Seagate Expands Nytro Enterprise SSD Family with 2TB M.2 XM1440

As Flash Memory Summit 2016 approaches, many major players in the SSD market are starting to announce new products. A year after introducing the Nytro XM1440 enterprise M.2 PCIe SSD, Seagate is expanding the lineup with a 2TB option. The XM1440 M.2 and XF1440 2.5″ U.2 SSDs are based on the combination of Marvell’s 88SS1093 PCIe 3.0 NVMe controller and Micron MLC NAND. The products are a result of a collaboration between Micron and Seagate, and are sold by Micron as the 7100 series. The 2.5″ version has had a 2TB-class capacity option from the start, but the new XM1440 2TB is the first of its kind. The higher drive capacity is achieved through denser NAND packaging rather than from switching to higher-capacity 3D NAND dies.

The XM1440 and XF1440 are available in either a capacity-optimized configuration intended for read-intensive workloads and rated for 0.3 drive writes per day, or in an endurance-optimized configuration for mixed workloads and rated for 3 drive writes per day. The latter sacrifices some usable capacity for increased overprovisioning and higher random write speeds, but otherwise they are the same drive. The 2TB XM1440 M.2 will unsurprisingly be one of the capacity-optimized variants, with similar specifications to the 1920GB XF1440 2.5″ U.2 SSD.

Seagate is also introducing a PCIe add-in card counterpart to the XM1440 and XF1440 as the Nytro XP7102. Based on the same controller and NAND, the XP7102’s model number appears to mark it as the entry-level option in a new XP7000 generation to replace the XP6000 series products that were multi-controller solutions with an on-board RAID controller. The Nytro XP7102 targets only the endurance-optimized mixed workload segment with 800GB and 1600GB as the only two capacity options, and has similar specifications to its XF1440 equivalents.

The 2TB XM1440 M.2 will be available in November 2016 and the Nytro XP7102 PCIe add-in card is already available.

Samsung’s SSD 850 EVO 4 TB Now Available from Major Retailers

Samsung quietly added its 4 TB 850 EVO SSD model to the product to the lineup back in May (according to its own datasheet) without making any formal announcements. Earlier this month the company lifted the embargo on reviews of the product (you can read ours here) and began to ship the high-capacity SSD to its partners. By now, all the major retailers already either have the product in stock, or are taking pre-orders with ETA about a week from today, at a US MSRP of $1499.

The Samsung SSD 850 EVO 4 TB (MZ-75E4T0) comes in a 2.5”/7 mm form-factor with SATA interface and is based on the company’s TLC V-NAND memory (3D, 32-layers). The 850 EVO 4 TB drive is based on the MHX controller and is equipped with 4 GB of LPDDR3 cache (previously we were told we knew about the MHX ASIC supported 2GB max, which is interesting). Like the rest members of the 850 EVO family, the 4 TB model fully supports 256-bit full disk encryption that is compatible with the TCG/Opal 2.0 and IEEE1667 specifications, which is important for workstation users.

As for performance, the Samsung 850 EVO 4 TB drive resembles other higher-end models in the 850 EVO family. The manufacturer declares maximum sequential read speed of 540 MB/s as well as maximum sequential write speed of 520 MB/s for the SSD. As for random performance, the drive delivers a top speed of 98,000/90,000 4K random read/write IOPS. Maximum power consumption of the drive is 3.1 W/3.6 W during active read/write operations, which is also in line with the rest of the high-end 850 EVO SSDs.

Right now, virtually all the biggest retailers in the world already have the Samsung 850 EVO 4 TB in stock, or, at least, list the drive and take pre-orders. We could say that the highest-capacity consumer-class SSD is now widely available, however, we should note that in many stores the first batch was sold out immediately and some only have several units left.

The Samsung EVO SSD with 4 TB capacity has MSRP of $1,499 in the US, and the high price indicates that this remains a prosumer play at this point. At $1,499, the price is over two times higher than the 2 TB 850 EVO model ($675.76 at Newegg), indicating a higher cost per GB in exchange for density. Ultimately the product will likely find its buyer among those who need a large amount of solid-state storage (in 2.5″/7mm form-factor).

Other Options, Mainly for Enterprise

Typically SSDs of such capacity are designed for servers and datacenters and come with professional grade features which makes them even more expensive. For example, the SanDisk Optimus Max 4 TB (SAS) is available for $2,685 at Amazon and for $2,718 at Ebay. Likewise, Samsung’s own enterprise-grade PM863 3.84 TB SSD (SATA) has suggested price of $2,200, whereas its faster PM1633 3.84 TB (SAS) brother is sold for $3,092. Moreover, if you go to companies like Fixstars or Foremay, they build special-purpose SSDs for various non-PC applications. These products typically aren’t even quoted for pricing, because they can feature different configurations and the order quantity affects the pricing, along with any support deal.

Nonetheless, when it comes to performance, capacity, endurance and price, the sky is the limit for solid-state storage. Multiple companies (including Samsung and Fixstars) now offer 2.5” SSDs with over 10 TB capacity and there are specialized solutions (such as those from HPE) that can easily cost $10,000 and north. In short, $1,499 may not be that expensive for a consumer drive.

The Samsung 850 EVO 4TB SSD Review

The arrival of Samsung’s 256Gb 48-layer 3D NAND has allowed the 850 EVO product line to expand once more with the introduction of the first 4TB consumer SSD: a drive that pushes the limits of NAND flash manufacturing, SSD controller capabilities, and the conventional wisdom of where SSDs fit in the storage market.