Western Digital Black SN850X 4TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
Kingston NV3 500GB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
What Buyers Say
Western Digital Black SN850X 4TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
The WD Black SN850X is highly praised for its blazing speed, reliability, and value, often compared favorably to pricier alternatives like Samsung and Solidigm. Users report excellent performance in gaming (especially PS5) and general use, with a few concerns about potential issues mitigated by firmware updates. Overall, it's seen as a top-tier NVMe drive, especially when on sale.
Pros
- Blazing fast speeds
- Excellent value for money
- Reliable high-capacity storage
- Great for PS5
- Easy installation
Cons
- Potential firmware issues
- No heatsink included
- Pricey when not on sale
Kingston NV3 500GB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
The Kingston NV3 SSD generally receives positive feedback for its ease of installation, speed, and reliability in everyday use. However, several users note that the price has increased significantly, making it less of a value than before. Some Q&A responses highlight that it lacks DRAM and may slow down during sustained writes, but it's considered adequate for typical desktop and gaming use.
Pros
- Easy installation
- Fast performance
- Reliable in daily use
- Good value at normal price
- Works well for OS storage
Cons
- Price increased significantly
- No DRAM (uses HMB)
- Slows down during sustained writes
- 500GB capacity may be limiting
Scores
Specifications
| Western Digital Black SN850X | Kingston NV3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Drive | ||
| Capacity | ||
| Form Factor | M.2 2280 | M.2 2280 |
| Interface | PCIe 4.0 x4 | PCIe 4.0 x4 |
| Protocol | NVMe | NVMe |
| PCIe Generation | 4 | 4 |
| External | ✗ | ✗ |
| Performance | ||
| Sequential Read (MB/s) | ||
| Sequential Write (MB/s) | ||
| Random Read (IOPS) | No data | |
| Random Write (IOPS) | No data | |
| Hardware | ||
| NAND | TLC★ | — |
| DRAM Cache | ✓★ | ✗ |
| Controller | WD 20-82-20035-B1 | — |
| Reliability | ||
| Endurance (TBW) | ||
| MTBF (hours) | ||
| Warranty (years) | 5 | 5 |
| Features | ||
| Heatsink | ✗ | ✗ |
| Hardware Encryption | ✗ | — |
Pros & Cons
Western Digital Black SN850X 4TB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
- Strong random (95th percentile)95th %ile
- Strong social proof (95th percentile)95th %ile
- Strong user sentiment (94th percentile)94th %ile
- Strong capacity (93rd percentile)93rd %ile
- Below average affordability (11th percentile)11th %ile
Kingston NV3 500GB PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe M.2 2280
- Strong social proof (87th percentile)87th %ile
- Strong affordability (77th percentile)
- Strong endurance (70th percentile)
- Strong speed (70th percentile)
- Below average feature (15th percentile)15th %ile
- Below average capacity (26th percentile)
Verdict
Scores 100 overall, wins 5 of 6 usage categories and 8 of 18 specs.