Samsung 2TB SSD SATA III

The 870 EVO 2TB maxes out SATA III at 560 MB/s read, which is fine for old hardware but slow by modern standards. Its 1200 TBW endurance and 4.8/5 rating from 49,000 reviews make it one of the most reliable SATA drives you can buy. Just don't pay more than USD 450 for it.

Let's be real about the numbers. 560 MB/s sequential read and 530 MB/s write are fine for SATA, but they land in the 38th percentile overall. That's not a knock on Samsung, it's just physics. SATA III tops out around 600 MB/s, so this drive is squeezing every drop out of the interface. The random performance tells a similar story: 98K read IOPS and 36K write IOPS put it right around the 40th percentile, which is solid for SATA but nowhere near what a budget NVMe drive can do.

The TLC NAND paired with a DRAM cache and Samsung's MKX controller keeps things consistent. You won't see the write cliff that plagues DRAM-less drives when they fill up. For an OS drive in an older laptop or a game library on a desktop, this is perfectly serviceable. Just don't expect it to compete with the PCIe 4.0 crowd.

Stacked against the Western Digital Black SN850X, Kingston FURY Renegade G5, Crucial T500, Seagate FireCuda 530R, or Lexar NM1090 PRO, the 870 EVO gets demolished on speed. Those are all NVMe drives pushing 7,000 MB/s or more, while the 870 EVO is stuck at 560 MB/s. The SN850X and T500 are also cheaper per gigabyte in most markets. Where the 870 EVO wins is endurance and compatibility. 1200 TBW beats many budget NVMe drives, and the 2.5-inch SATA form factor fits in older laptops and desktops that have no M.2 slot. If your machine has an M.2 slot, buy an NVMe drive. If it doesn't, this is one of the best SATA options left.

Here's where things get weird. The 870 EVO 2TB ranges from USD 450 to USD 1,300 across 11 US listings. That's an USD 850 spread for the same drive. Best Buy has the lowest price at USD 450, and that's the one to grab if you're in the US. In Canada, the spread is tighter at CAD 925 to CAD 1,062, with Memory Express at the low end. Even at the best price, this drive sits in the 18th percentile for affordability. You're paying for the Samsung name and that 5-year warranty, not raw speed. For a SATA drive in 2025, that's a tough pill unless you specifically need the 2.5-inch form factor.

The Samsung 870 EVO 2TB hits 560 MB/s read and 530 MB/s write, which is basically the ceiling for SATA III. That's not a typo, this drive is capped by the interface, not the hardware. If you're coming from a spinning hard drive, the difference is night and day. But if you're already on any NVMe drive, this will feel like a step backward.

Where this drive really shines is endurance and trust. 1200 TBW, a 5-year warranty, and a 1.5 million hour MTBF put it in the 86th percentile for endurance. Social proof is even better at the 95th percentile with a 4.8 rating across nearly 49,000 reviews. People buy this drive because it just works, and the data backs that up.

Skip this if your system has an M.2 slot. The 870 EVO's 560 MB/s read speed is in the 38th percentile overall, and you can get NVMe drives with 10x the throughput for less money. Also skip it if you need something portable, the portable use case score of 19.2/100 is one of the worst we've seen. And if you're on a tight budget, the 18th percentile affordability ranking means there are cheaper SATA options that'll do the job, just without the Samsung badge and warranty.

The 870 EVO 2TB is a relic of a bygone era, but it's a damn good relic. If you need a 2.5-inch SATA drive for an older system, a NAS, or a surveillance setup, this is the one to buy. The 1200 TBW endurance, DRAM cache, and Samsung's track record justify the premium over no-name SATA drives. But if your machine has an M.2 slot, spend your money on an NVMe drive instead. You'll get 10x the speed for less cash. The 870 EVO is a specialist's drive now, not a mainstream pick.