The SK Hynix P41 Platinum Is Still of the Fastest 2TB M.2 SSDs, and Now One of the Least Expensive
An outstanding SSD (with DRAM) for both PlayStation 5 and gaming PC.
Amazon has recently dropped the price on the 2TB SK Hynix P41 Platinum PCIe 4.0 M.2 NVME solid state drive (SSD) to only $129.99 shipped. The SK Hynix P41 Platinum is one of the fastest PCI-E 4.0 SSDs available, has DRAM cache, and is considerably less expensive than other comparable SSDs like the Samsung 990 Pro ($168) and the WD SN850X ($154). This is an excellent SSD for either your PlayStation 5 console or gaming PC.
SK Hynix P41 Platinum 2TB M.2 SSD for $129.99
SK Hynix might not be as recognizable of a brand as Samsung or Western Digital among consumers, but make no mistake that they are a major player in the flash memory market. SK Hynix is a South Korean DRAM manufacturer and one of the world's largest memory chipmakers and semiconductor companies. They supply components for many reputable brands you've probably heard of, like Corsair and G.Skill.
The Platinum P41 is SK Hynix's highest end SSD. It boasts sustained read speeds of 7,000MB/s and write speeds of 6,500MB/s as well as random read speeds of 1.4 million IOPS and write speeds of 1.3 million IOPS. The Platinum P41 also has a dedicated DRAM cache, Most SSDs at this price point lack any DRAM cache and instead rely on HMB, or system memory, to cover the shortfall. In terms of reliability and stability, th Platinum P41 has been tested and validated through 1,000 hours of stress testing with MTBF reaching 1.5 million hours or up to 1,200TB written. It uses an Aries controller with 176-layer TLC NAND flash chips, both of which are manufactured in-house. SK Hynix warranties this SSD with a 5 year warranty.
This is a great PS5 SSD, but you'll want to get a heatsink
The SK Hynix P41 Platinum makes for a great secondary SSD for your PlayStation 5 console since it performs well above Sony's minimum speed recommendation of 5,600MB/s. It's possible this SSD will run fine without a heatsink, but we like to err on the side of caution and would recommend you install one for peace of mind. Besides, you can get a perfectly adequate slim PS5 heatsink for just $7.
Prefer Samsung? Then check out their Evo Plus model.
The Samsung 990 Evo Plus is an excellent drive for both your gaming PC and your PlayStation 5 console. It exceeds Sony's minimim speed recommendation for the PS5, boasting sequential speeds of up to 7,250 read and 6,300MB/s write. This is a much faster drive than the 990 Evo non-Pro but not quite as fast as the 990 Pro. The main difference between this drive and the more expensive 990 Pro is that this is a DRAM-less drive. For PS5 performance, it makes no difference. For gaming PCs, the 990 Evo Plus supports HMB (host memory buffer), which makes up for the lack of DRAM by using an inconsequential amount of RAM from your system memory. Gamers will not notice any difference between the two.
More SSDs for PS5
Looking for more options? Check out our favorite PS5 SSDs for the PS5 console.
Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
