Simon Crisp 1 day ago Featured Tech Reviews, Professional, Reviews, SSD Drives
Kingston’s DC450R is part of the company’s extensive Enterprise SSD range and has been designed for handling read-centric workloads in data centres. We review the 3.84TB model, priced around the £440 mark for UK buyers.
The DC450R is available in five capacities at the time of writing: 480GB, 960GB, 1.92TB, 3.84TB (the drive we are looking at here) and the massive 7.68TB flagship drive. At the heart of the drive is a Phison PS3112-S12DC controller which looks after 3D TLC NAND.
Sequential read performance is quoted as up to 560MB/s across the range. Sequential write performance varies with capacity. The entry-level 480GB is up to 510MB/s, the 960GB and 1.92TB models are up to 530MB/s, the 3.84TB drive up to 525MB/s with the 7.68TB model the slowest in the line-up at up to 504MB/s.
When it comes to 4K random read performance all the range bar one are rated as up to 99,000 IOPS, the exception being the 960GB model which is rated at up to 98,000 IOPS. Random writes are a bit of a mix. The 1.92TB drive has the fastest random write rating at up to 28,000 IOPS, while the slowest is the 480GB model at 17,000 IOPS. The 960GB and 3.84TB drives are both rated as up to 26,000 IOPS with the 7.68TB flagship rated at up to 19,000 IOPS.
Power consumption for the 3.84TB is stated as 1.48W for Max/Avr reads, 3.93W for average writes and 5.5W for maximum writes with an idle figure of 1.3W.
Endurance for the 3.84TB drive is quoted as 2,823TB which works out at 0.4 DWPD over the length of the 5-year warranty Kingston back the drive with.
Physical Specifications:
Usable Capacities: 3.84TB.
NAND Components: 3D TLC NAND.
NAND Controller: Phison PS3112-S12DC.
Cache: DDR4-2666.
Interface: Serial ATA (SATA) 6Gb/s (SATA III).
Form Factor: 2.5in, 7mm.
Dimensions: 69.9 x 100 x7mm.
Drive Weight: 92.3g
Firmware Version: SCEKH3.3.
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Colorful’s new SL500 Mini SSD might be one of the most interesting SATA drives that we’ve seen in a long time. The minuscule SSD only is 26% the size of your conventional 2.5-inch drive. The SL500 Mini SSD weighs approximately 2 grams, and according to Colorful, draws less power than a 2.5-inch drive.
Adhering to the SDP (SATA Disk in Package) format, the SL500 Mini SSD measures just 26 x 68 x 7mm, which may be the same size or even smaller than some modern thumbdrives. The SSD comes with the same SATA power and data connectors as standard 2.5-inch SSDs and hard drives. Colorful crammed the SSD controller and 3D NAND chips onto a single module. However, Colorful didn’t specify what kind of NAND is used. For reference, the normal SL500 drives leverage TLC (triple-level cell) NAND, so the mini-me version could use the same.
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Colorful SL500 Mini SSD (Image credit: Colorful)
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Colorful SL500 Mini SSD (Image credit: Colorful)
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Colorful SL500 Mini SSD (Image credit: Colorful)
Colorful built the SL500 Mini SSD with industrial applications in mind. Therefore, the little guy can withstand high temperatures, extreme humidity and vibrations. In terms of capacity, the SL500 Mini SSD is only available with 256GB and 500GB of storage. Performance is right in line with what you expect from a SATA III SSD.
Regardless of capacity, the SL500 Mini SSD offers sequential write speeds up to 500 MBps across the board. Sequential read performance, on the other hand, varies from one model to the next. The 250GB variant delivers sequential read speeds up to 450 MBps, while the 500GB variant is good for 480 MBps.
The SL500 Mini SSD will arrive in the first quarter of this year. Colorful has put a $39.99 price tag on the 250GB model and a $59.99 price tag on the 500GB model.
Just when you thought PCIe 4.0 x4 SSD’s were fast with up to 8 GB/s of sequential read speed, PCIe 5.0 drives have emerged on the horizon that could come with up to 16 GB/s speeds.
Silicon Motion said this week that it would start sampling its enterprise-grade SSD controllers with a PCIe Gen 5.0 interface in the second half of next year, which means that they will debut commercially in 2022. This is one of the first times that an SSD controller maker has mentioned a chip with a PCIe 5.0 interface, and even though the controller will debut in the server space, models for consumers will inevitably follow.
No Rush for PCIe 5.0 SSDs?
The PCIe 5.0 interface will increase data transfer speeds to 32 GT/s per lane, which will increase the total bandwidth provided by a PCIe x16 slot to ~64 GB/s, whereas a PCIe x4 slot can transfer up to ~16 GB/s.
Increased transfer rates will be particularly beneficial for various bandwidth-hungry applications, like servers, high-end storage subsystems, and accelerators. Using the PCIe Gen 5 physical layer, various next-gen platforms will also support CXL and Gen-Z protocols designed specifically to connect CPUs with various accelerators and maintain memory and cache coherency at low latencies.
The first platforms to support a PCIe 5.0 interface are Intel’s 12th-Gen Alder Lake CPUs for client PCs, which are expected to debut in the second half of 2021, as well as the company’s 4th Generation Xeon Scalable ‘Sapphire Rapids’ for data centers and supercomputers that is projected to launch in early 2022. In addition to PCIe 5.0, Sapphire Rapids will also support the CXL 1.1 protocol.
So far, several companies have already announced the availability of PCIe 5.0 controllers and PHY IP, and some have demonstrated interoperability of their CXL-enabled PCIe 5.0 solutions with Intel’s Sapphire Rapids or verification equipment, whereas Microchip even announced its PCIe 5.0 retimers and switches.
However, as numerous developers of SSD controllers and platforms introduced their PCIe 4.0 platforms for servers in the second half of last year, including Kioxia, Microchip, Silicon Motion, SK Hynix, it doesn’t seem like they will roll out any new enterprise-grade solutions in the foreseeable future. Of course, some companies tend to introduce next-gen SSDs ahead of competitors, but it does not look like there will be too many PCIe 5.0-supporting enterprise drives available next year, so SMI will be on time with its PCIe Gen 5 controller.
The PCIe Gen 5 specification was finalized in mid-2019, around the same time when the first PCIe 4.0-supporting platforms, SSDs, and GPUs were launched. Back then, some thought that the PCIe 4.0 interface will have a short lifespan (because PCIe 5.0 was ‘already there’) and will not become truly popular particularly in the data center space, as back then, the only server platform to feature PCIe 4.0 lanes was AMD’s EPYC 7002-series ‘Rome’ that was not truly popular at the time. As it turns out, while PCIe 5.0 will debut later this year, it does not look that it will immediately replace PCIe 4.0.
SMI Mentions First PCIe 5.0 SSD Controller
“With our new PCIe Gen5 enterprise SSD controllers sampling in the second half of next year, we are not expecting our enterprise SSD controller to be a material contributor to our $1 billion sales objective,” said Wallace Kuo, chief executive of Silicon Motion, during a conference call with analysts and investors (via The Motley Fool). “We are planning on material enterprise SSD controller sales contribution only after 2023.”
Silicon Motion is a newbie on the market of enterprise SSD controllers. The company first entered China’s enterprise SSD market in 2015 after acquiring Shannon Systems, a supplier of enterprise-grade PCIe SSD and storage arrays to Chinese hyperscalers. So far, SMI’s enterprise SSD business has not really taken off and represents a fraction of its revenue. Still, the company clearly wants to be a part of the datacenter megatrend, so it will continue to invest in enterprise storage solutions.
“We are excited about enterprise-grade PCIe Gen5 controller, which we will have taped out early next year and sample in the second half of 2022,” said Kou. “We believe this will bring us a big momentum in coming to enterprise.”
The chief executive of Silicon Motion naturally did not touch upon technical specifications of the company’s upcoming PCIe 5.0 enterprise SSD controller, but its latest SM8266 SoC supports NVMe 1.4, three dual-core Arm Cortex-R5 complexes, 16 NAND channels, and configurable LDPC ECC.
If you’re looking for one of the fastest PCIe 4.0 SSDs on the market, Sabrent’s Rocket 4 Plus has you covered. Though its warranty coverage is a bit of a pain, it still offers a lot of bang for your buck.
For
Fast sequential performance
Competitive pricing
Large and consistent dynamic cache
Attractive design
Up to 5-year warranty
Against
1-year warranty without registration
Not quite as responsive or efficient as Samsung / WD
No AES 256-bit encryption
Slow write speed after write cache fills
Features and Specifications
Sabrent has brought PCIe 4.0 storage to the masses and in more style than most of its competitors, flooding the market with affordable, performant storage. In contrast to our recent reviews of the company’s SSDs more value-focused offerings, today we take a look at Sabrent’s Rocket 4 Plus, a highly anticipated M.2 NVMe SSD that’s poised to take on the best. Sabrent’s Rocket 4 Plus is a viable alternative for those looking for Gen4 performance at a lower cost than WD’s Black SN850 or Samsung’s 980 Pro.
While Sabrent first announced the Rocket 4 Plus months ago in August, its release wasn’t fast enough to beat WD or Samsung to the market because Phison was a bit late to the party with the SSD controller that powers the Rocket 4 Plus. Last November, Phison sent us an engineering sample of the company’s newest creation, the Phison PS5018-E18 NVMe SSD controller. While the engineering sample’s performance left us with mixed thoughts, now it is in its retail form in the Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus. Like our engineering sample, Sabrent’s Rocket 4 Plus comes packed with Micron’s B27B 96L TLC NAND flash but differs in that it comes with revised firmware.
Specifications
Product
Rocket 4 Plus 1TB
Rocket 4 Plus 2TB
Pricing
$199.99
$399.99
Capacity (User / Raw)
1000GB / 1024GB
2000GB / 2048GB
Form Factor
M.2 2280
M.2 2280
Interface / Protocol
PCIe 4.0 x4 / NVMe 1.4
PCIe 4.0 x4 / NVMe 1.4
Controller
Phison PS5018-E18
Phison PS5018-E18
DRAM
DDR4
DDR4
Memory
Micron 96L TLC
Micron 96L TLC
Sequential Read
7,000 MBps
7,100 MBps
Sequential Write
5,300 MBps
6,600 MBps
Random Read
350,000 IOPS
650,000 IOPS
Random Write
700,000 IOPS
700,000 IOPS
Security
N/A
N/A
Endurance (TBW)
700 TB
1,400 TB
Part Number
SB-RKT4P-1TB
SB-RKT4P-2TB
Warranty
5-Years
5-Years
Sabrent’s Rocket 4 Plus is a PCIe 4.0 x4 M.2 NVMe SSD that currently comes in two capacities of 1TB and 2TB at street prices of $200 and $400, but a 4TB model has been spotted in the wild and will potentially be released alongside a 500GB model soon, too.
Sequential performance clocks in at up to 7.1/6.6 GBps read/write, and the SSD can deliver upwards of 650,000/700,000 random read/write IOPS. Like the Rocket NVMe 4.0, the Rocket 4 Plus comes with a large dynamic SLC cache that spans one-third of the device’s capacity.
The Rocket 4 Plus controller leverages Phison’s fourth-generation LDPC ECC engine, end-to-end data path protection, advanced wear-leveling, bad block management, SmartECC, and the SSD is overprovisioned by nine percent to aid in its ability to withstand years of abuse while maintaining high reliability and endurance.
Sabrent rates the Rocket 4 Plus to endure 700TB of writes per 1TB of capacity within its warranty period. Make sure you register your SSD with the company within 90 days for the full five-year warranty, though. If not, you will only receive a measly one-year warranty.
Software
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Sabrent provides Acronis True Image for Sabrent software to its customers for free and simple cloning. The company also provides a download for Sabrent Rocket Control Panel to monitor the device and update the firmware, if applicable. It also has the Sabrent Sector Size converter, enabling users to re-format between either 512-byte or 4K-byte sector sizes.
A Closer Look
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The Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus comes in an M.2 2280 form factor that is single-sided at 1TB and double-sided at 2TB and 4TB. With a slickly designed two-tone copper heat spreader overtop of a black PCB, the Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus is a looker for sure. Aesthetically, we think it is very appealing.
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Phison’s PS5018-E18 powers the drive. The E18 is a top-of-the-line PCIe 4.0 x4 eight-channel NVMe 1.4 SSD controller manufactured on TSMC’s 12nm process for efficiency. It leverages five CPU cores in its design for high-speed address translation and optimized NAND control.
Three 32-bit Arm Cortex R5 CPU cores manage primary tasks, clocking in at 1GHz (36% faster than the Phison’s PS5016-E16’s cores) while the controller firmware offloads its proprietary Dual CoXProcessor 2.0 code to two lower-clocked cores to ensure consistent quality of service and efficiency. For further power management, the Rocket 4 Plus supports APST, ASPM, and the L1.2 standby power state as well as thermal throttling, currently with a 70 degrees Celsius hard limit.
Additionally, Phison’s E18 leverages a DRAM-based architecture to deliver responsive performance. For the task, Sabrent outfit the Rocket 4 Plus with SK hynix DDR4 DRAM ICs that operate at 1,600 MHz, the 1TB model having a single 1TB chip while the 2TB model comes with a 1TB chip on each side of the PCB.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Sabrent opted to use Micron’s 512Gb 96L TLC NAND flash for the Rocket 4 Plus. This flash isn’t quite as fast as Micron’s new 176L flash, but it is still very responsive. While the company’s last-generation Rocket NVMe 4.0 leveraged the Phison PS5016-E16 and BiCS4 96L flash that operated at 800 MTps, Micron’s 96L B27B flash on the Rocket 4 Plus interfaces with the new PS5018-E18 at speeds of up to 1,200 MTps.
Other than increased interface speeds, Micron’s flash features double the plane count of BiCS4 flash that came on Sabrent’s Rocket NVMe 4.0. While quad-plane in design, optimal interleaving isn’t realized until the 2TB capacity. The 1TB model leverages sixteen 512Gb dies while 2TB uses 32 dies, attaining a higher level of parallelism for improved performance over the smaller capacity.
You can purchase a Raspberry Pi for as little as $5 (for the Raspberry Pi Zero) or more likely $35 (for the Raspberry Pi 4), but you’ll need a few extra products to make it run. And, beyond that, there’s a whole world of accessories that help you make the most of your Pi.
As with any computer, on the Raspberry Pi, you’ll need a way to enter data and a way to see the interface, which usually means getting a keyboard, a mouse and a monitor. .However, you can opt for a headless Raspberry Pi install, which allows you to remote control the Pi from your PC. In that case, the minimum requirements are:
microSD card of at least 8GB, but the best Raspberry Pi microSD cards have 32GB or more. When you first set up a Raspberry Pi, you need to “burn” the OS onto it by using a PC, another Raspberry Pi or even a phone with microSD card reader.
Power supply: For the Raspberry Pi 4, you need a USB-C power source that provides at least 3 amps / 5 volts, but for other Raspberry Pis, you need a micro USB connection that offers at least 2.5 amps and the same 5 volts.
In addition, there are a number of accessory and add-on types that protect your Pi, add new features and make everything a lot more useful and fun. These include:
Cases: The best Raspberry Pi cases give you style, functionality and durability.
HATs (aka add-on boards): The best Raspberry Pi HATs let you do everything from adding motors to creating LED light shows.
Breakout Boards: To breakout the GPIO for easier access or to use via a breadboard. Essential for the new Raspberry Pi 400.
Camera Modules: The Raspberry Pi has its own special camera port and there’s a whole ecosystem of compatible camera modules for it.
Cooling: Raspberry Pi 4 models in particular can get hot so fans and heatsinks help.
Electronic parts: You can make great projects and have a lot of fun with motors, sensors, transistors and other bits and bobs.
Overall, these are the best Raspberry Pi accessories. No matter what your needs or project, you’ll definitely need some of these.
The Best Raspberry Pi Accessories You Can Buy Today
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
1. Argon Neo Case
Best Raspberry Pi Case
Attractive aluminum design
Easy access to GPIO pins
Passive cooling
Sliding magnetic cover
Must remove cover to get to pins
The top overall choice on our round-up of the best Raspberry Pi Cases, the Argon Neo combines great looks with plenty of flexibility and competent passive cooling. This mostly-aluminum (bottom is plastic) case for the Raspberry Pi 4 features a magnetic cover that slides off to provide access to the GPIO pins with enough clearance to attach a HAT, along with the ability to connect cables to the camera and display ports. The microSD card slot, USB and micro HDMI out ports are easy to access at all times.
With the cover on or off, the Argon Neo provides solid passive cooling capability as an included thermal pad connects the Raspberry Pi 4’s CPU to an aluminum plate to dissipate heat. You can also attach an optional fan HAT for active cooling. At just $15, this case is extremely affordable but cuts no corners.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
2. Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera
Best Raspberry Pi Camera
Great image quality
Interchangeable Lenses
Tripod mountable
Expensive
Doesn’t come with lens
It doesn’t come cheap, but the official Raspberry Pi High Quality camera offers the best image quality of any Pi camera by far, along with the ability to mount it on a tripod. The 12-MP camera doesn’t come with a lens, but supports any C or CS lens, which means you can choose from an entire ecosystem of lenses, with prices ranging from $16 up to $50 or more and a variety of focal lengths and F-stop settings.
The Raspberry Pi High Quality camera plugs into the same CSI port on the Raspberry Pi as any other Pi camera module, but unlike the others, this one has a ¼ inch screw hole that allows you to attach it to any standard tripod or camera mount. If you care about image quality, the Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera is a must-have.
Read: Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera review
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
3. Raspberry Pi Camera Module V2
Best Affordable Raspberry Pi Camera
Good image quality
Affordable price
No tripod mounting
If you need a Raspberry Pi camera, but don’t want to spend more than $50 on the high quality module and then have to bring your own lens, the official Raspberry Pi Camera Module V2 is the one to get. This 8-MP camera uses a Sony IMX219 sensor that gives it really solid image quality, records video at up 1080p, 30 fps and is a big improvement over the 5-MP OmniVision OV5647 that was in the V1 camera.
There are a number of third-party Raspberry Pi camera modules on the market, with some costing around $10 or less. However, most of these use the older, OV5647 sensor which provides far worse image quality.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
4. Lenovo ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II
Best Keyboard for Raspberry Pi
Best-in-class typing experience
Trackpoint for navigation
Both 2.4 GHz and Bluetooth wireless
Long battery life
Expensive
Whether you want to control your Raspberry Pi from the couch or you have it on a table and don’t want to waste space, getting one of the best wireless keyboards is a good idea. It’s particularly helpful to have a wireless keyboard with a pointing device so you don’t need to also drag around a mouse.
Lenovo’s ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II is the best keyboard for Raspberry Pi thanks to its excellent key feel, multiple connectivity options and built-in TrackPoint pointing stick. The keyboard looks and types just like those on Lenovo’s ThinkPad line of business laptops, offering plenty of tactile feedback and a deep (for a non-mechanical), 1.8mm of key travel. The TrackPoint pointing stick sits between the G and H keys, allowing you to navigate around the Raspberry Pi’s desktop, without even lifting your hands off of the home row.
The Thinkpad TrackPoint II has both 2.4-GHz (via a dongle) and Bluetooth connectivity which you can toggle between using a hardware switch. So, if you have two Raspberry Pis or one Pi and one PC, you can switch back and forth with ease. Charging via USB-C, the keyboard promises up to two months of battery life on a charge.
Read: Lenovo ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II review
(Image credit: Amazon)
Raspberry Pi 4 Official Power Supply
Best Raspberry Pi Power Supply
Provides just the right amount of power
Built for Pi
No on/off switch
Not the cheapest option
If you’re going to use a Raspberry Pi 4, you need a USB-C power supply that offers at least 3 amps of juice with a roughly 5-volt output. We’ve found that the best USB-C laptop chargers are capable of delivering this kind of power (albeit often with 4.8 – 4.9 volts, which still works), but if you don’t have a powerful charger handy or need one just for your Pi, the official Raspberry Pi power supply is your best choice.
Rated for 5.1 volts and 3 amps, the official Raspberry Pi 4 power supply has good build quality and a nice design. Available in black or white, it’s a small rectangle, emblazoned with the Raspberry Pi logo and a strong, built-in Type-C cable that’s 59 inches (1.5m) long. Unlike some third-party competitors, it doesn’t come with an on / off switch, but it is compatible with cheap on / off adapters you can attach to the end. You may find competitors for a few dollars less, but the official Raspberry Pi 4 power supply is a sure thing.
If you are shopping for any other Raspberry Pi, including the Raspberry Pi Zero or Raspberry Pi 3 or below, you’ll need a power supply that outputs to a micro-USB port and only requires 2.5 amps and 5 volts. There’s also an official Raspberry Pi charger for these older models.
(Image credit: Amazon)
6. Pimoroni Explorer HAT Pro
Best Raspberry Pi HAT
Analog to digital conversion
Motor controller
LED lights
Built-in breadboard
No pass-thru for other HATs
The Raspberry Pi’s 40 GPIO pins are arguably its most important feature. Using these pins (see our GPIO pinout), you can attach an entire universe of electronics, including motors, sensors and lights. There’s a huge ecosystem of add-on boards, appropriately called HATs (hardware attached on top) that plug directly into the GPIO pins and matching the same layout as the Pi. These add on boards give you all kinds of added functionality, from LED light matrixes to touch screens and motor controllers for robotics projects.
Sitting at the very top of our list of Best Raspberry Pi HATs, each of which has a different purpose, the Pimoroni Explorer HAT Pro provides a smorgasbord of features that you can use in a wide variety of projects. While the Raspberry Pi doesn’t come with an analog to digital converter like Arduino does (see Raspberry Pi vs Arduino), the Explorer HAT Pro provides four ADCs you can use with joysticks or potentiometers. It also packs two motor controllers, four colorful LED lights, four touch pads and four crocodile clips for attaching other electronics. Oh and it comes with a small breadboard you can stick on top and use for mounting and wiring electronics. Every serious Raspberry Pi fan should have one of these on hand.
(Image credit: Amazon)
7. Pimoroni Fan Shim
Best Cooling for Raspberry Pi
Great cooling
HATs go on top of it
Expensive in the US
If you’re using a Raspberry Pi 4, you definitely need some kind of cooling, whether it’s a heat sink, an aluminum with passive cooling built in or, best of all, a fan. The Pimoroni Fan Shim is powerful, easy-to-install and unobtrusive. You just push it down onto the left most side of your GPIO pin header and it does a fantastic job of cooling your Pi. You can even use a Pimoroni Fan Shim on a Raspberry Pi 4 that’s been overclocked all the way to 2.1 GHz, without seeing any throttling.
You can just let the Fan Shim run all the time or you can download Pimoroni’s software, which allows you to set temperature thresholds for it.
Read: Pimoroni Heatsink and Fan Shim Tested
(Image credit: Silicon Power)
8. Silicon Power 32GB 3D NAND microSD Card
Best Raspberry Pi microSD Card
Inexpensive
Leading performance
White surface you can write on
Slow boot times
Unless you’ve specifically configured yours to boot from an SSD (see our article on How to Boot Raspberry Pi from USB), every Raspberry Pi uses a microSD card as its primary storage drive. We maintain a list of the Best microSD cards for Raspberry Pi and have chosen the 32GB Silicon Power 3D NAND card as the top choice.
Unless you’re hosting a media server or have a ridiculous amount of ROMS on a game emulator, a 32GB microSD card provides more than enough storage for Raspberry Pi OS and a ton of applications. The operating system and preloaded applications take up far less than 8GB by themselves.
In our tests, the Silicon Power 3D NAND microSD card had the fastest application open times and the best combination of random reads and writes. Considering that it’s also less expensive than most 32GB cards and that its white surface provides a little room for you to write on it (with marker), this is currently the best card around.
(Image credit: Amazon)
9. GPIO Reference Board
Helpful Accessory
Helpful reference
Cheap
You can look this up online
Each of the Raspberry Pi’s 40 GPIO pins has a different function so it’s hard to keep track of which does what. For example, some of the pins provide I2C communication while others offer power and others are just for grounding. You can look at a GPIO pinout guide such as ours, but sometimes it’s just easier to put the list of functions right on top of the pins.
GPIO reference boards are tiny, non-electronic headers that you place on top of the pins to show you which one has which name. There are many different brands and models for sale and all do pretty much the same thing so there’s no need to be picky about which one you buy. Most have small holes on top that you can use to hang them on a keychain and take them wherever you go.
(Image credit: Amazon)
10. micro HDMI to HDMI Adapters
Must-Have for Pi 4
Very helpful and work well
You still need an HDMI cable
While most of the earlier Raspberry Pi models have a single, full-size HDMI port, the Raspberry Pi 4 has dual micro HDMI ports that can each output to a monitor at up to 4K resolution. While there’s a good chance you already have one or more HDMI cables lying around the house, most of us don’t have micro HDMI cables, because it’s a rarely used connector.
To connect the Raspberry Pi 4 to a screen, you’ll either need a micro HDMI to HDMI cable or a micro HDMI to HDMI adapter you can connect an existing cable to. Cable Matters, a well-known and reputable brand, sells a pair of such adapters for just $10. That’s much cheaper than a single micro HDMI to HDMI cable, which goes for $8 to 10 for just one. I’ve been using these Cable Matters adapters for more than a year now and they’ve worked really well.
(Image credit: Amazon)
11. Electronics Kit with Breadboard, Wires
Great for learning
Helpful for prototyping
No soldering necessary
You can use your Raspberry Pi as a game emulator, a server or a desktop PC, but the real fun begins when you start connecting electronics to its GPIO pins. Of course, to even get started playing with GPIO connectors, you need some interesting things to connect to them such as lights, sensors and resistors.
The market is filled with electronics kits that come with a slew of LED lights, resistors, jumper cables, buttons and other bits and bobs you need to get started. Most importantly, all of these kits come with at least one breadboard, a white plastic surface filled with holes you can use to route and test circuits, no soldering required.
There are plenty of good kits from no-name brands on Amazon, but the Freenove LCD 1602 Starter kit caught our eye, because it comes with an ADC chip for analog-to-digital conversion, an LCD text screen and a GPIO extension board you can use to route all your pins over to the breadboard at once.
(Image credit: Amazon)
12. USB 3 microSD Card Reader
Need it to read and write
PC with USB port quired
In order to write Raspberry Pi OS (or a different OS) to a microSD card, you’ll need some kind of microSD card reader that you can attach to your PC. Just about any make or model will do as long as it reads SDHC and SDXC cards and, preferably, connects via USB 3.0. I’ve been using the Jahovans X USB 3.0 card reader, which currently goes for $5.99, for almost a year now and it has worked really well.
You can also attach a microSD card reader to your Pi and use it to create a disk image backup of your Raspberry Pi.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
13. Raspberry Pi Zero Official Case
Best Case for Raspberry Pi Zero
GPIO Access
Camera Access
Official Pi design
Can’t have both GPIO and Camera at once
We’re not huge fans of the Official Raspberry Pi 4 case, because it covers the GPIO pins and camera slots. However, the Official Raspberry Pi Zero case is a completely different as it comes with three different covers: one which has a camera hole (so you can make a Raspberry Pi body camera), another which exposes the GPIO pins and a third which covers the whole thing. The official Raspberry Pi Zero case also has the official burgundy and white colors of the Raspberry Pi Foundation.
Micron on Tuesday announced its new 1α fabrication process for DRAM. Initially, the company will use it to make DDR4 as well as LPDDR4 memory, but over time it will be used to produce all types of the company’s DRAM. The manufacturing technology promises tangible decreases in DRAM costs, but the company warns that it is getting exceedingly hard to scale DRAM.
New Technology for New DRAMs
By now, Micron has transited a substantial part of its DRAM production to its 1Z nm node that offers both high bit density (i.e., lower costs per bit) and high performance (i.e., enables higher margins). As a result, right now Micron says it feels rather comfortable in terms of profit margins and product mix. Micron’s 1α fabrication process is projected to offer a 40% improvement in bit density compared to 1Z (at mature yields), which will decrease the producer’s costs per bit accordingly.
(Image credit: Micron)
In addition, the technology is said to feature a 15% drop in power consumption as well as higher performance. One of the important aspects about Micron’s 1α is that, roughly, 10% out of its 40% bit density improvement over the predecessor is driven by DRAM design efficiency, which shows that lithography improvements alone are not enough to make DRAM cheaper to build. Micron’s 1α node continues to use 6F2 bit line design, just like its predecessors. Nonetheless, the company has implemented numerous innovations to shrink its DRAMs with the latest fabrication process.
“The strong improvement on 1-alpha bit density is driven by combination of process technology improvement, as well as very strong improvement in array efficiency due to design improvements,” said Thy Tran, Micron vice president of DRAM process integration. “Array efficiency alone gave us approximately 10% of the design improvement. In addition, we had strong process technology improvement. To accomplish this, an aggressive shrink of the bitline and wordline pitches was needed — shrinking the grid, so to speak. To do that, we were much more aggressive than before in implementing the new processes. We’re incorporating the latest and greatest everywhere: new materials – better conductors, better insulators, new machinery to deposit, modify or selectively remove – etch – those materials. Shrinking these pitches in turn resulted in more aggressive scaling of the cell capacitor, which required innovations to meet the structural and electrical requirements. Additionally, we also introduced advanced tools and novel techniques to improve the alignment of one patterned layer to another.”
Pathfinding for the new technology mostly took place in Micron’s headquarters in Boise, Idaho. But the process development and manufacturing ramp involved numerous global teams working closely between the U.S., Taiwan and Japan.
“Our new 1α node DRAM delivers tremendous improvements in use cases across data center, intelligent edge and consumer devices,” said Scott DeBoer, executive vice president of technology and products at Micron.
Initially, Micron will use its 1α node to make 8Gb and 16Gb DDR4 and LPDDR4 memory chips at its Taiwanese fabs in Taoyuan and Taichung, but eventually use of the technology will be expanded to other types of memory. Technologies like 1α will be particularly useful for next-generation DDR5 memory devices that will feature a more complex architecture compared to today’s DRAMs.
“Our 1α node will be gradually deployed across our product portfolio and will be our workhorse in fiscal 2022,” said Mr. Tran. “We will transition our fabs gradually to grow our production in line with the industry demand.”
Scalability Challenges
Memory technologies have evolved greatly in recent years, as the industry needed considerably higher performance. Modern and upcoming interfaces — such as DDR5 and GDDR6X — are considerably more complex than DDR4 and or GDDR6, which is why it is harder to scale modern DRAMs. But the emergence of technologies like DDR5 and GDDR6X is something inevitable, so going forward companies like Micron will need to invest more in the engineering of process technologies.
(Image credit: Micron)
“There is a constant demand for higher performance and we are able to deliver this through process and design innovations,” said Naga Chandrasekaran, Micron senior vice president of technology development. “DDR5 actually enables the performance requirements while we scale for cost. DDR5 can reduce power consumption and provide higher bandwidth. At the same time, such high-performance requirements place some challenges with respect to die size that cannot be compensated by dimensional scaling alone. So, delivering higher performance requirements while delivering cost reduction is extremely challenging and requires innovations from multiple vectors beyond process solutions.”
Since modern DRAM process technologies have to get thinner (as they cannot scale vertically, unlike 3D NAND), challenges for companies like Micron are not getting any simpler. as the company has to find the right balance between cost, performance, quality, and power.
“DRAM scaling continues to become even more challenging, especially when we have to battle extremely tight process margins, while optimizing for cost, power and performance, as well as quality,” said Mr. Chandrasekaran. “While we are trying to deliver improved performance, we are also constantly challenged to improve cost, which drives dimensional scaling. This scaling challenge has always been there and continues to become harder as the aspect ratio increases. To meet increasing demand for performance/power, we have to implement advanced process solutions, which can be expensive. As we scale to reduce cost, performance/power can be challenged due to device limitations, which in turn drive the need for advanced processes that can drive cost higher. So, balance between cost/performance-power requires solutions beyond just process scaling and solutions.”
One of the ways to solve geometry scaling challenges is to adopt extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography, but that is not something that Micron plans to do for several years to a large degree, because EUV does not solve all the tasks that DRAM makers face these days.
No EUV for Micron, for Now
Unlike its industry peers, Micron Technology does not plan to use EUV lithography to produce memory in the short-term future, but intends to rely on all kinds of multi-patterning. Micron’s next three DRAM nodes will continue to use deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography, but the company is now considering to use EUV for its 1𝛿 fabrication process. Meanwhile, even without EUV, Micron promises performance and power improvements for its next-gen memory devices, though the company admits that it is getting harder to shrink DRAMs.
(Image credit: Micron)
“We need constant innovation in materials, process, and equipment to meet scaling needs,” said Mr. Chandrasekaran. “We are implementing several such solutions in our current and future technologies. With respect to EUV, as we have highlighted, our proprietary and innovative multi-patterning technology is able to meet our performance and cost requirements. Through our process solutions and advanced control capability, we are able to meet the technology node requirements.”
Micron believes that in the coming years, improvements brought by EUV-enhanced manufacturing technologies will be offset by costs of equipment and difficulties with production as EUV is still in its early stages as far as DRAM production is concerned. For example, a slide recently demonstrated by Micron indicates that EUV costs are prohibitively high, scalability advantages are negligible, critical dimension (CD) uniformity is not perfect (which may affect quality and performance), whereas cycle times are not reduced significantly because the productivity of EUV scanners is still behind that of DUV scanners.
(Image credit: Micron)
“The current EUV tools are not at similar capability as the advanced immersion technology,” said Micron’s senior vice president of technology development. “While improvements are being made with EUV technology, their cost and performance still lag behind current multi-patterning and advanced immersion capability. We are constantly evaluating EUV and believe that over the next three years EUV will make the required progress to compete on cost and performance with advanced pitch multiplication and immersion technologies. Micron is evaluating EUV and will introduce it at the right time when it meets our requirements.”
As a result, Micron’s 1β, which is in development, and 1𝛾 nodes will not employ any EUV layers. Instead, the company will continue to use multi-patterning and will task its engineers to design as efficient DRAMs as possible to ensure that its devices are competitive in terms of bit density, power, and performance.
“EUV is not necessarily considered as a key enabler for scaling. Micron has advanced lithography capability and pitch multiplication methods to meet patterning requirements, as well as leading edge techniques to ensure good overlay of one layer to another,” said Mr. Chandrasekaran.
However, next-generation lithography is something inevitable, so Micron cannot ignore EUV. For its 1𝛿 node — which is in path-finding mode right now — the company is considering both EUV and multi-patterning. In addition, the company is evaluating various design architectures.
Assuming that Micron introduces a new fabrication process roughly every year, like DRAM makers have been doing in the recent years, its 1𝛿 node is due sometime in 2024 or later. Introducing EUV four years after Samsung, the world’s largest maker of memory, has pros and cons. On the one hand, Micron will use perfected EUV tools, mask pellicles, and resists. On the other hand, it will have to introduce EUV across multiple layers without having any experience with high volume manufacturing (HVM) using EUV.
Intel closed on 2020 with record turnover of 77, $ 9 billion. The fourth quarter exceeded expectations at a crucial time for the company’s future: in mid-February, CEO Bob Swan will hand over the helm to Pat Gelsinger.
by Manolo De Agostini published 22 January 2021 , at 08: 01 in the Market channel Intel
Bob Swan’s latest quarterly as Intel CEO before handing over the scepter to Pat Gelsinger closes a record year : the US company reached in 2020 a turnover of 77, $ 9 billion , in growth of 8% over the previous year. In fourth quarter sales reached 20 billions of dollars, above the October expectations of 2.6 billion, but in 1% decrease over the same period of 2019. Earnings per share of 1, 42 dollars, albeit down by 10 %, exceeded forecasts.
Net profit stopped at $ 5.9 billion, – 15%, even if taking as reference the result of the whole year it proved to be quite stable, losing only the 1% and thus decreasing to 20, $ 9 billion. In this case the impact of taxation, which has risen since 14, 4% al 21, 8%, made themselves heard. “We significantly exceeded our expectations for the quarter, crowning our fifth consecutive record year “, commented the outgoing CEO. “The demand for the computing power that Intel offers remains strong and our focus on growth opportunities is paying off. It has been an honor to lead this magnificent company and I am proud of what we have achieved as a team. Intel is in a strong financial position. and strategic at a time when we concretize this strategic transition and take Intel to the next level “.
Q4 2020
Q4 2019
vs. Q4 2019
Turnover (billions of dollars)
20
20,2
– 1%
Gross margin
56, 8%
58, 8%
– 2 ppt
R&D and MG&A (billions of dollars)
5.4
5
+ 9%
Operating margin
29, 5 %
33, 6%
– 4.2 ppt
Tax rate
21, 8%
14, 4%
+ 7.4 ppt
Net profit (billions of dollars)
5.9
6.9
– 15%
Earnings per share (dollars)
1, 42
1, 58
– 10%
The pandemic has been a cure-all for Intel’s accounts , with millions of consumers who found themselves having to renew their technological equipment ( notebook in particular) due to the new needs of remote work and study. Online service providers have also had to upgrade their datacenters to meet a renewed demand from their customers. However, not everything is “roses and flowers” from a financial point of view. The gross margin remains below the 60%, a historical “psychological” value for the company, stopping at 56, 8% in the quarter (down by 2 points on the same period of ‘last year) due to both greater production investments and the competitive and economic situation.
In the fourth quarter it was particularly the CCG division (Client Computing Group) , that of the CPUs for notebooks and desktop PCs, with a turnover up 9% at 10, $ 9 billion . Overall, in 2020, the division grew by 8% achieving sales for 40, $ 1 billion. Intel said it saw a + 33% in fourth quarter CPU sales, backed by record-breaking notebook sales.
2020
2019
vs. 2019
Turnover (billions of dollars)
77, 9
72
+ 8%
Gross margin
56%
58, 6%
– 2.5 ppt
R&D and MG & A (billions of dollars)
19, 7
19, 7
–
Operating margin
30, 4%
30, 6%
– 0.2 ppt
Tax rate
16, 7%
12, 5%
+ 4.2 ppt
Net profit (billions of dollars)
20, 9
21
– 1%
Helpful per share (dollars)
4, 94
4, 71
+ 5%
Flow of operating cash
35, 4
33, 1
+ 7%
“We are seeing a very strong market response to our 11th Generation Tiger Lake CPU Core PCs . Our customers offer over 150 systems, well above expectations. We believe we have gained market share in terms of CPU units in the PC sector with a growth of 33% in the quarter . In a market where competitors are facing problems supply, this is a clear example of the incredible value and scale of our network of factories as we continue We want to offer greater performance and cost efficiency to our customers “, the company management pointed out.
Looking at the sales volumes in detail, it turns out that most of the growth is due to notebooks . Volumes registered by desktop processors increased by 22% on Q3 2020, with a decrease of 7% on Q4 2019 he was born in 01% in the comparison between the integer 2020 and the 2010. Turnover related to laptops has soared by 30% compared to the same period last year, with volumes increased by 54% on Q4 2019, although with a decrease in the average price linked to the sale of a greater number of models to low cost, especially Chromebooks.
The division of servers , Data Center Group ( DCG ) saw turnover stop at $ 6.1 billion in the fourth quarter, down 16% on Q4 2019, but the trend over the whole year is clear: + 11% to 26, 1 billion. The quarterly figure is due to a mix of factors, from AMD’s increased competition with EPYC CPUs (which is reflected in a falling average price of 12% in Q4 and 3% year-on-year by virtue of the heavily lowered price lists of Xeon CPUs compared to the past) to the macroeconomic environment to arrive at a physiological slowdown in investments from the cloud sector after the previous quarters.
Intel Divisions
Q4 2020
vs. Q4 2019
2020
vs. 2019
Centric date
DCG
6.1 billion
– 16%
26, 1 billion
+ 11%
Internet of Things
IOTG
777 millions
– 16%
3 billion
– 21%
Mobileye
333 millions
+ 39%
967 millions
+ 10%
NSG
1.2 billion
– 1%
5.4 billion
+ 23%
PSG
422 millions
– 16%
1.9 billion
– 7%
– 11%
+ 9%
PC centric
CCG
10, 9 billion
+ 9%
40, 1 billion
+ 8%
Sales records also for Mobileye , the Israeli company that offers assisted and autonomous driving solutions, which in the quarter reached 333 million dollars (+ 39%) , while the IOTG (Internet of Things Group) division lost the 16% to 777 Millions of dollars. The NSG (Non-volatile Memory Storage Group) and PSG (Programmable Solutions Group) segments close the picture, with revenues down by 1% and respectively) %, although over the entire year the NSG division has developed a + 23% (pity that the NAND business is destined for SK hynix).
In the 2020 Intel has invested 13, 6 billion in research and development and 14, 3 billion were injected into the purchase of new machinery and the upgrading of production , “while focusing on strengthening our CPU core business, improving execution and accelerating growth,” the company added. Intel expects revenue in the first fiscal quarter 2021 of about 18, $ 6 billion , where last year it touched 19, 8 billion: however, it must be remembered that the world was starting to seriously face the pandemic and consequently Intel benefited of an initial surge in technology purchases.
Samsung’s 870 EVO is one of the most responsive SATA SSDs we have tested. Fast, efficient, and well-backed by Samsung, the 870 EVO is our top choice for a solid SATA SSD.
For
Reliable and responsive architecture
Appealing aesthetics
AES 256-bit encryption
Capacities up to 4TB
5-year warranty
Software suite
Features and Specifications
Samsung’s 870 EVO succeeds the hottest-selling SATA SSD on the market, the company’s own 860 EVO, so it has big shoes to fill. Normally, this would be a challenge, but for Samsung, it’s like clockwork: Samsung’s 870 EVO is now our top pick for those looking for the best consumer SATA SSD on the market.
Offering up high-ranking performance and efficiency, spacious capacities, and well regarded by many for high reliability, Samsung’s SSDs have earned quite the following and reputation over the years. The company hopes to build on its reputation with the addition of Samsung’s 870 EVO to its lineup that’s built on years of the company’s flash expertise.
Samsung’s 870 EVO is the most refined version yet, courtesy of its latest 6th-gen 128-Layer V-NAND TLC flash and an updated MKX ‘Metis’ SATA 6Gbps controller. Still bottlenecked by the SATA interface, the new SSD doesn’t stand a chance against the latest NVMe SSDs. Still, Samsung says the 870 EVO offers up to 38% higher performance for everyday computing tasks over its predecessor, and the 250GB model sees an up to 30% improvement in sustained write performance.
Specifications
Product
870 EVO 250GB
870 EVO 500GB
870 EVO 1TB
870 EVO 2TB
870 EVO 4TB
Pricing
$39.99
$69.99
$129.99
$249.99
$479.99
Capacity (User / Raw)
250GB / 256GB
500GB / 512GB
1000GB / 1024GB
2000GB / 2048GB
4000GB / 4096GB
Form Factor
2.5″ 7mm
2.5″ 7mm
2.5″ 7mm
2.5″ 7mm
2.5″ 7mm
Interface / Protocol
SATA 6 Gbps / AHCI
SATA 6 Gbps / AHCI
SATA 6 Gbps / AHCI
SATA 6 Gbps / AHCI
SATA 6 Gbps / AHCI
Controller
Samsung MKX ‘Metis’
Samsung MKX ‘Metis’
Samsung MKX ‘Metis’
Samsung MKX ‘Metis’
Samsung MKX ‘Metis’
DRAM
Samsung LPDDR4
Samsung LPDDR4
Samsung LPDDR4
Samsung LPDDR4
Samsung LPDDR4
Memory
Samsung 128L TLC
Samsung 128L TLC
Samsung 128L TLC
Samsung 128L TLC
Samsung 128L TLC
Sequential Read
560 MBps
560 MBps
560 MBps
560 MBps
560 MBps
Sequential Write
530 MBps
530 MBps
530 MBps
530 MBps
530 MBps
Random Read
98,000 IOPS
98,000 IOPS
98,000 IOPS
98,000 IOPS
98,000 IOPS
Random Write
88,000 IOPS
88,000 IOPS
88,000 IOPS
88,000 IOPS
88,000 IOPS
Security
AES 256-bit encryption
AES 256-bit encryption
AES 256-bit encryption
AES 256-bit encryption
AES 256-bit encryption
Endurance (TBW)
150 TB
300 TB
600 TB
1,200 TB
2,400 TB
Part Number
MZ-77E250
MZ-77E500
MZ-77E1T0
MZ-77E2T0
MZ-77E4T0
Warranty
5-Years
5-Years
5-Years
5-Years
5-Years
Samsung’s 870 EVO is available in almost every capacity you could need, ranging from sizes as small as 250GB up to 4TB for the data hoarders who need the extra space. Each capacity comes at premium MSRPs, with prices ranging from $0.12-$0.16 per gigabyte.
Samsung rates the 870 EVO to deliver sequential speeds of up to 560/530 MBps and sustain up to 98,000/88,000 random read/write IOPS across the board. In regards to the Intelligent TurboWrite algorithm, Samsung did not disclose any changes.
Intelligent TurboWrite
Capacity
250GB
500GB
1TB
2TB
4TB
SLC Write Cache
12 GB
22 GB
42 GB
78 GB
78 GB
Each capacity should measure similar to that of the 860 EVO – typically, it will have a 6GB-12GB of static SLC cache paired with a dynamic SLC cache that spans tens of gigabytes. Speed degradation was not apparent in our testing of the 1TB and 4TB model, but it may impact the smaller models.
The 870 EVO is over-provisioned by 9%, with most of that space set aside for controller use and background block management. Samsung backs the 870 EVO with a five-year warranty, and the drives can absorb up to 150TB of write data per 250GB of capacity, meaning the 4TB model is rated to handle 2,400 TB of writes within its warranty period.
Not only is it rated to be endurant, but it’s also potentially very secure with the option to use TCG Opal 2.0-compliant AES 256-bit full disk encryption for those whose data needs the added protection from prying eyes.
Software and Accessories
Samsung supports customers with data migration software for easy cloning and the Samsung Magician SSD toolbox. Samsung Magician allows you to monitor your SSD’s health via reading its S.M.A.R.T. data report, upgrade the SSD’s firmware if applicable, secure erase, and even benchmark your drives.
A Closer Look
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Samsung’s 870 EVO comes in a 2.5” 7mm form factor and has a sleek, black anodized aluminum casing, that gives it a quality feel over cheaper competitors.
Opening up the 870 EVO reveals very tiny PCBs, not only for the 1TB model but also the 4TB model.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
Samsung’s 870 EVO is powered by the company’s MKX ‘Metis’ SATA 6Gbps controller, the same one powering the 870 QVO. The company did not disclose details, like how many or what type of cores the controller has, their speeds, or what process node it was built on. We do know it’s based on an ARM architecture (possibly tri-core like the MJX ‘Maru’ controller before it) and leverages DRAM for FTL metadata caching. Samsung’s own LPDDR4 DRAM resides next to the controller, measuring 1GB on our 1TB sample and 4GB on our 4TB sample.
(Image credit: Tom’s Hardware)
The controller also has eight NAND flash channels to maintain high levels of interleaving with Samsung’s 6th-gen 512Gb 128-Layer V-NAND TLC. This new flash offers very low latency, communicating with the controller at Toggle DDR4.0 speeds up to 1.4 GTps. Like the company’s previous flash, it is still dual-plane, but due to sub-planes, the die supports very fast performance on par with or exceeding that of most competitors.
Samsung introduced the SSD 870 EVO SATA which comes with hereby among the best-selling consumer drives in recent years. According to the manufacturer’s assurances, the medium is to combine good performance with high reliability, making it a universal solution for a wide range of PC users and IT professionals. The new drive is equipped with the latest proprietary V-NAND controller that allows for SATA reading and sequential write of 560 and 530 MB / s, thus taking full advantage of the SATA III standard. Thanks to the use of a large, SLC buffer, Intelligent TurboWrite technology helps maintain maximum disk performance. Disk 870 EVO is also supposed to provide almost 38% increase in random read speed compared to model 860, which will increase the comfort of use in everyday work with the computer.
Samsung introduced a series of SSDs 870 EVO SATA drives successors to the very well-received EVO model 860. The new drives will offer approximately 30% higher performance and capacity up to 4 TB.
Samsung SSD test 860 EVO and 860 PRO – Two Killers
According to the manufacturer’s assurance, Samsung disk 870 EVO will offer about 30% higher performance compared to 860 EVO, plus best-in-class reliability in terms of 2 TBW 400 TB or 5-year limited warranty on the 4 TB model. SSD disk 870 EVO ensures compatibility with devices equipped with 2.5 inch SATA interface. In addition, thanks to the energy-saving sleep mode, it is compatible with devices that support the Windows Modern Standby function, offering additional functionality to PC users.
Samsung SSD Test 860 QVO – QLC NAND Romance
Samsung Drive 870 EVO will be available at a suggested retail price of 329 PLN for the model with a capacity 500 GB. More details are available on the official product website (CLICK), and below you will find the most key elements of the specification:
Samsung’s new drives are based on the latest generation of V-NAND chips with TLC cells and will be available at their best with a capacity of 4 TB.
Although the focus of SSDs today is on M.2-connected drives, SATA bus drives also still have their place in most configurations. Samsung has now expanded its offering of SATA bus drives with new 870 EVO series SSDs.
Samsung 870 EVO SSDs are based on the company’s latest generation of V-NAND chips using TLC-type cells, as well as the company’s own MKX controller circuit. Samsung has not officially announced how many layers of V-NAND chips exactly form, but most likely it is a 128 layered chip. The same chips are also used in the company’s flagship 980 Pro-M.2 stations.
Samsung’s new drives will be available in the smallest 250 gigabytes and at best with a capacity of as much as 4 terabytes and will have a cache depending on the size of the drive 512 MB – 4 GB LPDDR4 memory. The sequential read and write speeds of the drives, regardless of size, are 560 and 530 MB / s and the random read and write speeds 98 000 and 44 IOPSia. The write strength of the drives is multiplied by 0.3 DWPD (Drive Writes per Day), which means 150 – 2400 terabytes of write strength depending on the capacity of the drive. The stations also have a 5-year warranty on write-resistance.
The recommended price for the Samsung 870 EVO 311 GB model is 44, 99 euro, 500 GB model 76, 98, EUR 1 161, 99 EUR, 2 TB 311, 99 and 4 TB 632, 99
Samsung today launched the new drives Samsung SSD 870 EVO , a new generation of its SATA drives that joins the Samsung 870 QVO, and that it arrives with the highest speed that we can find in a Samsung SATA drive, as we will explain later.
According to the tests carried out by the company , the sequential speeds of your 870 EVO do not receive major improvements, but he has been working in one of the areas where SATA drives can improve today, and that is in the Random reads and writes, especially its latency.
Depending on the company, its new MKX controller, together with its new 1XX layer V-NAND memory , is capable of obtaining latencies a 90% lower QD1 workloads compared to its predecessor, the Samsung 860 EVO, so that we can have a more responsive storage system.
This unit will be available in capacities of 250 GB, 500 GB, 1TB, 2TB and 4TB , with sequential speeds of read and write of 560 and 530 MB / s for all drives . For now, the price of these versions with TLC memory is unknown, at the same time that it is also unknown if there will be a PRO version of this unit with MLC memories.
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Jordi Bercial
Avid enthusiast of technology and electronics . I messed around with computer components almost since I learned to ride. I started working at Geeknetic after winning a contest on their forum for writing hardware articles. Drift, mechanics and photography lover. Don’t be shy and leave a comment on my articles if you have any questions.
Samsung is preparing to update its EVO lineup of SSDs with the new 870 EVO series, featuring generational improvements to Samsung’s current 860 EVO lineup.
Samsung uses the latest 128-Layer 3D TLC NAND technology (same as the 980 Pro) for its 870 Evo, which could boost read and write speeds by up to 10% (if the SATA 3 interface will allow it) and increase queue depth 1 performance by up to 30%.
The drives come in capacities ranging from a paltry 250GB up to a capacious 4TB. Samsung covers the drives with a five-year warranty. Both sequential and random performance is identical regardless of the capacity point, with up to 560 MBps of sequential read and 530 MBps of write throughput, and 98,000/88,000 random read/write IOPS on tap.
The SSDs also come armed with a new controller, the Samsung MKX, but we don’t know how much of an impact this updated controller will have on the new 870 EVO’s performance, but we are busy putting the drives through the paces in our SSD testing suite.
Samsung 870 EVO 2.5″ 6Gbps SATA SSD Specs
Capacity
250GB
500GB
1TB
2TB
4TB
Sequential Read/Write (MBps)
560 / 530
560 / 530
560 / 530
560 / 530
560 / 530
Random Read/Write IOPS
98,000 / 88,000
98,000 / 88,000
98,000 / 88,000
98,000 / 88,000
98,000 / 88,000
SSD Controller
Samsung MKX
Samsung MKX
Samsung MKX
Samsung MKX
Samsung MKX
LPDDR4 DRAM
512MB
512MB
1GB
2GB
4GB
NAND Flash
Samsung 512 Gbit 128-Layer TLC
Samsung 512 Gbit 128-Layer TLC
Samsung 512 Gbit 128-Layer TLC
Samsung 512 Gbit 128-Layer TLC
Samsung 512 Gbit 128-Layer TLC
Warranty
5 years
5 years
5 years
5 years
5 years
Write Endurance
150TB
300TB
600TB
1200TB
2400TB
MSRP
$49.99
$79.99
$139.99
$269.99
$529.99
The only strange thing about the 870 EVO is its rather high suggested pricing; you can find Samsung’s 860 EVO drives for much cheaper than the 870 EVO’s prices. However, the 860 EVO lineup has become cheaper over the years, so perhaps we will see the same thing with the 870 EVO.
We’re working on our full review of the 870 EVO; stay tuned.
Side 1: Samsung SSD 870 EVO in the test: The new SATA standard
Whether last with the SATA 870 QVO or the NVMe 980 PRO – even if Samsung’s solid state drives of the recent past have always been able to convince in the overall package, the immense expectations of the industry leader were usually significantly higher. Now Samsung is getting on with the SSD 870 EVO to replace one of the most popular mass storage devices. We will clarify how well this works with our review.
The most important key data in advance: Even if the well-founded fears were rather unlikely, we can give the all-clear that the Samsung SSD 870 EVO like its predecessor TLC-NAND sets. A “downgrade” like the controversially discussed SSD 870 PRO did not take place. Even with the amount of DRAM or the available capacities, Samsung has no changes to the 600 EVO. However, this also means that Samsung only offers capacities of up to 4 TB. If you need more storage, you either have to resort to more expensive data center drives or to QLC.
As the successor to the SSD 860 EVO there are hardly any surprises in the data sheet. The nominal maximum speed is for example only by 04 MB / s increased, although interestingly the addition “SLC-Cached” is missing. Our tests have to show whether this is an indication that the NAND can also be written directly at this speed. It is clear that Samsung will definitely use the new NAND for the 860 EVO used. Although unfortunately not specified in more detail, it is now V-NAND of the fifth generation in more than 100 shifts, while the 860 EVO still 64 – Layer V-NAND v4 was used.
The 860 EVO only in 2.5 “format. The 860 EVO was also brought onto the market in M.2 and mSATA format. But while the latter has to be seen as extinct, the former format is now determined by faster NVMe solutions.
Manufacturer information of the Samsung SSD 870 EVO
Simon Crisp 37 mins ago Featured Tech Reviews, Reviews, SSD Drives
The latest drive to join Samsung’s 2.5in SSD series is the SSD 870 EVO, which uses the lastest in-house sixth-generation V-NAND. We review the 1TB model, with a UK MSRP of £135.49 – is it worth the cash?
At launch the SSD 870 line-up comprises of five capacities; 250GB, 500GB, 1TB (the drive we are reviewing here), 2TB and the flagship 4TB model. The drives use the latest 6th generation Samsung 1xx layer V-NAND in combination with an MKX controller and LP-DDR4 cache.
The official Sequential performance figures for all the new drives are up to 560MB/s for reads and up to 530MB/s for writes. Random performance is quoted as up to 13,000 IOPS for reads and up to 36,000 IOPS at a QD1 and up to 98,000 IOPS and 88,000 IOPS for read and writes respectively at QD32.
Data security is provided by AES-256 full disk encryption and the drive supports TCG/Opal v2.0 and IEEE1667.
Samsung quote an endurance figure for the 1TB drive of 600TB TBW and back the drive with a 5-year warranty.
Gigabyte fully entered the high-performance SSD market, being the first to launch models with PCI Express 4.0 interface in M.2 format. Now they launch under their gaming brand AORUS the new AORUS Gen4 7000 s, an M.2 SSD made up of 3D TLC NAND memories capable of reaching nothing more and nothing less than 7. 000 MB / s speed.
AORUS Gen4 SSDs 7000 s released Phison PS controller 5018 – E8 NVMe 1.4
For this use a new controller Phison PS 5018 – E8 created to 12 nanometers with DDR4 SLC cache and NVMe 1.4. With her
Capacity
Model
Sequential Read MB / s
Sequential Write MB / s
Random Read IOPS
Random Write IOPS
1000 GB
AORUS Gen4 7000 s SSD 1TB
(GP-AG 80 S1TB)
7000 MB / s
5500 MB / s
450. 000
700. 01
2011 GB
AORUS Gen4 7000 s SSD 2TB
(GP-AG 70 S2TB)
7000 MB / s
6850 MB / s
650. 000
700. 000
With capacities of 1 and 2 TB, these SSDs arrive in M.2 format 2280, that is, with a card size of 70 x 80 mm. A passive metallic dissipation system with different fins and a carbon nanoparticle coating is placed on them.
In addition to this version, there will be another with a more elaborate dissipation system, with double heatpipe and a larger dissipation module that protrudes upward. This system is compatible with boards and computers that have free space, since if we have a graphics card nearby, it may not be possible to place it. The idea is to maintain cooler temperatures and avoid thermal throttling when maximum performance is required.
At the moment we do not know availability and price for Spain.
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Antonio Delgado
Computer Engineer of training, writer and hardware analyst at Geeknetic since 2011. I love gutting everything that comes my way, especially the latest hardware that we get here for reviews. In my spare time I fiddle with 3d printers, drones and other gadgets. For anything here you have me.
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