Best SSD For Gaming
Today we’ll talk about which are the five best picks, how to choose the correct product, and what you should look at before buying. We’ve ranked these products based on their price, quality, durability, performance, and more. If you’d like to see their price and find out more information, you can check out the links in the table down below to make it easier.
Image | Product | Feature | Price |
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1
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Samsung 970 EVO
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On top of the list, we have the best gaming study for the majority of users, the Samsung 970 EVO. This is our top pick because it has amazing sequential speeds that translate to random speed, identical silicon as the 970 pros at a great price | Check On Amazon |
2
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Samsung SSD 860 EVO
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Coming up next on the list, we have one of the most popular SSD drives in the market, the Samsung SSD 860 EVO. This is because the Samsung SSD 860 EVO delivers excellent speeds, adequate insurance and comes at a low price, | Check On Amazon |
3
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Intel Optane SSD 905P
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Let’s talk about one of the most advanced SSD now, the Intel optane SSD 905P. This is the one if you want the best and only the very best. And if you’re a gamer, that value speed and you might be in the right place because this SSD has super-fast random read and write speeds, | Check On Amazon |
4
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Crucial MX500
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If you’re searching for the best budget option that delivers a powerful performance, I would recommend the crucial MX500. This is rated as one of the very best entry-level CDs by many tech experts. And since it’s released, it’s become a fan favorite. | Check On Amazon |
5
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Kingstone A400
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We’re going to kick off this list with an exemplary SSD drive that has a very low initial cost. The Kingston A400. This SSD costs way under 100 dollars, despite having a 480-gigabyte storage room available for you. And if you look at the reviews, | Check On Amazon |
Things You Should Know Before Buying
Before looking at our best picks for today’s video, I want to discuss what you should look at before buying, before looking at our best picks for today’s video. I want to discuss what you should look at before buying.
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Form Factor
Generally, SSD comes in three form factors and it’ll depend on your PC laptop or console as to which one you get. Let’s check them out briefly. The first and the most common one is the 2.5-inch serial ATA or SATA Arter or SATA SSD which are of the same shape as the traditional laptop Hard Drive, which connects with SATA cables. These are very easy to install as well, but you might require an adapter if you have a larger 3.5 inch hard drive by the second ones or add in called SSD or AIC these are much faster than the others since they operate with a PCI Express bus rather than SATA drives, which will boost your gaming performance.
The more rare ones are endpoint to SSD, which more resemble RAM but are a bit smaller and have become very popular and super slim. Laptops are the modern days, but these are present in some desktop motherboards as well.
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Capacity
There are different capacities available for SSD and the choice you make will impact the price of the SSD. But don’t settle for something that doesn’t cover your needs even if your budget doesn’t allow it. Save for a better one. Some SSDs have a 128-gigabyte capacity and these are pretty low since just installing in the call of duty war-zone on your device will take more than 100 gigabytes of storage.
I’d recommend going to 250 gigabytes at the very least or 500 gigs just to be safe. If you have multiple slots and eight tons of storage, I’d recommend you buy two smaller drives rather than one large, since it will be way cheaper.
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NAND Types
The majority of SSD is made up of NAND flash memories, but there are different types of it as well. There are generally four major types which are SLC, MLC, TLC, and QLC variants. SLC variant is the best as it accepts only one bit per memory so and is faster, more reliable, and durable, which makes it all the more expensive MLC or a bit slower since they store two bits to every cell and make the whole thing less reliable.
TLC was going to the budget range now and this SSD registers three bits to every cell and also decreases the reliability. In the end, you spot the QLC which registers 4 bits to every cell and you know the rest.
Best Overall
This model is the best overall for us. It gets a perfect score in all categories.
1.
Samsung 970 EVO

On top of the list, we have the best gaming study for the majority of users, the Samsung 970 EVO. This is our top pick because it has amazing sequential speeds that translate to random speed, identical silicon as the 970 pro at a great price to wrap it all up, the price of the name drives of Samsung have dropped significantly over the last few years. The Samsung 970 EVO comes in 4 available sizes to 50 gigabytes, 500 gigabytes, one terabyte, and two terabytes, all of which are pretty affordable for what they offer.
I should mention that the speed at the Samsung 970 EVO is also excellent as it packs the fastest sequential read speed ever, 3500 megabits per second, and sequential write speed of up to 2500 megabits per second, which is significantly faster than the runner up. This is mostly because the company has adopted the same 64 layer MLC V-NAND technology. The high-end devices of Samsung have the previous version of the 960 EVO had a more affordable but slower TLC V-NAND and Build. However, now both pro and EVO drives come with the Phoenix controller. On top of all this, the Samsung 970 EVO offers intelligent turbo right technology that delivers larger buffer sizes of up to 78 gigabytes, which is great for faster rate speeds.
As the company claims it delivers 65 percent faster sequential write speeds. The Samsung 970 EVO also comes packed with a dynamic thermal guard technology that protects your SSD against overheating. The built-in hardware feature of the device also monitors and maintains the optimal operating temperature automatically. In addition to that, the heat spread around the new nickel-coated controller lowers the temperatures as well.
Pros
- Cheap (relatively) NVMe drive
- Reads great layout
- Available in capacities up to 2TB
- About 50% of file change time
- Five-year guarantee
Cons
- Speed up to 600MBps only after crossing the cache
- Infrequently 960 Pro trails
- Less space can be cheaper
Best Runner-up
Before we talk about the best model overall, let’s look at the runner-up for this list.
2.
Samsung SSD 860 EVO

Coming up next on the list, we have one of the most popular SSD drives in the market, the Samsung SSD 860 EVO. This is because the Samsung SSD 860 EVO delivers excellent speeds, adequate insurance and comes at a low price, all of which are attractive to gamers. After all, the new graphics unit costs a fortune. As you know, the predecessor of the Samsung SSD 860 EVO was one of the best SSDs ever, and this one had a tough act to follow. However, surprisingly, the newer model delivered much more performance, speed, and endurance that impressed everyone. This one here is powered by the 64 layers vertical NAND technology that’s revolutionary.
The 64 layer V-NAND tech allows the drive to contain flash cells that are stacked vertically and three-dimensionally for more density, which also results in better speeds. On top of that, these drives use the MJX SATA to control the pairs with two gigabytes of LPDDR, 4 DRAM for the two terabyte model to deliver better speeds and power efficiency.
With all those specs and features, the Samsung SSD 860 EVO can deliver sequential read speeds of up to 560 megabits per second and sequential write speeds of up to 520 megabits per second, which is the endpoint to SATA form factor. There’s also the 2.5-inch dry version that delivers roughly the same performance, but there’s only a four terabyte version in that form factor.
The biggest improvement of the Samsung SSD 860 EVO is its endurance, which is more than quadruple of its predecessor as it has 1200 TBW in synthetic benchmark tests, the Samsung SSD 860 EVO delivered a beautiful performance and impressed everyone, even in the random read and write speeds. While the pro version of the same model is significantly faster. This one here delivers a serious performance for the price as well, which is what matters the most for gamers.
Pros
- Outstanding tolerance rating
- Excellent performance
- Samsung wizard software
- 5-year guaranty
- Extraordinary software package with DRAM cache and cloning
Cons
- The mixed workload lagged behind the 850 series
- Trim performance issues
Read Also: Best External Hard Drives
Best High-End Gaming SSD
Next up, we had the highest model that you can get your hands on. It costs more than the rest, but it does do its job extremely well.
3.
Intel Optane SSD 905P

Let’s talk about one of the most advanced SSD now, the Intel optane SSD 905P. This is the one if you want the best and only the very best. And if you’re a gamer, that value speed and you might be in the right place because this SSD has super-fast random read and write speeds, which translates to real-world performance. Then again, this is an enthusiast-level option. The Intel optane SSD 905P is a bit more advanced as it uses the 3D X-Point technology. That’s the secret ingredient to most high-end optane products. The 3D X-Point, which is pronounced as Crosspoint, is the method that Intel and Micron have developed together for storing the memory in flash sales. It shares some similarities with other companies, such as the V-NAND.
But it’s not something that the company wants to explain to us. But we are happy with the disclosure since this drive is extremely good and it handles random memory requests exceptionally well and fast, which is all that matters to our gamers. Are the manufacturers trying to raise the capacity and deliver super-fast sequential drive speeds which don’t necessarily translate into real-world performance, but Intel has sacrificed everything for the speed that matters for both gamers and multimedia editors. I should mention that the capacity of the Intel optane SSD 905P is just 960 gigabytes, which for the price is very little. This might sound a lot, but for that price, other manufacturers deliver four terabytes, which is quadruple this one.
The Intel Optane SSD 905P is available in two form factors PCI Express 3.0, which is an add-in card. But there is your point to interface as well, which works with the 2.5-inch form factor. The Intel optane SSD 905P leaves little to be desired as it delivers a five-year warranty. And every day within the warranty period, you can write 10 times the capacity, the hard drive. This is as durable as they get overall while testing the files, read and write speeds before 4K files 295 and 267 megabits per second respectively. This is way better than anything out there by a landslide.
Pros
- Excellent performance
- Unrealistic user experience
- Five-year guarantee
- The best random performance to date
- I’m not one for LED lighting, but it looks sharp
Cons
- Costly
- Not GUI LED controller
- Trails high-end and NAD-based drives with sequential transitions
- There is no Star Citizen or any other software bundle with this premium SQ
Best Budget Gaming SSD
We are going to start this list with the best budget option that you can get your hands on.
4.
Crucial MX500

If you’re searching for the best budget option that delivers a powerful performance, I would recommend the crucial MX500. This is rated as one of the very best entry-level CDs by many tech experts. And since it’s released, it’s become a fan favorite. It delivers great performance for its competitive price, five-year warranty, solid endurance rating, good software package, and power failure protection. That’s one of my favorite features. Among everything else, the crucial MX500 is powered with Micron’s, a new 64 layer 3D NAND, which is one of the most powerful upgrades I’ve ever seen. This improves both the performance of the drive and the price as well. It also results in a 30 percent smaller form factor, which is allowed the company to yield more die per wafer, reducing the cost of the drive effectively.
The company has also done some interesting improvements to the algorithms that improve the performance of how the data is distributed in the NAND cells, which is one of the most crucial things in SD becomes both in the 2.5 SATA and the single-sided Endpoint 2280 form factor. The SSD utilizes the SMI SM 2258 controller, which is pretty old but has a low-density parity-check error correction algorithm. That’s enough for the 64 layers of 3D NAND. The crucial MX500 comes in different sizes, but the 500-gigabyte version delivers the most for its price. You can also buy 250 gigabytes, one terabyte, and two terabyte versions.
However, all of them rock the same performance specs with 560 megabits per second sequential read speed and 510 megabits per second sequential write feed that are amazing. Overall, the random speeds peak at 95000 to 90000 read-to-write eye ops, which also super solid at providing you great is gaming experiences. It also has tons of other features, such as the self-encrypting drive and full disk encryption that allows you to have a safer experience.
Pros
- Cheap
- Great performance
- Available in 2.5 inches or M.2 SATA version
- Dependable
Cons
- Tolerance rating is low for use cases involving heavy data
Best Gaming SSD Under $100
Moving on, we had the best model under the $100 price tag.
5.
Kingstone A400

We’re going to kick off this list with an exemplary SSD drive that has a very low initial cost. The Kingston A400. This SSD costs way under 100 dollars, despite having a 480-gigabyte storage room available for you. And if you look at the reviews, you’ll see that it has gathered a large number of reviews that have praised its performance. Let’s take a deeper look and see what else this one offers. It also comes in different sizes, including 120, 240, 480, and 960 gigabytes. The read speeds, the capacities are the same at 500 megabits per second.
However, the right speed differs and it is 320 megabits for 120, 350 for 240, 450 for both 480 and 960-gigabyte models. I should mention that we’re talking about the 480-gigabyte version here, and this one, as well as the others, is made out of lightweight plastic. The Kingston A400 weighs just 1.4 ounces, making it a perfect option for laptops and portability. The company states that the droid is shock and vibration-resistant, but I wouldn’t be very confident about this based solely on the price. Just don’t go knocking it around and you should be good to go to Kingston A400 utilizes the TLC or triple-level cell NAND memory chips that are pretty normal at this price. However, some more expensive models use the same technology.
The controller of the Kingstone A400 is listed as to S.H. and it’s aimed at DRAM-less users. The TBW rating of the 480-gigabyte version is 160 gigabytes, which doesn’t tell us a lot about it. But it should be pretty good in testing it, deliver the promised speeds, and sometimes even exceeded those in synthetic benchmark tests, something that I didn’t expect. To conclude, I can say that under $100 it’s a beast of a drive.
Pros
- Inspiring postconditioning performance
- Metal frame
Cons
- The delay is not impressive
- No thermal pads
Conclusion:
Thanks for reading, I hope you like the article if you found it helpful. Please remember to leave a comment on my blog to see more articles like this in the future. If you have any questions related to these products, you can leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.