Kingston has been teasing a PCIe SSD product for quite some time now. We ran into an early sample at CES 2014 when it was merely wearing a heatsink from one of their HyperX Predator memory modules, trying to hide the goods under it. And then this year at CES 2015, we finally hear that they plan to bring the HyperX Predator SSD. This week, Kingston lets all the details about the HyperX Predator loose on the PC DIY marketplace.
The HyperX Predator PCIe SSD is an M.2 form factor, but it’s based on a Gen 2.0 x4 interface. This means that it’ll be up to twice as fast, potentially, as the already fairly fast Plextor 256GB PCIe M.2 unit that we reviewed last year. In fact, the HyperX Predator can reach speeds up to 1400MB/s read and 1000MB/s write, which is finally comparable to the internal units inside the TrashCan Mac Pro. The best part though is, because this product is built for PCs, it can be used to upgrade any system with a PCIe slot. In fact, the HyperX Predator will come in both the traditional M.2 “gum stick” 2280 form factor, but also, an HHHL form factor via an adapter, which will also be available in a low profile and regular slot height.
In terms of capacity, the HyperX Predator PCIe SSDs will be arriving in 240GB and 480GB capacities. As mentioned in previous interviews, they are already planning to unlease a 960GB unit later in the year. As far as pricing goes, they should hit at $230.74 (240GB) and $458.74 (480GB) for the M.2 2280 “gumstick” versions, while the HHHL adapter versions will be $241.74 (240GB) and $469.74 (480GB) in your choice of low profile or regular height bracket sizes.
We’re happy to see Kingston and their HyperX brand finally hit the marketplace with their PCIe SSD products. The HHHL adapter versions should be very popular with folks still holding on to very powerful X79 or even X58 systems, looking for a high speed storage upgrade. Full press release is below.
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HyperX Releases High-Performance PCIe SSD
Fountain Valley, CA – March 23, 2015 – HyperX®, a division of Kingston® Technology Company, Inc., the independent world leader in memory products, today announced the HyperX Predator PCIe SSD. Shipping immediately, HyperX Predator PCIe SSD is the highest-end SSD with the fastest speeds in the HyperX lineup.
HyperX Predator PCIe SSD offers large capacities (240GB, 480GB) and incredible speeds to take systems to the edge. Faster than SATA-based SSDs, the PCIe generation 2.0 x4 interface delivers speeds up to 1400MB/s read and 1000MB/s write for ultra-responsive multitasking and an overall faster system. It is powered by the Marvell 88SS9293 controller.
The M.2 form factor ensures next-generation platform support with an M.2 PCIe slot. An optional half-height, half-length (HHHL) adapter is also available for many existing motherboards without an M.2 socket. The HHHL adapter comes with both standard and low-profile brackets to fit in slim profile desktop builds.
HyperX is the high-performance product division of Kingston Technology encompassing high-speed DDR4 and DDR3 memory, SSDs, USB Flash drives, headsets and gaming accessories. Targeted at gamers, overclockers and enthusiasts, HyperX is known throughout the world for quality, performance and innovation. HyperX is committed to eSports as it sponsors over 20 teams globally and is the main sponsor of Intel Extreme Masters. HyperX can be found at many shows including Brasil Game Show, China Joy, DreamHack, gamescom and PAX.
For more information visit the HyperX home page.
HyperX Predator SSD Features and Benefits:
- Fast: PCIe connection provides higher speeds than SATA-based solid-state drives for the ultimate computing experience
- Blazing performance: ultra-responsive multitasking and overall faster system
- Reliable: rugged and durable to take your system to the edge
- Form factor: M.2 with optional Half-Height Half-length adapter to fit in both new and older motherboards
- Guaranteed: three-year warranty and free technical support
- Form factor: M.2 2280
- Interface: PCIe Gen 2.0 x 4
- Capacities1: 240GB, 480GB
- Controller: Marvell 88SS9293
- Baseline Performance2:
Compressible Data Transfer (ATTO):
240GB: 1400MB/s Read and 600MB/s Write
480GB: 1400MB/s Read and 1000MB/s Write
Incompressible Data Transfer (AS-SSD and CrystalDiskMark):
240GB: 1290MB/s Read and 600MB/s Write
480GB: 1100MB/s Read and 910MB/s Write
IOMETER Maximum Random 4k Read/Write:
240GB: up to 160,000/ up to 119,000 IOPS
480GB: up to 130,000/ up to 118,000 IOPS
Random 4k Read/Write:
240GB: up to 120,000/ up to 78,000 IOPS
480GB: up to 117,000/ up to 70,000 IOPS
PCMARK® Vantage HDD Suite Score:
240GB: 138,000
480GB: 139,000
PCMARK® 8 Storage Bandwidth:
240GB: 331MB/s
480GB: 336MB/s
PCMARK® 8 Storage Score:
240GB: 5,015
480GB: 5,017
Anvil Total Score (Incompressible Workload):
240GB: 6,500
480GB: 6,700
- Power Consumption: 1.38W Idle / 1.4W Avg. / 1.99W (MAX) Read / 8.25W (MAX) Write
- Storage temperatures: -40°C~85°C
- Operating temperatures: 0°C~70°C
- Dimensions: 80mm x 22mm x 3.5mm (M.2)
180.98mm x 120.96mm x 21.59mm (with HHHL adapter – standard bracket)
181.29mm x 80.14mm x 23.40mm (with HHHL adapter – low-profile bracket)
- Weight: 10g (M.2)
73g (with HHHL adapter – standard bracket)
68g (with HHHL adapter – low-profile bracket)
- Vibration operating: 2.17G Peak (7–800Hz)
- Vibration non-operating: 20G Peak (10–2000Hz)
- Life expectancy: 1 million hours MTBF
- Warranty/support: 3-year warranty with free technical support
- Total Bytes Written (TBW)3: 240GB: 415TB 1.6 DWPD4
480GB: 882TB 1.7 DWPD4
1 Some of the listed capacity on a Flash storage device is used for formatting and other functions and thus is not
available for data storage. As such, the actual available capacity for data storage is less than what is listed on the
products. For more information, go to Kingston’s Flash memory Guide at kingston.com/flashguide.
2 Based on “out-of-box performance” using a PCIe 3.0/2.0 motherboard. Speed may vary due to host hardware,
software and usage. IOMETER Random 4k Random Read/Write is based on 8GB partition.
3 Total Bytes Written (TBW) is derived from the JEDEC Client Workload (JESD219A).
4 Drive Writes Per Day (DWPD)
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