I remember when I first moved from SATA drives to M.2 NVMe drives. What a difference! I mean, speeds weren’t massively better because there were other bottlenecks – but my PC build was cleaner due to the lack of cables, and I did notice an improvement when installing games and moving large video files around.
I still use SATA drives (HDD and SSDs) for longer term storage, but for all other uses, I rely on M.2 SSDs. This category includes all my M.2-related articles.
I loved buying my first NVMe M.2 SSD, because it was so much faster (than my old SATA SSD) – plus it required zero cables. NVMe drives just seem better all round. So why are some people STILL buying SATA SSDs? Well there are a few reasons for this, for example not all motherboards have … Read more
If you have a “bare” M.2 NVMe SSD (i.e. one without any heatsink or cooling), then you might want to reconsider this. That’s because recent generations of NVMe drives can run HOT – and this can cause problems for your PC in the long run. Thankfully third party “aftermarket” heatsinks are cheap to buy, and … Read more
There’s always a new type of storage on the horizon. One of the most recent changes has been the addition of double-sided M.2 SSDs. These drives have been raising questions about features and compatibility that we’re going to take a closer look at. M.2 drives can be single-sided or double-sided based on how many chips … Read more
Part of building a new PC is chasing the highest possible specs. However, with great performance comes great responsibility. The quest for high stats can cause serious heating issues inside your PC. Today’s high-end SSDs and GPUs get packed in tightly on a performance motherboard. This is a recipe for overheating and the risk of … Read more
M.2 storage drives offer you the best performance, but they also generate some of the highest temperatures on your motherboard. More motherboard manufacturers are shipping with M.2 heatsinks, but are they worth it? The M.2 heatsink that comes with your motherboard is a great option if you’re looking to save money and ensure that all of … Read more
Mixing M.2 NVMe drive brands could save you money on your PC build, but could it cause problems that could reduce performance or even damage your PC? It is okay to mix M.2 NVMe brands (and PCIe versions) in your PC build. This will not cause any problems unless you are putting your drives in … Read more
M.2 NVMe drives are getting more popular than ever and this means more brands are entering the market. We’ve got tried and true brands and budget newcomes all selling M.2 NVMe drives with equal stats, but is a name brand really better? The brand of your M.2 drives matters most when it comes to build … Read more
M.2 storage drives offer the best performance out of any of today’s PC storage options. However, there’s been a lot of confusion about what type of M.2 drives you can use with your NVMe and SATA slots. Your M.2 NVMe storage drive can only fit into an NVMe M.2 slot. Your M.2 SATA SSD can fit … Read more
Figuring out storage solutions seems like it’s only getting harder. File sizes, including video games, are only getting bigger and this means that we need to expand our storage options more frequently. This has got a lot of people asking can you insert an M.2 drive into a PCIe slot? You can insert an M.2 drive … Read more
There’s nothing more frustrating than installing your new M.2 NVMe drive only to find out that it disabled your old SATA SSD. This can be tiring, but the fix for this issue is actually pretty easy. M.2 NVMe drives use two physical PCIe lanes, while M.2 SATA drives and SATA SSDs use one PCIe lane. … Read more
