The Samsung 960 Pro (2TB) SSD Review

Sequential Read Performance

The sequential read test requests 128kB blocks and tests queue depths ranging from 1 to 32. The queue depth is doubled every three minutes, for a total test duration of 18 minutes. The test spans the entire drive, and the drive is filled before the test begins. The primary score we report is an average of performances at queue depths 1, 2 and 4, as client usage typically consists mostly of low queue depth operations.

The 2TB 960 Pro's low queue depth sequential read speed is about 300MB/s faster than the 950 Pro, once again giving Samsung the clear lead in performance and showing that the 960 Pro is significantly better than the 950 Pro where thermal limits are a factor.

The 960 Pro consumes more power than its predecessors, but given the high performance it is the most efficient drive for this workload.

Samsung 960 Pro 2TBCrucial MX300 2050GBIntel SSD 750 1.2TBIntel SSD 750 400GBOCZ RD400 1TB (M.2)OCZ RD400A 1TBSamsung 850 EVO 2TBSamsung 850 Pro 2TBSamsung 950 Pro 256GBSamsung 950 Pro 512GB

The slight drop in performance beyond QD1 indicates that the 960 Pro is still thermally limited for most of this test, and that like the 950 Pro it may perform much better with a heatsink.

Sequential Write Performance

The sequential write test writes 128kB blocks and tests queue depths ranging from 1 to 32. The queue depth is doubled every three minutes, for a total test duration of 18 minutes. The test spans the entire drive, and the drive is filled before the test begins. The primary score we report is an average of performances at queue depths 1, 2 and 4, as client usage typically consists mostly of low queue depth operations.

Thermals are an even bigger factor for the sequential write test than for sequential reads. The 960 Pro is 60% faster than the next fastest M.2 SSD and almost catches up to the RD400A with its thermal pad behind the controller allowing it to use its adapter card as a heatsink.

The 960 Pro's power consumption is only slightly higher than its M.2 competitors and far less than the RD400A. Given the performance, this makes the 960 Pro by far the most efficient SSD on this test, with about 30% higher performance per watt than the next most efficient drive.

Samsung 960 Pro 2TBCrucial MX300 2050GBIntel SSD 750 1.2TBIntel SSD 750 400GBOCZ RD400 1TB (M.2)OCZ RD400A 1TBSamsung 850 EVO 2TBSamsung 850 Pro 2TBSamsung 950 Pro 256GBSamsung 950 Pro 512GB

The QD1 performance of the 960 Pro is substantially higher than during the rest of the test where the drive is continuously thermally limited. The power consumption is only slightly higher at QD1 as the drive is able to spend a bit more power before its temperature gets up to the limit, then the drive reaches equilibrium at around 4.4W.