PCIe 5.0 drives heat up during long transfers and gaming sessions, and once hot they slow down. The anodised aluminium heatsink on this version draws heat away from the controller and memory chips. According to SanDisk, peak performance is sustained up to 5.5 times longer with the heatsink than without it. That keeps reads of up to 14,900 MB/s and writes of up to 11,000 MB/s available even when the drive works for hours on end.
A programmable RGB LED is built into the heatsink, so its colours can be matched to the rest of your system lighting. In a case with a glass side panel the drive is on show rather than disappearing into the motherboard. Mind the dimensions: with the heatsink the drive is 25 mm wide and 9.76 mm tall and weighs 28.2 g, so it needs free space above the M.2 slot and the motherboard's own M.2 cover usually has to come off.
Beyond sequential speed, small-block work matters: in 4K random reads the drive reaches up to 1.6 million IOPS, and up to 2.4 million in random writes. SLC caching, which SanDisk calls nCache 4.0, accelerates short write bursts. The result is quick system start-up, smooth game loading and fast data access when working with AI models.
The drive uses TLC 3D NAND and is rated for 600 TBW, so 600 terabytes of data can be written over its lifetime. Mean time between failures is 1,750,000 hours. Average power draw is 6.2 W reading and 6.1 W writing, and 0.005 W in sleep. The operating range is 0–85 °C and storage temperature runs from −40 to 85 °C.
The drive supports hardware encryption to the TCG Opal 2.0 standard: data is encrypted by the drive's own controller, so the processor carries none of that load. Opal support is used by enterprise management tools and by BitLocker in Windows. SanDisk lists Windows 11 as the supported operating system and a desktop PC as the intended use.
Builders of a PCIe 5.0 gaming PC whose motherboard lacks strong M.2 cooling; owners of a glass-sided case who want the drive to match their RGB lighting; video editors and 3D artists whose drive runs at full load for hours; and workstation builders who need a fast, encrypted system drive.
| Brand | SANDISK |
|---|---|
| Interface | PCI Express 5.0 |
| TBW rating | 600 |
| Component for | PC |
| Operating shock | 1500 |
| Random read (4KB) | 1600000 |
| Random write (4KB) | 2400000 |
| Operating vibration | 5 |
| Non-operating vibration | 4.9 |
| PCI Express interface data lanes | x4 |
| Mean time between failures (MTBF) | 1750000 |
| EAN | 619659231934 |
| Memory type | TLC 3D NAND |
|---|
| SSD capacity | 1000 GB |
|---|---|
| SSD form factor | M.2 |
| NVMe | Yes |
| M.2 SSD size | 2280 (22 x 80 mm) |
| NVMe version | 2.0 |
| Storage temperature (T-T) | -40 - 85 |
| Security algorithms | TCG Opal 2.0 |
|---|
| Hardware encryption | Yes |
|---|---|
| Windows operating systems supported | Windows 11 |
| Power consumption (sleep) | 0.005 |
|---|---|
| Average power consumption (read) | 6.2 |
| Average power consumption (write) | 6.1 |
| Operating temperature (T-T) | 0 – 85 °C |
|---|---|
| Read speed | 14900 |
| Write speed | 11000 |
| Cooling type | Heatsink |
| Backlight | Yes |
|---|
| Width | 25 mm |
|---|---|
| Depth | 80 mm |
| Height | 9.76 mm |
| Weight | 28.2 g |
No. With the heatsink the drive is 9.76 mm tall and 25 mm wide, which does not fit a laptop M.2 slot. SanDisk lists it for desktop PCs.
Speed, capacity and endurance are the same. This version adds an aluminium heatsink and RGB lighting that hold high speeds for longer; the bare version is 2.38 mm thick and fits under the motherboard's own M.2 cooling plate.
Yes, an M.2 2280 NVMe drive also works in a PCIe 4.0 slot, but speed is limited by the slot. The full 14,900 MB/s is only available in a PCIe 5.0 slot.
SanDisk describes the lighting as programmable, but the manufacturer does not specify which software controls it.
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