The Samsung Evo is a single M.2 NVMe drive which means that you can easily attach a heat sink to it, which comes with your motherboard as the drive can get a bit toasty when used for a long time and under constant load. Samsung 970 Evo Plus is an improved version of the simple 970 Evo. It gives improved read and write speeds and improved overall performance. Let’s have a look at Samsung 970 Evo vs Samsung 970 Evo Plus and try to find out how much difference do they have and how much is 970 Evo Plus better than the original Evo.
Samsung 970 EVO 1TB SSD
Although the Samsung 970 Evo comes in different storage capacities, including 250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB, I’ll be looking at the 1 TB version for a better understanding of the Samsung 970 Evo. The 970 Evo promises breakthrough speeds, best-in-class reliability, and a long life span so that you can be worry-free after buying one. Samsung claims that 970 Evo is up to 32% faster than the previous generation. The 970 Evo has an upgraded Pheonix controller and nickel coating to help keep the temperatures down. Even the sticker on the backside of the drive has a copper layer under it which acts as a heat spreader which is an impressive approach. It is also more power-efficient than the previous generation. All these factors combined stop the NVMe from throttling the speeds and make sure you always get the full performance out of it. Samsung also provides the warranty of the drive for 5 years or 600 TB write, whichever comes first. This means that your drive’s warranty will expire if you write 600 TB data on it.
Specifications:
On the Samsung 970 Evo 1TB SSD, you should be expecting up to 3500 MB/s read speeds, and 2500 MB/s write speeds. These are the company claims, but we will have a look at the real benchmarks in the upcoming sections of this article. With this NVMe drive, you do not need any drivers or stuff to boot it up. It is simply plug-and-play and supports most motherboards on the market. It has PCIe Gen 3.0 x4, NVMe 1.3 interface, and the exact dimensions of the drive are 80.15 x 22.15 x 2.38 (mm). And the amazing thing is that it only weighs 8 grams. The storage memory type on this drive is Samsung V-NAND 3-bit MLC and it comes with Auto Garbage Collection Algorithm. The drive also supports AES 256-bit Encryption. The power consumption of the drive is just 6 watts on average and 10 watts on full load. Samsung claims that the drive life span is up to 1.5 million hours, but it actually depends on how much you read and write to it. It can operate between 0 degrees Celcius and 70 degrees Celcius. The drive also comes with Samsung Magician software, which lets you manage your NVMe drive in different ways. With the Samsung Magician software, you can update the firmware of your drive, monitor drive health and speed, and even boost its performance. The software also has some benchmarking tools which let you test the performance of your drive. You can also encrypt your drive with Samsung Magician.
Memory Size And Flash Memory
Samsung is the leading brand in manufacturing flash memories. Samsung 970 Evo and Evo Plus are just 2 examples of how good Samsung can make Flash memory drives. The 970 Evo comes in different memory sizes, including 250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. All the capacities have different read and write speed capabilities which we will look at in the section below.
Performance & Speeds
The advertised read speed of 250 GB, 500 GB, and 1 TB drives is 3400 MB/s, while the read speed of 2 TB drives is 3500 MB/s. The write speed of 250 GB drive is up to 1500 MB/s, the 500 GB has the write speed of up to 2300 MB/s, and 1 TB and 2 TB drives have the advertised write speeds of 2500 MB/s which is great.
Storage Capacity
As mentioned above, the Samsung 970 Evo comes in 4 storage capacities, including 250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. You can choose whichever storage suits you the best according to your budget.
TurboWrite And SLC Cache
TurboWrite is a technology introduced by Samsung which gives the maximum turbo speed to the drive for a limited amount of data. This technology is very beneficial when loading games and copying small files or doing some other productivity tasks. Samsung Turbo write is like a car turbo that boosts the car to its full speed for a limited time, but just like the car, it cannot maintain the turbo speed for much longer. The TurboWrite capacity is different for different sizes of drives. Let us have a look at all of them. The 250 GB Samsung Evo 970 has the TurboWrite data limit of 13 GB, which means that if you try to write a single file to the drive, it will write the first 13 GB to the drive at 1500 MB/s, but after that, the speed will slow down to 300 MB/s. This limitation is only for the single files which are larger than 13 GB. The 500 GB drive has the TurboWrite data limit of 22 GB, which means that the first 22 GB will be written at the maximum of 2300 MB/s which will slow down to 600 MB/s after that. And the 1 TB drive has the TurboWrite data limit of 42 GB, which is higher than the last 2 versions of the drive I talked about. The 1 TB drive will write 42 GB of data at 2500 MB/s, and after that, it will slow down to 1250 MB/s which is also not bad. So basically, the TurboWrite technology is very helpful while loading games or copying movies and other stuff which has less size. SLC cache is a type of flash storage that stores only one bit of data in each cell. Such storage types are faster, and consume less energy, and are more efficient with more endurance. The TurboWrite file size limit in Samsung Evo 970 is based on the SLC cache.
Work Environment And Warranty:
Samsung 970 Evo can be used by individuals at home as it is a perfect drive for common users. It can also be used by industries and developers because of its amazing features like TurboWrite. Coming to the warranty, 5 years warranty is given for all storage capacities model, but Samsung provides different warranties for different capacities of 970 Evo in terms of TeraBytes Written (TBW). This means after a certain amount of data is written on the drive before 5 years, the warranty will be over. Or if that amount of data is not written on the drive and 5 years are passed, the warranty will be over too. In simple words, whichever comes first from the 5 years time period and TBW, the warranty will be over. For the 250 GB model, the TBW warranty is 150 TB. For the 500 GB model, it’s 300 TBW. 600 TBW is for the 1 TB model, and 1200 TBW is for the 2 TB model. That is a lot of data for each drive relative to its size.
Samsung 970 EVO Plus 1TB SSD
Samsung 970 Evo Plus is an even better version of the earlier mentioned 970 Evo. It promises even better read and write speeds and improved TurboWrite speeds as well. As mentioned, the 970 Evo is 32% faster than the previous generation, and the 970 Evo Plus is even faster than the simple Evo 970. The 970 Evo Plus also promises best-in-class reliability, a long life span, and breakthrough speeds. With best-in-class SSDs and an excellent warranty, you can be worry-free after buying the 970 Evo Plus. The advanced nickel-coated controller and heat spreader ensures superior heat dissipation. It also comes with a Dynamic Thermal Guard, which automatically monitors the temperature and keeps the 970 Evo Plus at optimum temperatures to make sure that there are minimal performance drops because of thermal limitations. And just like the 970 Evo, the Evo Plus also has a copper layered sticker on the backside which acts as a heat spreader. It also provides 5 years warranty and different TeraBytes written warranty for different capacity models. We’ll look at the warranty in detail in the upcoming warranty section.
Specifications:
The 970 Evo Plus provides even better read and write speeds than the 970 Evo I discussed above. The maximum write speed the simple 970 Evo could give was 2500 MB/s which is increased to 3300 MB/s which is a big jump. However, the read and write speeds are different in different capacities models, which I will discuss in the upcoming section. Just like the 970 Evo I discussed above, you do not need any drivers to use the Samsung 970 Evo Plus. It is simply plug-and-play and supports most motherboards on the market. The exact dimensions of the drive are exactly the same as the 970 Evo discussed above. It also weighs 8 grams only and the memory interface is also the same. The Evo Plus also comes with Auto Garbage Collection Algorithm and 256-bit encryption. The advertised sequential read speed is 3500 MB/s on all storage capacities. While sequential write speed on 250 GB capacity is up to 2300 MB/s, on 500 GB, it’s 3200 MB/s, and on the 1 TB and 2 TB variants, it’s 3300 MB/s which is much higher than the simple 970 Evo. The power consumption on average of 250 GB version is 5.0 watts, 500 GB version is 5.8 watts, and 6.0 watts for 1 TB and 2 TB versions. Drive life span is claimed to be up to 1.5 million hours, but as I told you before it depends on how much you read and write on the drive. The 970 Evo Plus can operate between 0 degrees Celcius and 70 degrees Celcius. The Samsung Magician software is included with the 970 Evo Plus as well, which lets you monitor and manage your drive in multiple ways like updating its firmware, monitoring its health and speed, boosting the performance, and benchmarking the drive to check if it is working at its best.
Memory Size And Flash Memory
The 970 Evo Plus also comes in the same different memory sizes as the 970 Evo, including 250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. We’ll check the different read and write speeds of different memory sizes in the section below. As mentioned above, Samsung is a leading brand of making excellent quality flash memories. So you can buy the Evo Plus with complete trust and peace of mind as it is one of the best flash memory SSDs on the market.
Performance & Speeds
Unlike the Samsung 970 Evo, the 970 Evo Plus has the same 3500 MB/s read speed for all storage variants. However, the write speed is still different for different variants. The write speed of the 250 GB variant is 2300 MB/s which is 800 MB/s more than the 1500 MB/s speed of the 250 GB variant of 970 Evo. The write speed of the 500 GB variant is 3200 MB/s which is 900 MB/s more than the 2300 MB/s speed of the 500 GB variant of Evo 970. The 1 TB and 2 TB variants have a write speed of 3300 MB/s which is 800 MB/s more than the 2500 MB/s write speed of these variants of 970 Evo. So, when looking at the Samsung 970 Evo vs Samsung 970 Evo Plus write speeds, the Evo Plus is essentially better in every storage size variant.
Storage capacity
Now talking about the storage capacity the Samsung 970 Evo Plus also comes in 4 storage capacities, including 250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB. You can choose the best one that suits your needs and budget.
TurboWrite And SLC Cache
TurboWrite technology is already explained above, but let’s have a quick recap. This technology lets the NVMe drive write a specific amount of data at maximum speed. After that, the data transfer rate slows down. This technology is beneficial while loading games or copying movies etc. The TurboWrite speed of the Samsung 970 Evo Plus is different and better than the 970 Evo. The 250 GB Samsung 970 Evo Plus has the TurboWrite data limit of 13 GB, which means if you a single file to the drive, it will write the first 13 GB to the drive at 2300 MB/s which is 800 MB/s more than the 1500 MB/s speed of 250 GB 970 Evo. After that, the speed will slow down to 400 MB/s which is 100 MB/s more than the 300 MB/s on the 970 Evo. The 500 GB 970 Evo Plus drive has the TurboWrite data limit of 22 GB, which means that the first 22 GB will be written at the maximum of 3200 MB/s which is 900 MB/s more than the 2300 MB/s TurboWrite speed on the 970 Evo. After that, it will slow down to 900 MB/s which is 300 MB/s more than the 600 MB/s on the non Plus Evo. And just like the 970 Evo, the 1 TB Evo Plus drive has the TurboWrite data limit of 42GB as well. The 1 TB Evo Plus will write 42 GB of data at 3300 MB/s which is 800 MB/s more than the 2500 MB/s of the non Plus variant. After that, it will slow down to 1700 MB/s which is much more than the 1250 MB/s of the non Plus Evo. Just like the 970 Evo, the TurboWrite file size limit is based on the SLC Cache, which is a type of storage where each cell is used to store only one bit of data which makes the storage faster and more energy-efficient.
Work Environment And Warranty
The 970 Evo Plus comes with 5 years of warranty on all storage capacities. However, there is also a TBW (TeraBytes Written) limit on the warranty provided. This means that if you write a specific number of terabytes before 5 years, the warranty will be over. However, the limit of terabytes provided is more than enough and it’s less likely that you’ll be able to write these many terabytes on normal usage. The TBW limit is different for all storage capacities. It’s 150 TB for the 250 GB version. This means, that if you write 150 TB of data before 5 years, your warranty will be over. Similarly, the written limit is 300 TB for the 500 GB version, for the 1 TB model, it’s 600 TB and the 2 TB version has a TBW limit of 1200 GB. Basically, the limit doubles when the capacity doubles. The 970 Evo Plus is equally usable and user-friendly for developers, gamers, general users, and professional workers. So no matter what work environment you are getting it for, it is one of the best SSD choices in the market.
Samsung 970 EVO Vs 970 EVO Plus: The Benchmarks (1TB)
Let us have a look at the benchmarks of both the drives we are talking about. Sequential Read Speeds Sequential read speeds are exactly what the company advertised. On the 970 Evo, the sequential read speeds touched 3500 MB/s on both 970 Evo and 970 Evo Plus on all storage variants. Sequential Write Speeds Sequential write speed is the area where 970 Evo Plus shines. On the 250 GB variants, the Evo Plus reaches the sequential write speeds of 2300 MB/s, and the non Plus Evo reaches 1500 MB/s at max. On the 500 GB variants, the Evo Plus reaches the sequential write speeds of 3200 MB/s, and the non Plus Evo reaches 2300 MB/s at max. The 1 TB and 2 TB variants of both 970 Evo Plus reached the maximum sequential write speed of 3300 MB/s, and the non Plus variants of the same capacities could achieve a maximum of 2500 MB/s write speeds. 4KB Random Read and Write The drives were also tested for 4 KB random read and write speeds using the popular CrystalDiskMark software.
4KB Read (Q1T1) for the 970 Evo Plus and 970 Evo are 56 and 51 MB/s, respectively. 4KB Write (Q1T1) for the 970 Evo Plus and 970 Evo are 243 and 212 MB/s, respectively. 4KB Read (Q32T1) for the 970 Evo Plus and 970 Evo are 793 and 686 MB/s, respectively. 4KB Write (Q32T1) for the 970 Evo Plus and 970 Evo are 729 and 718 MB/s, respectively. 4KB Read (Q8T8) for the 970 Evo Plus and 970 Evo are 1955 and 1871 MB/s, respectively. 4KB Write (Q8T8) for the 970 Evo Plus and 970 Evo are 2044 and 1905 MB/s, respectively.
Game Copy Test Game copying speed depends on the number of files a game has and how big they are. Remember the TurboWrite technology I discussed above? Different variants of both the drives have some TurboWrite capacities, which means that if you try to copy a large file, it will copy that part at the maximum speed and will turn to lower speeds after that. If the game has multiple large files, it will copy much faster, but if it has multiple smaller folders and files in it, the time taken will be much longer. On average, a 40 GB game with mixed file sizes will take around 5 minutes to copy, which is not bad. Application Load Test The 970 Evo and Evo Plus both offer up to 3500 MB/s read speeds. In loading applications and games, read speed matters the most. So if you have enough RAM, all applications and games will load very quickly, including the modern AAA games. Even the Windows boot time is very quick on these NVMe drives. ISO Copy Test ISO is a single file of multiple GBs. As these drives are best in copying single files, any ISO file will be transferred at maximum speed even if it is up to 42 GB in size as the 1 TB 970 Evo and Evo Plus have 42 GB TurboWrite speed which will write the ISO file at maximum speeds of up to 3300 MB/s on higher capacity Evo Plus drives.
Samsung 970 EVO vs 970 EVO Plus: Which One Is Better?
This depends on your budget and how do you want to use the drive. As we’ve seen above multiple times the higher the capacity of the drive, the faster it will perform. So if your budget allows, you should get at least the 1 TB capacity version to get the maximum performance out of these drives. Samsung 970 Evo Plus is definitely better than the 970 Evo in almost all comparisons. But it comes at an extra cost. So if your budget allows it, you should get the 970 Evo Plus over the 970 Evo. Both of these drives deliver excellent performance, come with an amazing price tag for the features and performance they offer and can be used by individuals for personal use or small teams for professional use.
#1 – What is the difference between 970 Evo and 970 Evo Plus?
The biggest difference between these drives is their read and write speeds. The maximum write speed on the 970 Evo is 2500 MB/s, and the Evo Plus can write with a speed of 3300 MB/s which is a huge difference. Another difference is the price point. 970 Evo is cheaper than the 970 Evo Plus.
#2 – Is 970 Evo Plus worth it?
Yes, it is worth it, and it is one of the best NVMe drives in the market. It is best for both individual and professional use.
#3 – Which is better, Evo or Evo Plus?
Evo Plus is better overall. If your budget allows it, you should get the 970 Evo Plus over the 970 Evo.
#4 – Is 970 EVO plus good for gaming?
Yes, it is very good for gaming. The loading time of your games will reduce multiple times compared to a normal hard drive.
