OWC Aura Pro 500GB Proprietary M.2
OWC
25 Overall Score
vs
Samsung 9100 PRO 8TB PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
Samsung
98 Overall Score
What Buyers Say
OWC Aura Pro 500GB Proprietary M.2
No customer feedback yet
Samsung 9100 PRO 8TB PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
72 out of 100 low confidence 7 reviews
The Samsung 9100 Pro is generally praised for its blazing-fast speeds, especially in data transfers and large file loads, with several users noting it's noticeably faster than the 990 Pro. However, one verified buyer experienced a complete drive failure within two weeks, which is a significant concern. Most reviewers recommend it for high-end builds, but advise getting the heatsink version or a good aftermarket cooler.
Pros
- Blazing fast speeds
- Noticeably faster than 990 Pro
- Great for data transfers
- Quality product
- Recommended for high-end builds
Cons
- Potential drive failure within weeks
- Requires heatsink for optimal performance
- Speed difference not noticeable in daily tasks
Speed performance 5
Reliability 1
Cooling requirements 2
Value for money 2
Comparison to 990 pro 2
Build quality 1
Scores
Workstation
Console
Gaming
Laptop
Budget
Portable
Specifications
| OWC Aura Pro | Samsung 9100 PRO | |
|---|---|---|
| Drive | ||
| Capacity | ||
| Form Factor | M.2 | M.2 2280 |
| Interface | Proprietary | PCIe 5.0 x4 |
| Protocol | — | NVMe |
| PCIe Generation | — | 5★ |
| External | ✗ | ✗ |
| Performance | ||
| Sequential Read (MB/s) | ||
| Sequential Write (MB/s) | No data | |
| Random Read (IOPS) | No data | |
| Random Write (IOPS) | No data | |
| Hardware | ||
| NAND | — | TLC★ |
| DRAM Cache | — | ✓★ |
| Controller | — | In-House Controller |
| Reliability | ||
| Endurance (TBW) | No data | |
| MTBF (hours) | No data | |
| Warranty (years) | 5 | 5 |
| Features | ||
| Heatsink | — | ✓★ |
| Hardware Encryption | — | ✓★ |
Pros & Cons
OWC Aura Pro 500GB Proprietary M.2
- Strong affordability (89th percentile)89th %ile
- Below average random (3rd percentile)3rd %ile
- Below average feature (15th percentile)15th %ile
- Below average speed (16th percentile)16th %ile
- Below average capacity (27th percentile)
Samsung 9100 PRO 8TB PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
- Strong random (100th percentile)100th %ile
- Strong feature (100th percentile)100th %ile
- Strong speed (99th percentile)99th %ile
- Strong capacity (98th percentile)98th %ile
- Below average affordability (2nd percentile)2nd %ile
- Below average user sentiment (29th percentile)
Verdict
Winner: Samsung 9100 PRO
Scores 98 overall, wins 6 of 6 usage categories and 12 of 18 specs.