeve.
Samsung Discusses Enterprise SSDs – CES 2015 UpdateThis morning at CES Las Vegas, we attended the Bellagio where we met with Ryan Smith, Sr. Product Manager of SSD Marketing, Samsung. We got to take a look not only at their current SSD line up, but what should be coming out over the next year or so.
Samsung SM951 PCIe 3.0 M.2 SSD In Mass ProductionSamsung Electronics Co., Ltd., has recently announced that it has begun mass producing a high-performance, low-powered PCIe M.2 SSD, the SM951. The OEM drive is targeted for ultra-slim notebook PCs and workstations. It is compatible with both PCIe 3.0 and PCIe 2.0 interfaces.
Kingston HyperX Predator M.2 SSD Capable of 1.4GB/s and 125K IOPS – CES 2015 UpdateMaking our rounds at CES, we made a stop by Kingston to check out what they had going on. It turns out, they have something pretty impressive. They are releasing a brand new PCIe 2.0 x4 M.2 SSD capable of 1.4GB/s reads and 1GB/s write, the HyperX Predator! UPDATE: Exclusive Full Review Here.
OCZ Displays New JetExpress Controller On New NVMe M.2 SSDs – CES 2015 UpdateThis week at CES 2015 in Las Vegas, our good friends at OCZ introduced us to a few new SSDs, as welll as a dynamite new SSD controller. On their display floor, OCZ has a brand new Vector series SSD, the Vector 180. This SSD will be the last of their Barefoot 3 powered product line.
PNY Shows Off New SSD Product Lines – CES 2015 UpdateWhile at Pepcom’s Digital Experience! 2015 in Las Vegas, NV, we were quite interested in what was going on at the PNY booth. They have announced a new line-up of SSDs for enterprise, client, and consumer applications. The naming scheme has also changed from before, now opting for a two letter abbreviation per drive class followed by a number series.
Trusted Computing Group Booth – Storage Visions 2015 UpdateWith computers in use reaching the two billion mark and mobile phones exceeding the world population, security is mission critical. Based on IDC estimates, about half of all data is unprotected. The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse reports that 536,508,478 records have been breached from unencrypted drives that were lost, stolen or hacked since 2005.
Samsung Unveils Portable SSD T1- Storage Visions 2015 UpdateWhile about the exhibit floor here at Storage Visions 2015, we couldn’t help but notice a small gathering around Chris Geiser, senior memory and storage product manager at Samsung.
Marvell’s New 88NV1120 Pictures Display Ultra Small Controller – Storage Visions 2015 UpdateThis afternoon at Storage Visions, we had the fortune of bumping into our close friend Mike Chen, Marvell SSD and Strategic Marketing Director, who had a bit of a surprise in store. Some might remember Marvell’s announcement of their new 88NV1120 and 88NV1140 controllers back in December, but we don’t think anyone could have imagined a controller this small.
SanDisk Intros Very Low Priced SSDPlus SSD – Storage Visions 2015 UpdateToday at Storage Visions 2015, we met with Siobhan Lyons, Sr. SanDisk PR Manager, and Brian Cos, Sr. Director of SanDisk Enterprise Storage Solutions, both of who had some great SSD news!. Today SanDisk announces a new affordable SSD line option to customers, the SanDisk SSD Plus.- SATA-IO Demo 4TB WD Hybrid Drives – Storage Visions 2015 UpdateMaking our rounds at Storage Visions 2015, the SATA-IO booth really caught our eye. SATA-IO is and independent organization which provides guidance and support for implementing the SATA specification. At the booth they are demonstrating SATA Express (SATAe) with some 4TB WD hybrid prototype drives as well as an M.2 SSD connected to an M.2 to SATAe adapter.
Storage Visions 2015 – The Future of FlashAfter yesterday’s long cross country flight and well needed rest, we’re all here at Riviera Convention Center to check out Storage Visions 2015! Today and tomorrow there are sessions on all things storage.
SSD of the Week – ADATA SP610In last week’s SSD of the Week we highlighted AMD’s first entry into the SSD market, their Radeon R7. It is a gamer oriented drive that has been developed with OCZ to deliver some great performance. This week we are starting off 2015 by recommending a great performing drive at very good price points, the ADATA SP610.
SSD of the Week – AMD Radeon R7We hope you have been enjoying the holidays and to all we wish you a happy new year! To end the week, our SSD of the Week will be highlighting a newcomer’s introduction to the SSD market, AMD’s Radeon R7. This gamer oriented SSD continues to expand AMD’s Radeon product diversity.- Samsung 850 EVO SSD Review (1TB) – Differing Series Controllers ComparedThe Samsung 850 EVO is a third generation TLC NAND SSD, second 3D V-NAND product on the market, and the first SSD in the industry to feature 3-bit 3D V-NAND. At first people were weary of TLC NAND, due to the issues it presents. TLC NAND has much lower endurance and slower performance when compared to MLC and SLC.
Samsung Magician 4.5 RAPID Mode – Evaluated With Demonstrated Speed IncreaseOver the years, consumers have demanded and pushed manufacturers to develop SSD toolboxes to use when they install an SSD in their system. Offering a SSD toolbox has become almost a necessity in today’s SSD market.
SSD of the Week – OCZ Arc 100Our SSD of the Week series became a little side tracked over the past few weeks. With Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals going on, almost any SSD was a good buy. Now however, prices are back where they should be and the holidays are just around the corner.
Mushkin Reactor SSD Review (1TB) – High Value High Capacity SSDs Become the NormIt has been quite a while since Mushkin has released a new SSD product. Our last Mushkin product review was in 2013 where we ripped apart their Scorpion Deluxe PCIe SSD which utilizes multiple SandForce controller based SSDs on a single PCIe card.- Samsung 850 EVO SSD Review (120/500GB) – Showing Off 3D TLC V-NANDAt the end of June, Samsung released the 850 Pro which was the successor to the 840 Pro. With it came their brand new 32-layer MLC 3D V-NAND flash, and this flash allows for greater durability, lower power consumption, improved performance and a 10 year warranty.
Thermaltake Core V51 Mid-Tower PC Case ReviewEstablished in 1999, Thermaltake has been in the computer case industry for years. Being a part time computer tech, I built plenty of rigs with their products. They typically offer plenty of value combining a high level of user convenience with their designs at low prices. Their new Core series of cases are no exception.- Top Cyber Monday SSD Deals 2014Don’t miss out on a chance to upgrade your PC on the cheap. If this Thanksgiving and Black Friday wasn’t enough, there is still time to get some great deals on new SSDs this Cyber Monday. SSDs speed up everything from system boot time, to application loading. We’ve seen dramatic differences in old systems with just a simple SSD upgrade.
- Top SSD Thanksgiving Sales 2014It’s that time of the year again, when online retailers are dropping prices on products left and right. Over the past few days there have been some okay deals when it comes to SSDs in anticipation of Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
SSD of the Week – The Plextor M6eWhen building a gaming PC, the first thing you think of is speed.
SanDisk’s Fusion ioMemory Accelerates High Energy Physics ResearchTo speed up the potential discovery of new particles and forces that will help explain the building blocks of the universe, physicists need supercomputers with the fastest storage solutions. Today, SanDisk announced that the University of Michigan and University of Victoria (CA) are utilizing SanDisk’s Fusion ioMemory solutions.- SSD of the Week – SanDisk Ultra IIIn the most recent SSD of the Week we went over the top performing Samsung XP941 as our highlight. It offers speeds that are twice that of the SATA 6Gb/s limit in a M.2 form factor. Now, we are going to focus back on the mainstream market. This week we are looking at the SanDisk Ultra II.
Intel Expands DC S3500 Series SSD Family – Higher Capacity and M.2 OptionsIntel’s DC S3500 Series SSDs for data centers and cloud computing are designed for fast consistent read performance with strong data protection in mind. Intel puts their drives under 5000 unique tests to ensure quality and a low .44% failure rate.
SSD of the Week – Samsung XP941 M.2 PCIe 2.0 X4Last week we went over the top SATA based SSD on the market, the Samsung 850 Pro. Today, we are going to take a look at the top M.2 drive on the market…which also happens to be by Samsung, the XP941! Most manufacturers have been releasing SATA based M.2 drives recently. These drives have a 6Gb/s interface limit.
Transcend MTS800 M.2 2280 SATA SSD Review (128GB)We have been seeing more M.2 SSDs lately, a lot of which are companies’ first steps into the market since the form factor is so new. They have been designed to meet strict size requirements and allow for greater flexibility in product development. They are the perfect fit for mobile devices with their compact size and light weight.
SSD of the Week – Samsung 850 ProSamsung has had a strong track record with SSDs. Their drives offer high reliability as well as high performance for those with a need for speed. They are one of the few manufacturers that designs and manufacturers every major SSD component in their drives. That alone should tell you about their expertise and strength in the industry.
KINGMAX M.2 2242 SATA SSD Review (128GB)KINGMAX started off back in 1989 and has been committed to becoming a leader in global memory technology since. They manufacture an array of memory products from DRAM to USB drives to SSDs. They have been offering 2.5″ SSDs since 2008 and the release of their M.2 2242 and M.2 2280 SATA SSDs marks their first step into the M.2 world.
SSD of the Week – Crucial M550 M.2 SATA SSDCrucial has been a leader in delivering value to their customers, whether it be in their SSDs or their great customer support. A few weeks ago we dubbed their new MX100 one of the best budget 2.5″ SSDs out. It follows in the footsteps of their M550.
IronKey Workspace W700 Secure Flash Drive ReviewThe International Data Corporation reported that there are over 1 billion workers in the mobile workforce today. With the increased use of mobile devices such as tablets, smartphones, and laptops, the fact is that the mobile workforce continues to grow.
SSD of the Week – RevoDrive 350Focused on the SanDisk Extreme Pro, last week’s SSD of the Week was aimed towards high end SATA performance at a cost that wouldn’t break the bank. This week, we will be following a similar trend, however this time, we are focusing on the PCIe interface. When working with large media files, speed is king.
Micron M600 mSATA SSD Review (256GB)M.2 SSDs were developed to replace the mSATA form factor, however these devices are still in their infancy and the demand for mSATA SSD still exists. mSATA SSDs are mainly deployed in mobile devices such as tablets, laptops, and Ultrabooks because they allow for lighter and thinner designs.
Micron M600 M.2 SATA SSD Review (256GB)M.2 SSDs are starting to gain traction. The Samsung XP941 is starting to become more available and Plextor won Best of Show with their M6e at FMS this year. Both LiteOn and Hynix displayed some 1TB M.2 SSDs and LSI showed off some M.2 reference designs with their latest SF37000 controller.
SSD of the Week – SanDisk Extreme ProLast week we stepped it down a bit for the SSD of the Week with the value oriented Crucial MX100. This week, we decided to step it back up and focus on the enthusiast class 2.5″ drives. This week’s SSD highlight is the SanDisk Extreme Pro.
SanDisk Announces X300 SSD and STAR Services for Corporate EnvironmentsThis morning, SanDisk announces the X300 SSD and its SanDisk Tech Assisted Refresh services. The 24/7 mobile workforce continues to grow in the corporate world. HDDs are becoming too slow and unreliable. Corporations demand storage solutions with higher performance and reliability. SanDisk’s the release of the new X300 SSD and STAR program are the perfect solutions for these issues.
Micron M600 SSD Review (256GB/1TB)As a reader on our site, you should be very familiar with Crucial and their highly regarded consumer SSDs. Most recently recently, they announced their newest drive the MX100.
SSD of the Week – Crucial MX100Last week we kicked it up a notch for the SSD of the Week with the enterprise Intel NVMe PCIe DC P3700. However, this week we are on the opposite spectrum with the budget SSDs. The highlight of this week is the Crucial MX100.
Kingston SM2280S3 M.2 SATA SSD Review (240GB)The introduction of the SM2280S3 M.2 SSD last June marked Kingston Technology’s first entry to the M.2 SSD arena. For those new to M.2 SSDs, M.2 marks the standardization of smaller form factor SSDs to sizes smaller than what we have seen in mSATA.
RAIDON Runner GR2660 SSD/HDD RAID Enclosure ReviewExternal enclosures offer users many options and benefits from storage expansion to redundancy and speed. RAIDON Technology Inc. has been in the storage industry since 2000. They focus on high quality and unique product designs to provide professionals with reliable data storage solutions.
The SSD Review SSD of the Week – Intel NVMe P3700 SSDLast week we started off the SSD of the Week series with the value oriented the Samsung 840 EVO. This week we are focusing on pure performance. Where else could we look besides the first NVMe PCIe 3.0 SSD on the market? Intel is a big name in the SSD world and are known for their performance and reliability.
Micron Announces M600 Client SSD Family To Include Notebook, M.2 and mSATA Form FactorsMicron Technology, Inc., a global leader in storage technology, is announcing their next generation SSD, the M600. The M600 is a client-class SSD that sets the bar for high performance, high power efficiency, and robust endurance.
SanDisk Ultra II SSD Review (240GB) – TLC Memory Goes MainstreamSanDisk is a world leading producer in NAND flash and NAND flash products. From consumer SD cards and USB drives to OEM flash storage, SanDisk is everywhere in this market. Just a few months ago, they released their highest end, enthusiast class SSD, the Extreme Pro.
Angelbird SSD2go Pocket External SSD Review (512GB)We are always on the go and the safe transport of our data is of high importance, especially for media professionals such as myself. Whether it is travel from home to office or offsite to remote regions for a new project, I need to make sure my data is safe and backed up as it is created.
The SSD Review SSD of the WeekLast week we looked throughout the flash memory market to find what we thought were the Top SSD Picks for Fall 2014. In response to the unexpected response to that article, we have decided to post a new weekly article that identifies the best SSDs, and SSD prices, found each week.
Top SSD Picks for Fall 2014Summer has come and gone, and over the past few months, there have been quite a few SSDs released into the market, and the question of, “Which SSD should I buy?” seems to still come up a lot around forums. Usually, there are some predetermined recommended favorite in each.
Func KB-460 Keyboard ReviewA few years ago, an era of change came to Func, and with it came a desire to redefine the gaming experience once again. In order to do this, they had to look beyond just cosmetics, and find a way to bring performance and functionality to its peak in one place. That’s where the KB-460 mechanical keyboard comes from.- OCZ ARC 100 SSD Review (240GB) – Consistency in a Value SSDIt has been quite a while since we have seen a value oriented SSD from OCZ. Their last two releases where the Vector 150 and the Vertex 460, the latest updates to their enthusiast and mainstream drive lines.
Plextor PlexTurbo Demo and M6 Pro Release Imminent- FMS 2014 UpdateWell, things have been very busy here at FMS over the past few days and now it is finally drawing to a close. Before we left, we stopped by the Plextor booth to see what was going on with them and their product line. There we saw a demonstration of their new PlexTurbo.
LiteOn Shows Off 2TB 2.5″ SATA and 1TB M.2 Enterprise SSDs – FMS 2014 UpdateFrom the many things we have seen at FMS this year, we were surprised to see two things from LiteOn. One being their 1TB P1P M.2 form factor enterprise drive and the other being their 2TB 7mm 2.5″ N9S drive.
LSI SandForce SF3700 Displays 1.3GB/s in Mixed Workloads – FMS 2014 UpdateAs much as the LSI SF3700 speaks to 1.8GB/s performance as a spec high data transfer, this year at FMS they are focusing more on real-world performance and endurance. Currently, we are seeing the SF3700 controller reaching 1300MB/s in mixed 80%/20% read/write workloads in this demonstration.
Toshiba Shows Off OCZ Acquisition and Also Displays 15nm NAND & New SSDs – FMS 2014 UpdateThose familiar to FMS might have noticed a bit of a change this year; the conference was missing that all too familiar OCZ flair around the entrance that so many had become accustomed to.
Hynix Presents 1TB M.2 SSDs and 3D NAND – FMS 2014 UpdateWalking around the booth floor of FMS, we found Hynix displaying some new products. What happened to catch our eye was a 1 TB M.2 SSD on display. Advertised performance for the PCIe Gen 2 M.2 drives comes in at 1.4GB/s reads and up to 930MB/s writes and 120k/100k read/write IOPS for the 1TB model.
Phison Intros Strong SATA 3 SSD controller – FMS 2014 UpdateAfter a quick briefing with Phison’s Michael Wu, we learned of their new SATA 3 based controller. Designed from the ground up by Phison, the PS3110 is a 32-bit quad-core 8 channel controller that supports SLC, MLC, and TLC NAND flash. It offers capacity support for up to 2TB. It also offers external DDR3L memory support from 256MB-2GB.
Samsung EVO SDHC UHS-1 U1 Card Review (32GB)Segmented into three series are Samsung’s newest line of SD cards; their naming scheme following their SSD offerings with the Pro and EVO designations. We recently reviewed the 64GB microSDXC version of their highest end Pro and were very impressed with its market leading performance. Following their Pro series, Samsung released the EVO series and Standard series cards.
Canon EF 24-105 f/4L IS USM Telephoto Lens ReviewTypically when you go to buy a DSLR and you don’t have any lenses already, you would opt to buy one with what is called a kit lens. It is called a kit lens because with DSLRs, there are two main parts to the camera. The body and the lens.
Samsung Pro microSDXC UHS-1 U1 Card Review (64GB)A few months ago Samsung launched their new series of SD and microSD cards. They are segmented into three categories. The lowest being their Standard series for the typical every day, non-performance oriented consumer. Next up is their EVO series, marketed towards those who want a little more performance out of their storage with transfer speeds up to 48MB/s.
Kingston Mobilelite Wireless G2 ReviewAlmost everyone have mobile phones and tablets these days. They help to run our chaotic lives and store photos, videos, and documents now just as our PCs do. However, with more powerful devices and larger media and document files comes the need for more battery power and capacity.- Samsung 850 Pro SSD Review (128GB) – 3D V-NAND Creates a New Playing FieldIntroducing the world’s first consumer SSD with Samsung’s second generation of 3D NAND called V-NAND, the new and improved Samsung 850 Pro! Yes, that is right, 3D NAND. Oh, and do I even need to mention that it is fast? Finally, we are making break throughs in engineering and moving on to better NAND design.
Patriot Supersonic Phoenix Flash Drive Review (256GB)While HDDs are great for storing personal documents and offer us high capacity at a decent price, they do have their cons. When constantly on the run, consumers want fast and reliable external storage in a very portable form factor. Portable external HDDs are usually able to meet those needs, but not always.
ADATA Premier Pro SDXC UHS-1 U3 Card Review (128GB)Higher quality media requires greater data rates to capture it. This means that storage requirements call for greater speed and capacity. The newest DSLRs are able to take high speed continuous bursts at 20 megapixels+ per image, resulting in 20-50MB per RAW image taken.- Crucial MX100 SSD Review (256/512 GB) – Crucial Strikes a Victory For ValueCrucial has been making reliable cost effective mainstream SSDs for years now. Each new product release striving for better performance, reliability, and value. The recent release of the M550 built upon their M500, offering even better performance, but at a higher price point per GB. Because of this, Crucial needed to release a more modern lower budget drive.
ADATA XPG SDXC UHS-1 U3 Card Review (64GB)With all the new Ultra HD (4K2K) video cameras coming out to the market such as the Canon 1-D C and Panasonic Lumix GH4, media professionals need faster writing and larger capacity memory cards.
Kingston Class 10 UHS-1 Ultimate SDXC Card (64GB) ReviewFor today’s review we have the Kingston Class 10 UHS-1 Ultimate SDXC 64GB card. Kingston has been making reliable, high performance memory for many years. This SDXC card is no exception. It supports UHS-I technology and supports Class 10 performance when used in a non-UHS-I capable device. What is UHS-I? UHS stands for Ultra High Speed.
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM Lens ReviewINTRODUCTION The 70-200mm focal length has been one of the most versatile and popular zoom ranges available. First introduced in March of 1995 the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM has been one of the go to lenses for sports, portraiture, and journalism across the world.
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Telephoto Lens ReviewFirst introduced back in July of 1992, the Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM medium telephoto lens has been the go to lens of portrait photographers for decades. It benefits from the solid build quality coupled with the low price and overall great image quality. Furthermore, it is lightweight, has pleasant bokeh, and has an extremely fast and accurate focusing system.- There Is No Difference Between SATA CablesDo you need a SATA 6Gb/s cable for a SATA 6Gb/s drive? No, and the SATA-IO spec says why. Written with CmosCmos.
- Storage Essentials ThreadThe index thread that gathered the forum’s storage guides, tools and benchmark threads in one place.
- Sean’s SSD Buyers Guide & Information ThreadWhich SSD to buy and why, with the basics of how SSDs work for first-time buyers.
Sean’s Windows 7 Install & Optimization Guide for SSDs & HDDsA step-by-step clean install of Windows 7 on an SSD, and which tweaks are worth making.
Sean’s Windows 8 Install & Optimization Guide for SSDs & HDDsThe Windows 7 guide carried forward to Windows 8.
Sean’s SSD & HDD Troubleshooting GuideFixes for drives that vanish, slow down or refuse to boot.
How to: Secure Erase your Solid State Drive (SSD) with Parted MagicWhen a secure erase helps, when it does not, and how to run one.
Plextor M3 Series 128GB SSD Unboxing and ReviewAn early hands-on review of Plextor’s M3, posted for the forum before the big sites had it.- Storage Drivers, Utilities, and Firmware ThreadWhere to get every storage driver, vendor utility and firmware update.
- SSD Interface Comparison: PCI Express vs SATAWhy SATA 6Gb/s had become the bottleneck for SSDs and what PCIe meant for buyers, with two reviews of the Plextor M6e.
Sean’s Data Backup Guide- How to: Verify TRIM Is Working in Windows
How to: Disk and Partition Cloning, Backup, Restoration, & Migration
How to: Set up and Utilize RAM Disks
How to: Properly Re-align Your SSD/HDD Partitions- How to: Change SATA Modes After Windows Installation
How to: Initialize and Format a New Disk for Use in Windows
How to: Set up Intel Smart Response Technology (SSD Caching)
How to: Validate New Drives Before Deployment
How to: Set up RAID
Optimize SSD Benchmark Performance
Review: Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery – Technician
From my author pages at Tom’s Hardware and The SSD Review, as of November 4, 2026. TechnologyX is offline, so its cards open the Internet Archive copies.
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