As SATA SSDs continue to take over the space occupied by traditional platter drives, PCIe NVMe SSDs are moving into the desktop performance space. Not to be left behind, Corsair has their Neutron NX500 HHHL PCIe NVMe SSD. This is a similar move to Zotac’s first foray into NVMe, using a PCIe drive instead of an M.2 to maximize system compatibility. Even though M.2 ports are ubiquitous now in most modern motherboards from Intel and AMD, there are more users who have yet to upgrade that don’t.
It uses a PCIe x1 3.0 slot but it is backwards compatible on older systems as well. The entire PCB is enclosed in a heatsink to tackle any heat issues which may arise since M.2 drives tend to run hot. Heat affects performance, so Corsair applied a substantial passive cooler. There is even a backplate integrated into the PCB while airflow can freely move across the drive.
Neutron NX500 Features
The Corsair Neutron NX500 measures 12mm x 22 x 183 mm and weighs 0.62 lbs. In terms of performance, Corsair claims speesd of up to 2800 MBps read and 1600MBps write in Crystal DiskMark. In ATTO, the 800GB version runs up to 3000 MBps read and 2400 MBps write. The 4K Random read performance runs up to 300,000 IOPS while the 4K random write goes up to 260,000 IOPS.
Pricing and Availability
The Corsair Neutron NX500 is currently available for purchase now via NewEgg.com. The 800GB version has a $699 price tag while the 400GB version is $319. Each package comes with a lower profile bracket, a quick start guide, warranty leaflet, and four mounting screws.
