Blistering performance
What separates a fast drive from a consistently fast one? The Samsung 990 PRO datasheet details the PCIe® 4.0 NVMe™ M.2 SSD, with sequential read/write speeds up to 7,450/6,900 MB/s, random speeds up to 1,600K IOPS, smart thermal control, Samsung Magician optimization software, and capacities to 4TB. Download the datasheet for full specifications.
What performance gains does the 990 PRO offer over the 980 PRO?
The 990 PRO is designed to rethink performance for PCIe 4.0 users, especially if you’re upgrading from a 980 PRO.
Key performance gains include:
- Random performance: Random read/write speeds are about 40–55% faster than the 980 PRO. This directly impacts how quickly games, apps, and large projects load.
- IOPS: You can see up to 1,600K / 1,550K IOPS (random read/write), which is a strong fit for gaming, video editing, 3D modeling, and data analysis.
- Sequential speeds: Sequential read/write speeds reach up to 7,450 / 6,900 MB/s, approaching the practical ceiling of PCIe 4.0 (whose best theoretical sequential read is 8,000 MB/s).
- Power efficiency: The 990 PRO delivers up to 50% better performance per watt compared to the 980 PRO. In tests on the 1TB model, sequential read/write efficiency improved from 1,129 / 877 MB/Watt on the 980 PRO to 1,380 / 1,319 MB/Watt on the 990 PRO.
For gamers, there’s also a more than 55% improvement in random performance, which helps reduce load times on PS5 and DirectStorage-enabled PC titles. Overall, the 990 PRO is built to deliver higher speed and better efficiency within the same PCIe 4.0 standard.
How does the 990 PRO manage heat and maintain performance?
The 990 PRO uses a combination of hardware and firmware to reshape how heat is managed during intensive workloads.
Key thermal control elements:
- Nickel-coated in-house controller: Samsung’s own high-end controller is nickel-coated to improve heat dissipation and support effective thermal control.
- Smart heat management: The controller is designed to balance performance and temperature, helping prevent sudden performance drops caused by overheating.
- Consistent high performance: These thermal features work together so you can sustain high speeds—such as up to 7,450 MB/s sequential read—during tasks like gaming, video editing, 3D modeling, or data analysis.
In practice, this means the drive is built to keep performance stable over longer sessions, rather than peaking briefly and then throttling back due to heat.
What tools, capacities, and reliability options come with the 990 PRO?
The 990 PRO is positioned as a high-performance PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD with a focus on usability, security, and endurance.
Available capacities & form factor
- Capacities: 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB
- Form factor: M.2 (2280), PCIe Gen4 x4, NVMe
Endurance & warranty
- Total Bytes Written (TBW):
– 600 TBW for 1TB model
– 1,200 TBW for 2TB model
– 2,400 TBW for 4TB model
- Limited 5-year warranty, aligned with the TBW ratings.
Security & memory
- Hardware-based encryption: AES 256-bit (Class 0)
- Support for TCG Opal v2.0 and Microsoft eDrive (IEEE1667) for managed and OS-integrated security.
- Onboard DRAM for performance:
– 1GB LPDDR4 (1TB model)
– 2GB LPDDR4 (2TB model)
– 4GB LPDDR4 (4TB model)
Samsung Magician software
- Drive health monitoring and diagnostics
- Performance optimization tools
- Data protection features
- Firmware and feature updates for the 990 PRO
Together, these features make the 990 PRO a practical option for users who need high performance along with clear visibility into drive health, strong encryption, and defined endurance metrics.
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