Samsung 990 PRO NVMe SSD 2TB

Overview

Samsung's 990 PRO 2TB is a PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD in the M.2 2280 form factor, rated up to 7,450 MB/s read and 6,900 MB/s write, aimed at gaming and workstation builds already on a PCIe 4.0 board.

The headline numbers are sequential speed, but Samsung's own comparison points to the 980 PRO highlight a more than 55 percent gain in random performance and up to 50 percent better performance per watt, which are the figures that actually shape day-to-day responsiveness rather than large file transfers. The line spans 1TB to 4TB, so this 2TB unit sits in the middle of the range.

• PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe, M.2 2280 form factor
• Up to 7,450/6,900 MB/s read/write
• 55%+ random performance gain over 980 PRO
• Up to 50% better power efficiency per watt

Who it's for

Suits builders with a PCIe 4.0 slot who want headroom for large game installs, video editing scratch space or heavy multitasking. Anyone on an older PCIe 3.0 board will not see the rated speeds and should weigh a cheaper drive instead.

Pros and cons

Performance notes

Sequential read and write figures reflect burst performance on a PCIe 4.0 x4 link, but the improved random performance over the 980 PRO is what tends to show up in everyday use such as OS responsiveness and loading many small files at once. The listing does not detail sustained write behavior once any onboard cache is exhausted, so long, continuous transfers may fall short of the peak figures.

Specifications

Closest rivals on specs

WD_BLACK SN850X NVMe SSD with Heatsink 2TB

• Item Weight 0.02 vs 0.05 pounds (-60%)
• Hard Disk Form Factor 2.3 vs 0.9 inches (+156%)

SanDisk Optimus 5100 NVMe SSD 1TB

• Cache Memory Installed Size 2 vs 1 TB (+100%)
• Digital Storage Capacity 2 vs 1 TB (+100%)
• HardDrive Size 2 vs 1 TB (+100%)

WD_Black SN7100 NVMe SSD 1TB

• Digital Storage Capacity 2 vs 1 TB (+100%)
• HardDrive Size 2 vs 1 TB (+100%)
• Item Weight 0.02 vs 0.01 pounds (+100%)