Best M.2 SSD For Gaming in 2022 Reviews and Top Picks
We find the best M.2 SSD for gaming
Anyway. What I’m trying to say is, I like SSD’s. We all do. That’s why we’ve decided to compile a list of the best types of M.2 SSD’s currently available in today’s market.
However, this isn’t your usual column that outlines a ‘best of series’ and nothing else. In this article, we’re going to educate you on; areas to consider when buying an SSD, what M.2 actually means, how to choose which SSD is the right one for YOU, and everything in-between that we feel is relevant to M.2 solid-state drives.
So, whether you’re looking to buy that monster 2TB SSD for your gaming build, or a cheap and cheerful 250GB drive to get your desktop booting up quicker, this article is going to cover everything you need to know about M.2 SSD’s and hopefully, which one is the best option for you.
Our Top Picks
Our 5 Best M.2 Solid State Drives
In-depth Review
Samsung 970 EVO Plus – 1TB
Samsung 970 EVO Plus – 1TB
If you’re looking for the absolute best of the best when it comes to performance, then look no further than the Samsung 970 Evo series.
The 970 range from Samsung is their flagship SSD and is lightning quick. It currently boasts some of the fastest sequential read/write speeds available in today’s market. You also get the confidence that comes with buying from a reputable brand such as Samsung as well.
The only issue is the price. If you have the budget though, the Samsung 970 Evo is surely the choice for you.
Adata SX8200 NAND NVMe M.2
Adata SX8200 NAND NVMe M.2
ADATA was sitting quietly under the radar for quite some time, however, that’s no longer the case. The company known for budget hardware offerings has released some of the best SSD storage money can buy, with excellent read/write speeds which rival Samsung’s Pro series and a, relatively, affordable price tag to boot.
The ADATA SX8200 gets our all-round spot because that’s exactly what it offers, all-round performance at a good price.
WD Black SN750 NVMe
WD Black SN750 NVMe
Western Digital are no strangers to hard drives and it’s absolutely no surprise to see them feature in this best-of-guide with a superb SSD offering. As you will know, Western Digital has released some of the best, most affordable hard drives now for as long as I can remember. So it was only natural for them to delve into the solid state drive world.
The SN750 is our value pick as we feel is offers fantastic value for money and decent performance at the same time. Read and write speeds are good and it comes in a variety of sizes at affordable price points.
As well as that, Western Digital is an excellent brand that offers great service if something were to go wrong with your hardware.
A great choice if you’re looking to maximize value.
Intel Optane SSD 905P Series
Intel Optane SSD 905P Series
When we think of Intel we usually think of their incredible range of CPUs, however, that isn’t what we’re celebrating here. Intel has released a range of SSD’s known as the Intel Optane series which come in a number of different variants. However, the 905 is surely the star of the show.
The read/write speeds of the M.2 Optane are impressive but nothing to write home about, mind the pun. However, they do offer an AIC PCIe version of this module which literally smashes everything in this list out of the park.
Overall, the M.2 version of this SSD is very efficient and offers good performance, however, if you want to maximize performance, maybe check the AIC module out.
XPG SX6000 Pro
XPG SX6000 Pro
This is ADATA’s second entry into this list of the 5 best M.2 SSD’s and it was hard to keep it out. Even though it doesn’t have the best performance levels we’ve seen, what it does offer is absolutely fantastic value for money.
You will not find an SSD as cheap as this which offers similar performance levels. ADATA are masters of budget hardware offerings and this is another to add to their already long list of affordable offerings.
Final Word
And that just about wraps things up. We’ve given you our list of what we believe are the best M.2 SSD’s currently available in today’s market. We decided not to go for all-out performance for every recommendation, instead, we have selected the best SSD’s that fit a specific field; Top Performer, Best all-rounder and so on.
We feel splitting the list like this gives every type of user a viable M.2 SSD to choose from, whether it be an expensive 2TB mega SSD or a budget 250GB solution respectively.
Not only that, but we’ve also given you the information required to go out and do your own research in the event that our list doesn’t quite live up to your expectations.
This being said, what was your preferred SSD choice? I personally really like the ADATA SX8200 as it offers excellent performance and a cheap price tag. Why don’t you let us know in the comments section below what you decided to go for!