Samsung Launches New 2TB SSD 850 EVO And 850 PRO Models
by Brett Howse on July 7, 2015 8:00 AM EST
Due to what Samsung is citing as a surge in demand for larger capacity SSDs, they have now launched two new models offering up to two terabytes of storage each. In order to drive the extra capacity, they have also launched a new SSD controller in the MHX controller. Our resident SSD expert Kristian expects the MHX to be similar in design to the MEX controller, but with additional DRAM to track the extra blocks.
The 2TB 850 EVO leverages the same 32-layer 128 Gbit TLC V-NAND that we have already seen in the smaller capacity 850 EVO products, but the 850 PRO will use a new 128 Gbit 2-bit MLC die, but still at 32-layers. It should be a nice addition to the 850 PRO series, especially with the rise of 4K video and the extra storage it requires.
| Samsung 2TB SSD Specifications | ||||
| Model | 850 PRO | 850 EVO | ||
| Controller | Samsung MHX | |||
| NAND | Samsung 128Gbit 40nm MLC V-NAND 32-layers | Samsung 128Gbit 40nm TLC V-NAND 32-layers | ||
| DRAM (LPDDR3) | 2GB | |||
| Sequential Read | 550MB/s | 540MB/s | ||
| Sequential Write | 520MB/s | 520MB/s | ||
| 4KB Random Read | 100K IOPS | 98K IOPS | ||
| 4KB Random Write | 90K IOPS | 90K IOPS | ||
| Power | 5mW (DevSLP) / 3.3W (read) / 3.4W (write) | 5mW (DevSLP) / 3.7W (read) / 4.7W (write) | ||
| Encryption | AES-256, TCG Opal 2.0 & IEEE-1667 (eDrive supported) | |||
| Endurance | 300TB | 150TB | ||
| Warranty | 10 years | 5 years | ||
| Price | $1000 | $800 | ||
Samsung will still package these drives in the same 7mm 2.5” SSD enclosure which means they will be SATA based for now, but Samsung has said they will be moving their 3D NAND to mSATA and M.2 form factors as well. Endurance ratings for the drives are 10 years or 300 TBW (Terabytes Written) for the PRO, and 5 years or 150 TBW for the EVO model.
The 850 Pro retails for $1000, and the 850 EVO retails for $800. Although not inexpensive by any means, and still much more than the $75 of a spinning disk, the prices are right around double the 1TB models in the lineup so there is not any extra premium to get the larger models at this time.
Kristian should have a full review of the new models soon.
Source: Samsung
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Oxford Guy - Tuesday, July 7, 2015 - link
Isn't that just a Linux issue, due to the use of queued trim or something?leexgx - Wednesday, July 8, 2015 - link
thats just a issue with samsung poor SATA 3.2 poor implementation saying it supports stuff that it does not support (affects OSX as well) windows does it sequently so you're fine as long as your on windows systemKristian Vättö - Wednesday, July 8, 2015 - link
So far there haven't been any reports of TRIM issues under OS X, so it seems to be limited to Linux.Oxford Guy - Monday, July 13, 2015 - link
I have noticed random file corruption on my Macbook Pro with 1 TB mystery Samsung SSD, which is most likely TLC (probably an 840 EVO).Laststop311 - Tuesday, July 7, 2015 - link
These are cool, but when I do build my next system I do not want a sata based ssd. I would of considered these if they could of been offered in sata express at the very least. Even sata express is already fully saturated and does not offer enough bandwidth for the fastest ssd's. 10gbit sata express just doesn't cut it, need 32gbit ultra m2 to give the fastest ssd's enough breathing room to max out without being bottlenecked by interface speed.I'm 100% sure my next build which will be skylake-e will be using a motherboard with dual ultra m2 slots. By that time I expect samsung will have its v-nand on m2 ssd's and be able to fit 1TB of space instead of only 512GB. Would like to use 2 of them for 2TB of ssd space and have no spinning HDD's inside the case whatsoever, the NAS will handle bulk storage, no 3.5" HDD keeps noise and vibration levels down and allows airflow to be less restricted and cuts down on sources leaking heat into the case. We will still be waiting awhile for 2TB on m2 ssd's as we are still waiting for 1TB on m2 ssds. Well I guess they could release one of these samsungs with one of those sff-8639 connectors that intel has on their nvme pci-e drive and have a 2TB 2.5" drive that has full 32gbit/s access.
Impulses - Wednesday, July 8, 2015 - link
I actually see myself going with one or two large SATA drives like these for data in future builds, and then a smaller PCI-E NVMe drive for the OS. I imagine even a year or two down the line there'll still be a cost divide between the two, particularly if we're still straddling the line between TLC consumer drives and higher end MLC drives.Shoot, if I was doing a new build right now I'd run the 400GB Intel 750 SSD as my OS/scratch drive (would probably go 256GB if such an option existed) and then Samsung 850 EVO drives for data. Hanging unto my dual 830s for now but will probably move to an 850 this year, well before I decide to replace my 2500K & P67A.
sulu1977 - Wednesday, July 8, 2015 - link
If I need to put this drive in storage where the temperature varies from 45 deg F to 98 deg F, how much data will it retain after 2 years?canthearu - Thursday, July 9, 2015 - link
If you use it in a normal desktop, you will get data retention on the order of at least 5 to 10 years.Everyone badly misunderstands the retention presentation from JEDEC. The worst case situation only applies in rare situations that are hard to duplicate even if you try. Your average desktop is so far away from this worst case situation that you can't even compare the two.
Firstly, the reduced retention is based on using ALL the erase cycles of the NAND cells. Most desktops SSDs would be lucky to reach 10% wear, let alone 100% wear. Retention on NAND is orders of magnitude better when near new then when fully worn.
Secondly, this is talking about server SSDs, not client SSDs. Server SSDs have a lot more error correction and spare space that lets the makers use the NAND a lot more times. While client MLC NAND may be rated for 3k cycles, server eMLC NAND can be rated for 30k cycles. JEDEC specifies a lower retention for server NAND at the end of NAND life based on allowing NAND to be used more heavily.
Third, you should be slapped silly for suggesting that you would spend $1000 on an SSD and then putting it onto the shelf. A terrible waste of money when you could buy a couple of 2TB hard drives for much less and have devices better suited for the job.
Nexing - Friday, July 10, 2015 - link
Permit me to digress. Samsung 840s need their data oftenly rewritten otherwise there might be errors. And this retention issue means that -travellers- for instance, may not leave their laptops unattended several months because depending on their SSD they might lose relevant data. What about the accepted custom of leaving your personal/family photos or files to stay in what was originally stored at (so far HDs), now even finding decades old laptops somewhere at the house/warehouse. Until now we had the hope of retrieving hard disks. Now? ...Exactly there is a question mark here.To me, this is making explicit the lack of long term storage solutions, something several quitely-but decisively want to surprise! us all with the fact that is already at the cloud, and has been there for decades, hence trust everything to big brother. Where is High capacity durable Bluray optics at lost cost? There exist the need of personal/familiar long term safe storage medium, pronto!
canthearu - Friday, July 10, 2015 - link
Note that this is the 850 EVO 850, not 840 EVO.As much as I think samsung are overrated, the 850 TLC series won't have the same kinds of retention problems the 840 TLC series suffered. The feature size on the 850 V-NAND is much larger than the that on the standard planar NAND Samsung uses.
In terms of long term retention, we will probably be surprised. It isn't like USB flash drives suffer constant problems from this.
In terms of keeping your data safe, you can never just throw it onto a device and forget about it. That is just asking for data loss. It has always been this way, and SSDs do not change this. Unless you monitor and renew your media, you are always risking failure and data loss.
And yes, you can still get burnable DVDs and blu-rays. A blank blu-ray disk is a few dollars and they would be suitable for 10 year retention. It isn't as cheap as a hard drive, but if you need that shelf life, you have to choose your priorities.