Western Digital SN740 2TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2230

The SN740 delivers 800K random write IOPS and 650K random read IOPS in a 2TB 2230 package, putting it in the top 10% of drives for random performance. Sequential speeds of 5150 MB/s read and 4850 MB/s write are well above average. You'll pay USD 315 to USD 350 for the privilege, and endurance is only average at 500 TBW, but for handhelds and compact laptops this is a standout pick.

The SN740's random write performance is the headline number. 800K IOPS puts it in the top 10% of every drive we've tested, which is wild for a 2230 drive. Most tiny drives compromise on random performance to hit the size target, but WD didn't here. Random reads at 650K IOPS are nearly as impressive, landing at the 90th percentile overall. In practice, that means snappy app launches, quick game loads, and a system that feels responsive even when you're hammering it with background tasks.

Sequential speeds are solid but not chart-topping. 5150 MB/s read and 4850 MB/s write rank around the 75th percentile, which is well above average for PCIe 4.0 drives but nowhere near the 7000+ MB/s you'd get from a full-size 2280 drive like the Samsung 9100 PRO. The 2TB capacity is a strong point at the 78th percentile, giving you room for a decent game library or a pile of video projects. Endurance is the weak link in the performance story. 500 TBW is about average for the category, but if you're writing hundreds of gigabytes a day, this drive will wear out faster than something like the Kingston FURY Renegade G5.

Against the Samsung 9100 PRO, the SN740 loses on sequential speed but wins on form factor flexibility. The 9100 PRO is a full-size 2280 drive with higher sequential throughput, but it won't fit in a Steam Deck or the Framework 16's secondary slot. The Kingston FURY Renegade G5 offers better endurance and a richer feature set, but again, it's a 2280 drive. The Crucial T500 and SanDisk WD_BLACK both deliver stronger all-around performance in the standard form factor, with the WD_BLACK especially strong on endurance. The Seagate FireCuda 530R is another 2280 competitor with better sequential numbers. The SN740's real competition isn't these drives, it's the other 2230 options on the market, and in that space, the SN740's random performance is hard to beat. If you can fit a 2280 drive, buy one of those instead. If you can't, this is a top pick.

Pricing on this drive runs from USD 315 to USD 350 across two US listings, a USD 35 spread that's worth paying attention to. At the low end, you're getting 2TB of fast 2230 storage for about USD 157 per terabyte, which is a premium over full-size 2280 drives but expected for the compact form factor. The affordability percentile sits at 30, meaning most drives in our database cost less per gigabyte. If you need a 2TB 2230 drive specifically, the SN740 is one of the few options that exists, and the Newegg listings with the lower price are the ones to grab. Just don't expect budget pricing for a niche form factor.

The Western Digital SN740 packs 2TB into an M.2 2230 form factor, which is the tiny drive size that fits in handhelds like the Steam Deck and compact laptops. Sequential reads hit 5150 MB/s and writes land at 4850 MB/s, putting it in the top quarter of drives in our database for raw speed. Random performance is the real story here, with 650K read IOPS and 800K write IOPS ranking at the 90th percentile. That's the kind of responsiveness you feel when loading games or booting Windows.

But this drive is a specialist, not an all-rounder. It scores 64.7 out of 100 for laptops and 61.7 for budget builds, yet drops to 15.8 for portable use. The 500 TBW endurance rating sits right around the middle of the pack, and the feature set is thin compared to drives with hardware encryption or fancy caching tricks. You're paying for the form factor and the random performance, not a spec sheet flex.

If your device has room for a standard 2280 drive, skip the SN740. You'll get better sequential speeds, higher endurance, and more features for less money from drives like the Kingston FURY Renegade G5 or the SanDisk WD_BLACK. The SN740's affordability sits at the 30th percentile, meaning you're paying a premium for the compact size. And if you're a heavy writer who pushes hundreds of gigabytes daily, the 500 TBW endurance rating will wear out faster than you'd like. The portable use score of 15.8 out of 100 also suggests this isn't the drive to toss in an external enclosure for on-the-go work.

The SN740 is the drive to buy when you need 2TB in a 2230 slot and you don't want to compromise on random performance. The 800K random write IOPS and 650K random read IOPS are genuinely excellent, and the 5150 MB/s sequential read speed is more than enough for gaming and everyday work. The 500 TBW endurance and thin feature set are the trade-offs, and the price premium over 2280 drives is real. But if your device physically requires a 2230 drive, this is one of the best options available. For Framework 16 owners looking to fill that secondary slot, the compatibility is confirmed and the performance is there.