PNY CS2140 M.2 2280 NVMe Gen4x4 SSD

PNY requires no introduction to the hardware enthusiast community having established in 1985 they have been in the industry for over 3 decades catering consumer & business grade peripherals. Today we bring to you one of their newest offerings to the market, the PNY CS2140 M.2 NVMe SSD.

Before we go into further details, here’s a quick rundown of the drive.

Highlights

• NVMe Gen4 upgrade from a SATA based SSD in an NVMe enabled computer
• High performance SSD with up to double the performance as compared to entry Gen3 x4 based SSDs
• Transfer speed up to 3,600 MB/s
• Faster boot-up and quicker application launch
• Better overall system performance, reliable storage
• Low power consumption, cool and quiet operation

Specifications

• Usable Capacities500GB/ 1TB / 2TB
• NAND Components3D NAND Flash Memory
• InterfacePCIe Gen4x4 NVMe 1.4
• Form FactorM.2 2280
• Package Dimensions (L×W×H)123 x 85 x 4.3 mm
• Product Dimensions (L×W×H)22 x 80 x 4 mm (Max)
• Weight6.6g
• Max Sequential Read*Up to 3,600MB/s
• Max Sequential Write*500GB: up to 2,300MB/s
  1TB – 2TB: up to 3,200MB/s
• TBW500GB: 200, 1TB: 400, 2TB: 800
• PCIe Link Power ManagementAPST, ASPM, L1.2
• Operating Temperature0°C to 70°C
• Storage Temperature-40°C to 85°C
• MTBF1,500,000 Hours
• Secure EraseStandard, Enhanced Secure Erase
• Product Health MonitoringSelf-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T)
• Full End-to-End Data path protectionSupported
• Performance OptimizationHMB (Host Memory Buffer)
• Warranty5-year Limited Warranty

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PNY CS2140 – Packaging

The PNY CS2140 is offered in a no-frills package but highlights the key elements of the drive’s capabilities. The unit we’re reviewing today is PNY’s 1TB model, however depending on your budget and requirements you can opt for either a 250GB, 500GB or a 2TB version.

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The drive boasts read speeds of upto 3600MB/s and write speeds of upto 3200MB/s and is offered on the new PCIe Gen4 standard. Unfortunately PNY does not offer a heatsink with the drive. If you’re planning on doing heavy lifting with this or any M.2 NVme SSD drive, we’d recommend that you purchase a heat sink to mitigate any thermal throttling.

Lets see how the drive performs in real life with our benchmark tests.

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Performance

First up, lets compare ATTO Disk Benchmark scores. We compared the results with a Silicon Power P34A80 PCIe Gen3x4 M.2 NVMe 1TB SSD side by side.

ATTO Disk Benchmark

Test: 256MB File Size

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The PNY CS2140 has a significant edge on read speed, while the Silocon Power P34A80 has a narrow lead in read performance.

Test: 1GB File Size

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While the read and write speeds aren’t as accurate as the advertised rates, the results are pretty close.

PC Mark 8 Storage Benchmark

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The Silicon Power P34A80 edges slightly above the PNY CS2140 here but the difference is negligible. Next lets move onto Sisoft Sandra scores.

Sisoft Sandra Benchmark

Read performance test

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In Read tests the PNY CS2140 was able to maintain a constant speed of 3571MB/s.

Crystal DiskMark Benchmark

500MB File transfer

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The Silicon Power P34A80 has a slight edge on this test; lets see how it performs with a higher file size.

1GB File transfer

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As the file size increases the PNY CS2140 edges slightly above the Silicone Power drive.

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Conclusion

As far as performance goes, the PNY CS2140 is a mid range performer with an eye catching price tag of AU$179. Some online retailers are even selling these for as low as AU$149. As our tests show, the speed of the drive is almost on par to advertised speeds. While this isn’t the fastest Gen4 NVMe SSD you’d find, it still offers decent performance for its price bracket. Furthermore PNY Offers a 5 year warranty on this drive for complete peace of mind, so if you’re on the look out for a new SSD drive, the PNY CS2140 would make an ideal choice at a decent budget.