Samsung 990 PRO 1TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
Kingston A400 240GB SATA III M.2 2280
What Buyers Say
Samsung 990 PRO 1TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
The Samsung 990 Pro SSD is widely praised for its exceptional speed, cool operation, and reliability, making it a top choice for gaming and heavy workloads. However, several reviewers warn that the drive may ship with outdated firmware that can cause rapid health degradation, urging immediate updates via Samsung Magician. Despite this caveat, most users recommend it for home use and high-performance builds, noting its value on sale and compatibility with various motherboards.
Pros
- Exceptional speed
- Cool operation
- Reliable performance
- Easy installation
- Good value on sale
Cons
- Outdated firmware on arrival
- Potential rapid health degradation
- Not ideal for mission-critical use
Kingston A400 240GB SATA III M.2 2280
Most users are happy with this Kingston SSD, praising its fast boot times, easy setup, and good value for budget builds. However, one verified reviewer had a very negative experience with Kingston's RMA process, citing delays and poor customer service. Overall, the product itself is well-regarded, but the support experience can be a major drawback.
Pros
- Fast boot times
- Easy setup
- Good value for budget builds
- Reliable so far
- Good build quality
Cons
- Poor RMA support
- Slow customer service
- Limited capacity for gamers
Scores
Specifications
| Samsung 990 PRO | Kingston A400 | |
|---|---|---|
| Drive | ||
| Capacity | ||
| Form Factor | M.2 2280 | M.2 2280 |
| Interface | PCIe 4.0 x4 | SATA III |
| Protocol | NVMe | SATA |
| PCIe Generation | 4★ | — |
| External | ✗ | ✗ |
| Performance | ||
| Sequential Read (MB/s) | ||
| Sequential Write (MB/s) | ||
| Random Read (IOPS) | No data | |
| Random Write (IOPS) | No data | |
| Hardware | ||
| NAND | TLC | TLC |
| DRAM Cache | ✓★ | — |
| Controller | Samsung | — |
| Reliability | ||
| Endurance (TBW) | No data | |
| MTBF (hours) | ||
| Warranty (years) | 5★ | — |
| Features | ||
| Heatsink | ✓★ | — |
| Hardware Encryption | ✓★ | — |
Pros & Cons
Samsung 990 PRO 1TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
- Strong feature (99th percentile)99th %ile
- Strong random (97th percentile)97th %ile
- Strong social proof (95th percentile)95th %ile
- Strong speed (94th percentile)94th %ile
Kingston A400 240GB SATA III M.2 2280
- Strong social proof (87th percentile)87th %ile
- Strong affordability (82nd percentile)82nd %ile
- Below average capacity (11th percentile)11th %ile
- Below average speed (12th percentile)12th %ile
- Below average random (22nd percentile)
- Below average endurance (30th percentile)
Verdict
Scores 90 overall, wins 6 of 6 usage categories and 12 of 18 specs.