Need for speed? Here’s what to look for in an SSD

In our digital world, business never slows down. From creating content to making data-driven business decisions to building the next innovative app, today’s professionals demand fast and reliable technology. Therefore, it is no surprise that increasing speed is often a top priority when adding or upgrading solid state drives (SSD). But how much speed do you really need, and how do you balance your need for speed with your budget? Start with a solid understanding of what those numbers mean and how they impact your computer’s performance.

SSD speeds are shared as sequential read/write speeds and random read/write speeds. Let’s break those down:

• Sequential read/write speeds: The speed at which an SSD can read or write large, continuous blocks of data. An example is transferring a video file to edit or logging transactions — essentially any operation where the data is being moved into or out of storage without interruption. Sequential speeds are measured in megabytes per second (MB/s).

• Random read/write speeds: The speed at which an SSD can read or write the small, non-continuous blocks of data that are scattered across the drive. These are actions we don’t tend to think about as users, but they have a huge impact on laptop/PC performance. The drive accesses many small files and performs numerous background operations simultaneously to keep our systems running as we work. Random speeds are measured in Input/Output Operations per Second (IOPS) and are always slower than sequential speed due to the complexity of their operations.

How to choose the right speed for your business need

Most users will want to choose an SSD with a balance of read, write, random and sequential speeds. This will ensure smooth performance across tasks and use cases. But there are some special considerations, especially for those seeking to balance value with performance.

For those who work with large files — e.g., content creators, data analysts, software engineers — high write speeds can be very important. There is also some indication that write tasks cause more wear and tear on the drive. While this is far less of a concern with SSDs than with more traditional Hard Disk Drives (HDDs), users who heavily rely on fast write speeds may still want to prioritize overall drive reliability.

When looking at a drive’s speed specifications, it is important not to overlook the random read/write speeds. Sequential speeds are often emphasized in SSD evaluation because they impact the types of heavy data uses like video editing and code development that spark interest in SSD upgrades. However, random read and write speeds play a large role in a PC’s overall performance. In fact, the smaller, unseen tasks most impacted by random read/write speeds are vital to everyday computer use.

Fortunately, today’s high-end NVMe SSDs offer an optimal mix of sequential and random read/write speeds. At the top of the pack, Samsung’s 990 Pro offers sequential read and write speeds up to 7,450/6,900 MB/s — near max performance of PCIe® 4.0.¹ It also offers random read/write speeds of up to 1,600K/1,550K IOPS. This is more than enough speed to power through almost any task, and combined with Samsung’s renowned reputation for quality, it is a drive that will last for many years to come.

However, for those looking for a more budget-friendly solution to finding the right balance of sequential and random speed, there is good news. The new Samsung 990 EVO Plus offers similar speeds to the Samsung PRO series with sequential read/write speeds of up to 7,250/6,300MB/s². This means huge file transfers can be completed faster than ever. But it also boasts an impressive random read speed of 1,050K IOPS and a random write speed of 1,400K IOPS — so users can trust in its ability to drive fast performance for everyday tasks.

Drive performance is about more than speed alone

While speed is often the first thing users look for when evaluating SSDs, it is important to also consider other performance-impacting features. For example, users should select the right capacity for their workflow, evaluate power efficiency and thermal management and assess the SSD’s reputation for reliability. All of these attributes combine with speed to determine the overall performance of the drive and the user experience with the laptop or PC.

Discover more about Samsung’s full range of high-performance, cost-effective SSDs for your business.

¹PCIe 4.0’s best theoretical sequential read is 8000 MB/s – 990 PRO reaches 7450 MB/s as of Q3, 2022.

² Sequential and random write performance was measured with Intelligent Turbo Write technology being activated. Intelligent Turbo Write operates only within a specific data transfer size. Performance may vary depending on SSD’s firmware, system hardware & configuration and other factors. For detailed information, please contact your local service center. 990 PRO reaches 7,450 MB/s based on test system configuration: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X 8-Core Processor CPU@3.80GHz, DDR4 3600MHz 16GBx2 (PC4-25600 Overclock), OS – Windows 10 Pro 64bit, Chipset – ASRock-X570 Taichi. To maximize the performance of the 990 PRO, please check whether your system supports PCIe 4.0 at the Intel or AMD website.