Samsung SSD 980 PRO NVMe (1TB) : High-End Performance with PCIe 4.0

Description

The Samsung SSD 980 PRO is an internal solid-state drive in a compact M.2 2280 form factor. It was designed to harness the full speed of the PCIe 4.0 interface. With sequential read speeds of up to 7,000 MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 5,000 MB/s, it represents a significant performance leap over older PCIe 3.0 SSDs and traditional SATA drives. These high speeds are ideal for applications that process large amounts of data, such as gaming, video editing, and 3D modeling.

The 980 PRO features Samsung’s own Elpis controller and uses Samsung’s advanced V-NAND technology with 3-bit MLC memory cells. To maximize performance, it utilizes the intelligent Intelligent TurboWrite technology, which provides a dynamic write buffer. This cache enables extremely high write speeds for short-term workloads before the speed drops to a stable, continuous level. With an SLC cache of about 114 GB, the 1 TB version offers impressive performance even under intensive workloads.

An important feature of the 980 PRO is its effective temperature management. To ensure consistent and reliable performance, the SSD has a nickel coating on the controller and a special heat spreader label on the NAND component. These measures, combined with Samsung’s Dynamic Thermal Guard technology, help to keep the operating temperature at an optimal level and minimize throttling (performance reduction) under heavy use.

The 980 PRO is fully backward compatible with PCIe 3.0 and still delivers very good performance in this configuration. The easy management and the ability to update the firmware are facilitated by the included Samsung Magician software. The SSD is also a popular choice for PlayStation 5 storage expansion, although the version with a pre-installed heatsink is recommended for the console.

Technical Specifications

General

• Capacity: 1 TB (1,000 GB)
• Form Factor: M.2 (2280)
• Interface: PCIe 4.0 x4, NVMe 1.3c (backward compatible with PCIe 3.0)
• Controller: Samsung Elpis
• Memory Type: Samsung V-NAND (3-bit MLC)
• DRAM Cache: 1 GB LPDDR4
• TBW (Total Bytes Written): 600 TB
• Warranty: 5-year limited manufacturer’s warranty

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Performance

• Sequential Read Speed: Up to 7,000 MB/s
• Sequential Write Speed: Up to 5,000 MB/s
• Random Read Speed (4KB, QD32): Up to 1,000,000 IOPS
• Random Write Speed (4KB, QD32): Up to 1,000,000 IOPS

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Features and Other

• Encryption: AES 256-bit encryption, TCG Opal 2.0, IEEE1667
• Heat Dissipation: Nickel coating on controller, Dynamic Thermal Guard
• Software: Samsung Magician Software