Types of SSD and associated information

Understanding types of solid-state drives

Solid-state drives can be differentiated based on the computer bus interface used for data transfer.

By default, solid-state drives use the SATA (Serial ATA) host bus interface with the AHCI host controller interface.

NVMe solid-state drives use a PCIe (PCI Express) host bus interface with an NVMe host controller interface.

These solid-state drives come with physical attributes known as form factors.

What are the 3 main types of SSD?

The three main form factors of SSD are 2.5 inch, M.2 without NVMe and M.2 NVMe SSD.

Which is faster, NVMe or M2?

M.2 is a slot that supports M.2 NVMe form factor of SSD.

Which type of SSD is faster?

M.2 NVMe form factor of SSD is faster as compared to the ssd that uses SATA bus interface.

SSD Form Factors:

Form factors are just a physical attribute used to identify a device, for SSD drives widely form factors are below that can be compatible to your system.

2.5-inch: The most commonly found form factor is the 2.5-inch. 2.5-inch SSD drives fit into most laptop’s standard hard drive bays. In desktop computers, 2.5-inch SSD drives are connected to the motherboard’s SATA ports using an SATA cable. Usually 2.5-inch solid state drives use SATA host bus interface that can only be configured in the UEFI or BIOS firmware.

M.2: The M.2 form factor is the industry standard for thin notebooks and laptops. It is used to refer to NVMe SSD drives, which usually come in the following sizes: 2280, 2260, 2242, and 2230. Apart from laptops, these M.2 SSD drives can also be installed into the M.2 slot on a desktop’s motherboard. It’s important to check your motherboard compatibility before choosing an SSD, as not all motherboards have M.2 slot.

Types of SSD and their Interfaces SSDs:

SSD Types:

SSD drives have NAND flash chips installed on it from the manufacturer. The solid-state drives that have Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) chip are better if you have a high intensive work. With NVMe and without NVMe both look the same, but they differ significantly in how they communicate with the system and their potential performance.

Host Bus Interfaces and Host Controller Interfaces:

An interface is the way your computer communicates with your PC and the performance of your system will depend on the controller that will be used by the computer bus interface, it can be AHCI or NVMe.

SATA Connectors:

SATA connectors are mounted from the manufacturer on the PCB of a motherboard and are connected with computer buses.

M.2 Slots:

M.2 is a physical slot on a motherboard that comes with an M-key or B+M key.

This M.2 slot can support the following form factors of ssd: 2280, 2260, 2242, and 2230.

Key differences	AHCI	NVMe
Interface	Uses the SATA bus, a more mature and widely available interface.	Uses the PCIe bus, which is the same high-speed connection used for graphics cards and network adapters.
Performance	Still significantly faster than traditional hard drives, reaching up to 600 MB/s.	It gives faster data transfer speeds than SATA, reaching up to 3500 MB/s compared to SATA’s 600 MB/s.
Benefits	More affordable than NVMe options. Compatible with most laptops and desktops built in the past decade	Ideal for demanding tasks like video editing, gaming, and professional applications where speed is crucial.
Drawbacks	Lower performance compared to NVMe. May bottleneck modern high-performance systems.	Generally more expensive than SATA options. Requires a compatible motherboard with PCIe slots.

Conclusion

For most basic tasks, such as web browsing, email, and office productivity, users use 2.5 inch SSD, which offer a significant performance boost as compared to 3.5-inch traditional hard drives at a moderate price point.

For power users, gamers, and professionals who work with demanding applications, the speed and responsiveness of NVMe can be highly beneficial, justifying the potentially higher cost.