T-Force CARDEA A440 M.2 PCIe 4.0 2TB SSD Review

How Much Does it Cost?

The TEAMGROUP T-Force CARDEA A440 Pro PSS Graphene Heatsink 2TB is available now from the usual big-name retailers. It’s currently on Amazon UK for £385, and Amazon US for $369.99 + Tax. However, the is a 1TB model, which still delivers broadly the same features and performance, but at just £197. Of course, that is painfully expensive, but keep in mind, this is a cutting edge drive with extremely high-end performance. Put simply, the best doesn’t come cheap.

Overview

This is a pretty extreme SSD, really only designed for enthusiast PC users or those who want to expand their PlayStation 5 storage without compromising on performance. Sony does recommend a drive of at least 5500 Mbps, so with this drive being around 50% faster in some applications, I think it’s safe to say it qualifies. That being said, I’ve seen people putting 3200 Mbps drives in their PlayStation 5 with no major issues. However, when it comes to loading times, more Mbps is better, and the Cardea has just about everything else beaten in that respect. If you want fewer loading screens and more action, this is your golden ticket.

Of course, even if you don’t own a PlayStation 5 to take advantage of the Pro Special 5eries of the Cardeon A440, you can still put it in your PC. AMD’s latest motherboards offer PCIe 4.0 M.2 storage options that can take full advantage of this drive. Of course, Intel just released their Z690 and 12th Gen CPUs giving you plenty of compatible hardware. If you use this drive in a PCI 3.0 slot, it’ll still work, but you’ll be severely limited by what that interface can deliver.

While it’s got a lot of appeal to me as a gamer, it’s not really going to give you better FPS. However, big games like Flight Simulator 2020, Forza Horizon 5, Battlefield, Call of Duty, etc, suffer from bigger loading times, this drive will trim them down significantly. If you were coming from a 2.5″ SSD, which typically max out at 550 Mbps, you can see that loading at over 7000 Mbps is going to speed things along.

When it comes to other workloads, the drive can really deliver. Video editing, graphics editors, game development engines and more, pulling large numbers of large assets can usually slow things down. Having ultra-fast storage like this really takes those workflows to the next level, especially when rendering or exporting, as the higher write speeds as a huge advantage.

Should I Buy One?

These flagship drives are woefully expensive, but it is what it is. If you want the best performance on the market, it’s going to come at a premium. It’s going to hurt to pay for, and you may even feel a little remorse while using it. Then one day, you’ll try doing your work or gaming on a system with a “normal” SSD, and you’ll understand why your new drive is so awesome.