Tested Samsung 990 Pro (4 TB) - a great SSD for everyone

The Samsung 990 Pro is no longer a brand new SSD drive, it was launched in September, which means that it has so far roamed the computers of many users around the world, now also in mine.

And I agree with most that Samsung has done a good job with the latest heavyweight 990 Pro. Even the previous versions (2 and 1 TB) and predecessors (980) were good disks for practically all purposes. They were loved by gamers, and with larger capacities, they were diligently chosen by those who need larger capacities and high speeds for work.

And this is also the first advantage of the new Samsung 990 Pro. 4 TB is a very generous capacity and is therefore even more versatile than the 2 TB version. This is already a capacity that is sufficient for larger data users.

If you're wondering if the Samsung 990 Pro 4TB has the same firmware issues as the smaller version, the answer is no. If you have one of the minor versions, be sure to update the software regularly in Samsung Magician. The issues have lost some of the reputation they've held onto for years, but the 990 Pro 4TB is a good way to dig yourself out of a hole.

Samsung 990 Pro 4 TB main specifications

Shape	M.2 2280
Bus type	PCIe 4.0 x4
Controller	Samsung Pascal
DRAMA	LPDDR4
A type of memory	236-layer (V8) V-NAND TLC
Sequential reading	7450 MBps
Sequential recording	6900 MBps
Random reading	1600K
Random recording	1550K
Endurance	2400 TB
Warranty	5 years

What others failed to do, Samsung did. The 990 Pro is a single-sided SSD drive, which means that the chips are only on one side, which allows the manufacturer to produce thinner drives. Therefore, in addition to desktops, the 990 Pro is suitable for laptops as well as the PlayStation 5 console. Although it is a single-sided SSD, it still has a DRAM cache and the option to buy a version with cooling fins, which I also tested.

Two companion programs are available. Samsung Data Migration helps you transfer data from an old drive to a new one, and Samsung Magician has everything you need for disk diagnostics, performance testing, updating, security, and more. Since fake SSD drives are also on the rise, Magician has an additional feature that can detect fake Samsung drives. But you can easily peel off the sticker (warranty remains valid) and check which chips are installed, especially pay attention to the Pascal controller.

Samsung 990 Pro – unmatched performance

The numbers conjured up by the Samsung 990 Pro are not seen every day in the editorial office. For testing purposes I used CrystalDisk Info, CrystalDisk Mark, ATTO, PCMark 10, DiskBench and 3D Mark.

PCMark 10: 4731 (overall score), 37μs (latency), 751 MB/s
3D Mark: 4511 (overall score), 38μs (latency), 767.3 MB/s
CrystalDisk Mark: 7130 MB/s (read), 6852 MB/s (write), 23820 IOPS (read), 69012 IOPS (write)

Whatever the program and whatever the task, the Samsung 990 Pro delivered outstanding results. Speeds are as advertised, right at the top of what a PCIe 4.0 data bus can do. It's also consistent in delivering those speeds, and thanks to the cooling fins, it's also always cool. Even during longer recording (50 GB in DiskBench) I did not notice any significant overheating, which was also noted in terms of speed.

It is an excellent drive for gamers, as shown by the results in 3DMark. Even now, some games require SSD drives if we want to play without stuttering and delays, in the future these requirements could become even more stringent. The Samsung 990 Pro should have no problems catching up, or if such a drive has problems, then everyone else will, which is doubtful.

I also tried running some games. I'm just replaying Final Fantasy XIV which starts up in just over 6 seconds, similarly Dead Island 2, Shadow of the Tomb Raider took 9 and a half seconds – great numbers again.

PCMark revealed that it's also an excellent drive for work or everyday tasks, especially considering the large capacity it offers.

Actually, I didn't even find any flaws. Strictly just the numbers, it's "worse" in write latency, but we're talking microseconds that none of us will notice. The price is also high, it is currently around €300 on Amazon, with the cooling fins a good €20 more, but other similar discs are also around a similar figure.

PCIe 5.0 SSDs are also available, which are faster, but at least for now, 4th generation drives are a better option for most. If you are looking for the best solid state drive on the market with a large capacity, the Samsung 990 Pro is a great choice.