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PNY XLR8 M.2 Gen 4 NVMe SSDs launching in same month as the Playstation 5, but they probably won't be compatible

PNY XLR8 M.2 Gen 4 NVMe SSDs launching in same month as the Playstation 5, but they probably won't be compatible (Source: PNY)
PNY XLR8 M.2 Gen 4 NVMe SSDs launching in same month as the Playstation 5, but they probably won't be compatible (Source: PNY)
The PNY XLR8 CS3040 NVMe SSDs are rated for speeds of up to 5.6 GB/s compared to the 5.5 GB/s SSD in the PS5. However, we doubt that the 100 MB/s difference will be enough of an overhead to make the PNY drives a good fit for the Sony console.

Manufacturers have been steadily announcing PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSDs this year to replace the current generation PCIe 3.0 NVMe ones. These latest PCIe 4.0 SSDs are able to break the ~3000 MB/s limit of PCIe 3.0 x4 to offer transfer rates of up to ~7000 MB/s.

The PNY XLR8 CS3040 series, which is set to be the company's first family of PCIe 4.0 M.2 SSDs when it launches this November, will support sequential read and write speeds of up to 5600 MB/s and 4300 MB/s, respectively, on 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB SKUs. Larger 4 TB SKUs will be made available as well albeit these will be slower at 3100 to 3500 MB/s. PNY is even planning to ship certain models with a large 45 g aluminum heatsink to aid in heat dissipation.

Some potential buyers will inevitably want to know if the new PNY drives will be compatible with the Sony PS5 since both products will be launching at around the same time. According to the lead engineer of the PS5 earlier this year, compatible expansion drives must actually perform faster than the internal drive of the PS5 (5500 MB/s) in order to make up for the differences in drive controllers and priority levels. Exactly how much faster, however, remains to be seen.

If we are to hazard a guess, the 5600 MB/s sequential read rate of the new PNY drives aren't going to be enough of an overhead for them to be compatible with the PS5. The recently announced Western Digital SN850, for example, supports read rates of up to 7000 MB/s which WD is claiming will be compatible with the new Sony console. We do expect these PNY drives to be comparatively cheaper than those from WD as a result.

Sale off now on Amazon - PNY 1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe Gen3 SSD

 

Source(s)

PNY press release

Parsippany, New Jersey, October 22nd, 2020 - PNY today announced the launch of XLR8 CS3040 M.2 NVMe Gen4 x4 Solid State Drive, the “CS3040”, that will deliver the next generation speed and ultra-high performance demanded today.

PNY’s quest to develop the absolute ultra-fast internal storage to answer today’s demands of 4K and 8K content creators, high-intensive applications and ever more demanding games, lead to the launch of the company’s first PCIe 4.0 Solid State Drive.

 

With the ever-growing support from CPU and motherboard manufacturers to the latest NVMe Gen 4.0 protocol, it is eminent to have a supporting SSD that, when combined, will bring intensive users to a true Gen 4.0 level and deliver the performance and experience they ultimately demand.

Delivering the future of ultra-high performance and next-generation speed today, the CS3040 offers sequential speeds1 of up to 5,600MB/s Read and 4,300MB/s Write that will accelerate productivity and elevate the gaming experience to a whole new level.

The CS3040 family of products is available in two versions: with and without an integrated extruded aluminum heatsink designed to increase heat dissipation and improve performance while even under the most demanding applications. The extruded aluminum heatsink provides 45 grams of thermal mass and has been meticulously designed with eight vertical fins that provide a larger heatsink surface area and optimized airflow, resulting in quicker heat absorption and dissipation during sustained workloads.

Product Features:

  • Extruded Aluminum Heat sink on select models 
  • Next generation in speed of up to 5,600MB/s Seq. Read and 4,300MB/s Seq. Write 
  • Enhanced bandwidth that allows for extreme performance and low latency, making it superior to SATA and NVMe Gen 3 based SSDs
  • Lower power consumption that results in greater energy efficiency
  • Greater endurance due to the drive’s ability to withstand extreme conditions and to retain data even when dropped.

 

Product Specifications:

  • PNY XLR8 CS3040 M.2 NVMe Gen4x4 Solid State Drive

    • PCIe 4.0 interface (NVMe Gen4 x 4), supports NVMe 1.4
    • Form Factor: M.2 2280
    • Capacities: 500GB2, 1TB and 2TB
    • Speed1: up to 5,600MB/s Read and up to 4,300 MB/s Write (vary by model)
    • Warranty: 5 Year

 

In addition to the CS3040 launch, PNY is complementing the company’s SSD line-up by adding additional capacities to current models as well as a new M.2 budget drive.

  • 4TB NVMe M.2 CS2130: up to 3,500MB/s Read and 3,000MB/s Write 
  • 4TB XLR8 NVMe M.2 CS3030:  3,500MB/s Read and 3,100MB/s Write
  • CS900 M.2 SATA III in 250GB, 500GB and 1TB, sequential speeds vary by capacity and reach up to 550MB/s Read and up to 515MB/s Write.

 

Product Availability:

Availability for the products in this press release varies by model and capacity with most of them starting to ship in mid-November 2020, in time for Black Friday and the Holiday season.

 

Keep Current on PNY Technologies and XLR8 Gaming news.

Follow @PNYTechnologies on FacebookTwitterInstagram and join our corporate community on LinkedIn and @XLR8Gam1ng on FacebookTwitterInstagram.

 

About PNY Technologies and XLR8 Gaming

Established in 1985, PNY Technologies®, Inc. celebrates over 35 years of business excellence as a leading manufacturer and supplier of Flash Memory Cards, USB Flash Drives, Solid State Drives, Computer Memory Upgrade Modules, Cables, NVIDIA® GeForce® Consumer Graphics Cards, NVIDIA® Quadro® Professional Graphics Cards, NVIDIA® Tesla supercomputing inferencing cards, NVIDIA® DGXTM Systems and PNY GPU powered servers and workstations. The company’s photography-videography, mobility, 3D gaming-visualization and business solutions are widely available from major retail, e-tail and wholesale outlets internationally. Headquartered in the USA, PNY maintains facilities in North America, Europe, Middle EastAsia and Latin America.

 

XLR8 Gaming, PNY Technologies’ brand designed for gaming and modding enthusiasts powers their journey towards the ultimate PC experience.

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > News > News Archive > Newsarchive 2020 10 > PNY XLR8 M.2 Gen 4 NVMe SSDs launching in same month as the Playstation 5, but they probably won't be compatible
Allen Ngo, 2020-10-23 (Update: 2020-10-23)