Review Samsung SSD 990 PRO PCIe4

Just like in the field of smartphones, Samsung is indispensable when you are talking about SSDs. Samsung also offers a device for practically every user here. Read in this review for whom the new Samsung SSD 990 PRO is intended, which improvements there are and how it performs.

Samsung SSD 990 PRO
The Samsung SSD 990 PRO is the successor to SSD 980 PRO and offers maximum speeds in sequential read and write and a significant speed gain in random read and write. These optimal speeds come into their own when loading the operating system, processing large files such as data analysis, 3D rendering, 4K video editing and in games that mostly work randomly oriented with the SSD.

PCIe4
The 990 PRO is a powerful PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD. PCIe stands for Peripheral Component Interconnect Express or an expansion bus for transferring data from an SSD to graphics cards. There were rumors that the new Samsung 990 Pro SSDs would have the PCIe 5.0 interface that can transfer data at an average speed of 32 gigatransfers per second (32 GT/s), as you can read here. But this PCIe4 SSD is also very fast and gives maximum results in recent systems that use the latest generations of processors and in combination with motherboards that support PCIe4. The SSD will also work with systems with PCIe3, but the performance will be half the results of a system with a PCIe4 bus. It uses 4 PCI lanes where the maximum theoretical sequential read speed is 8000 MB/s. The embodiment of the SSD is M.2, which is a narrow strip, indicated as 2280, 22 mm wide and 80 mm long.

Improvements
The improvements of the 990 PRO are achieved by using a new 7th generation V-NAND technology in combination with an optimized Pascal controller and firmware. In addition, attention has been paid to minimizing power consumption, up to 50% more efficiency compared to the 980 PRO, and optimizing the heatsink cooling and the dynamic Thermal Guard technology. Accessing the drive via the DirectStorage API, which is supported by a number of games, has also been further improved. Turbowrite is present and is a cache mechanism to further optimize transfer speeds. The available storage capacities of the 990 PRO are 1 and 2 TB, so that enough storage space can be selected for every type of use. A 4TB version will follow later and a separate version for gamers with a heatsink with RGB lighting. The MTBF of the units is 1.5 million hours and the TBW is resp. 600 and 1200 TB.

Speeds
The 990 PRO delivers sequential read and write speeds of up to 7450 and 6900 MB/s respectively. These are speeds that are close to the maximum theoretically achievable. The random read and write speeds come to 1400K and 1550K IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second) respectively with the 2TB version. This is an improvement of up to 55% compared to the 980 PRO, making the 990 PRO the preferred choice when using heavy games and other (data) intensive tasks. With the Samsung Magician management software, you can see the status of the SSD, including temperature, and run a benchmark to measure sequential performance. You can also run a Diagnostic Scan with various options. In addition, there are various optimization and data management options, such as activating the AES 256-bit encryption and possible software updates. The Samsung Magician software only works after detecting a Samsung SSD.
Samsung Migration software allows you to copy the contents of a hard drive or SSD to a Samsung SSD. If a USB3 port is used to copy the disc, you will need a USB adapter that has an NVMEeM.2 interface. This PRO version comes with a 5 year limited warranty.

Samsung 990 PRO PCIe4 SSD 2TB
Recommended retail price: €359.99 (1TB: €189.99)

Pros:
+ ultimate speeds
+ more efficient power consumption

Downside:
– more expensive than the 980 PRO

​Samsung NVMe SSD 990 PRO Series Specifications