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Nvme

PM981 Samsu 256GB

▲ 500 ▼

Release date ≈ Q3 2018.

Average Bench: 193% (104th of 1072)

Based on 697 user benchmarks.  Model: NVMe PM981 NVMe Samsu
Poor: 114%Average: 193% Great: 244%

Popular builds with this SSD

Outstanding average bench

The Nvme PM981 Samsu 256GB averaged 92.9% higher than the peak scores attained by the group leaders. This is an excellent result which ranks the Nvme PM981 Samsu 256GB near the top of the comparison list.

Strengths

Avg. 4K-64Thread Mixed IO Speed 700MB/s
Avg. Sequential Read Speed 1,754MB/s

Terrible consistency

The range of scores (95th - 5th percentile) for the Nvme PM981 Samsu 256GB is 130%. This is a particularly wide range which indicates that the Nvme PM981 Samsu 256GB performs inconsistently under varying real world conditions.

Weaknesses

Avg. Sustained Write Speed 370MB/s
Avg. 4K Random Write Speed 110MB/s
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Average Bench

(Based on 697 samples)
Rank 104193%
Min Avg Max
829 Read 1,754 2,234
717 Write 1,225 1,509
561 Mixed 975 1,216
235 SusWrite 370 452
240% 1,081 MB/s
Min Avg Max
28.5 4K Read 51.6 63.6
44 4K Write 110 160
30.2 4K Mixed 64.9 83.4
220% 75.6 MB/s
Min Avg Max
313 DQ Read 782 978
165 DQ Write 653 1,158
216 DQ Mixed 700 1,012
529% 712 MB/s
User Benchmarks BenchSequentialRandom 4kDeep queue 4k
The fastest SSD (mainstream) averages a speed of 100%
174GB free (System drive)
Firmware: EXD72D1Q Max speed: PCIe 16,000 MB/s
SusWrite @10s intervals: 1131 312 312 312 312 313 MB/s
232% Outstanding
Read 2,214
Write 1,594
Mixed 1,174
SusWrite 448
301% 1,358 MB/s
4K Read 57.2
4K Write 129
4K Mixed 73.8
250% 86.7 MB/s
DQ Read 968
DQ Write 778
DQ Mixed 841
638% 863 MB/s
104GB free (System drive)
Firmware: EXD72D1Q Max speed: PCIe 16,000 MB/s
SusWrite @10s intervals: 293 243 236 230 228 268 MB/s
198% Outstanding
Read 2,061
Write 1,370
Mixed 1,093
SusWrite 250
264% 1,193 MB/s
4K Read 50.4
4K Write 95.5
4K Mixed 61.1
205% 69 MB/s
DQ Read 931
DQ Write 728
DQ Mixed 627
524% 762 MB/s
146GB free (System drive)
Firmware: EXD72D1Q Max speed: PCIe 16,000 MB/s
SusWrite @10s intervals: 1069 291 289 294 295 295 MB/s
197% Outstanding
Read 1,648
Write 1,414
Mixed 1,050
SusWrite 422
253% 1,134 MB/s
4K Read 45.6
4K Write 91.9
4K Mixed 63
198% 66.8 MB/s
DQ Read 964
DQ Write 973
DQ Mixed 1,000
743% 979 MB/s
94GB free (System drive)
Firmware: EXD72D1Q Max speed: PCIe 16,000 MB/s
SusWrite @10s intervals: 441 293 281 273 259 254 MB/s
164% Outstanding
Read 1,905
Write 1227
Mixed 1,053
SusWrite 300
248% 1,121 MB/s
4K Read 37.7
4K Write 66.2
4K Mixed 45.9
151% 49.9 MB/s
DQ Read 577
DQ Write 438
DQ Mixed 501
376% 505 MB/s
199GB free (System drive)
Firmware: EXD71D1Q Max speed: PCIe 16,000 MB/s
SusWrite @10s intervals: 1028 372 303 305 307 307 MB/s
159% Outstanding
Read 1643
Write 1,187
Mixed 756
SusWrite 437
223% 1,006 MB/s
4K Read 42.3
4K Write 73.2
4K Mixed 50.3
167% 55.3 MB/s
DQ Read 290
DQ Write 350
DQ Mixed 318
240% 319 MB/s
170GB free (System drive)
Firmware: EXD72D1Q Max speed: PCIe 16,000 MB/s
SusWrite @10s intervals: 697 526 306 308 308 309 MB/s
128% Outstanding
Read 956
Write 726
Mixed 577
SusWrite 409
149% 667 MB/s
4K Read 31.6
4K Write 54.4
4K Mixed 43.9
133% 43.3 MB/s
DQ Read 499
DQ Write 533
DQ Mixed 511
386% 514 MB/s
697 MORE »

 Market Share (See Leaders)

The number of benchmark samples for this model as a percentage of all 75,648,446 SSDs tested

Custom PC Builder (Start a new build) Build your perfect PC: compare component prices, popularity, speed and value for money

CHOOSE A COMPONENT:

CPU GPU SSD HDD RAM MBD
Typical PM981 Samsu 256GB Builds (Compare 6,361 builds) See popular component choices, score breakdowns and rankings
Gaming
Gaming 33%
Sail boat
Desktop
Desktop 92%
Nuclear submarine
Workstation
Workstation 30%
Sail boat

System: Dell XPS 8930

CPU
Core i7-8700Intel  $200Bench 87%, 349,567 samples2,965x
Core i7-9700Intel  $260Bench 92%, 79,875 samples1,501x
Core i7-8700KIntel  $186Bench 88%, 746,287 samples325x
GPU
GTX 1050-TiNvidia  $59Bench 29%, 946,701 samples915x
GTX 1070Nvidia  $132Bench 80%, 1,459,281 samples693x
GTX 1060-6GBNvidia  $117Bench 56%, 1,368,019 samples640x
SSD
PM981 Samsu 256GBNvmeBench 193%, 697 samples1x
RAM
8ATF1G64AZ-2G6H1 2x8GBUnknownBench 78%, 8,965 samples467x
8ATF1G64AZ-2G6E1 2x8GBUnknownBench 80%, 9,471 samples465x
HMA81GU6JJR8N-VK 2x8GBUnknownBench 81%, 4,647 samples359x
EDIT WITH CUSTOM PC BUILDER Value: 100% - Outstanding Total price: $259

Popular PM981 Samsu 256GB systems:

How Fast Is Your SSD? (Bench your build) Size up your PC in less than a minute

Welcome to our PC speed test tool. UserBenchmark will test your PC and compare the results to other users with the same components. You can quickly size up your PC, identify hardware problems and explore the best value for money upgrades.

UserBenchmark of the month

Gaming Desktop ProGaming

How it works

  • - Download and run UserBenchmark
  • - CPU tests include: integer, floating and string
  • - GPU tests include: six 3D game simulations
  • - Drive tests include: read, write, sustained write and mixed IO
  • - RAM tests include: single/multi core bandwidth and latency
  • - SkillBench (space shooter) tests user input accuracy
  • - Reports are generated and presented on userbenchmark.com
  • - Identify the strongest components in your PC
  • - See speed test results from other users
  • - Compare your components to the current market leaders
  • - Explore your best upgrade options with a virtual PC build
  • - Compare your in-game FPS to other users with your hardware
Solid State Drive Rankings (Price vs Performance) April 2024 SSD Rankings

Welcome to our 2.5" and M.2 SSD comparison. We calculate effective speed for both SATA and NVMe drives based on real world performance then adjust by current prices per GB to yield a value for money rating. Our calculated values are checked against thousands of individual user ratings. The customizable table below combines these factors to bring you the definitive list of top SSDs. [SSDrivePro]

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Group Test Results

  • Best user rated - User sentiment trumps benchmarks for this comparison.
  • Best value for money - Value for money is based on real world performance.
  • Fastest real world speed - Real World Speed measures performance for typical consumers.

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Speed Comparisons

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1072 Drives (Compared) Thousands of user benchmarks compiled into one comparison list

See how consistently different SSDs perform with varying real world conditions. The charts also illustrate overall performance, popularity and rank.

 Frequently Asked Questions

Storage Devices FAQ
What is sustained sequential write speed?
What’s the difference between SLC, MLC and TLC?
What is 3D XPoint and how fast is it?
What’s the difference between SATA, PCIe and NVMe?
What’s the difference between NAND and V-NAND?
What is sequential write speed?
What is sequential read speed?
What is incompressible data?
What is queue depth?
Solid State Drives
What is the SSD value for money rating?
What is 4K 64 thread write speed?
Can CPU power saving states (C1,C2,C3) impact SSD speed?
What is the effective SSD speed index?
How is the AS SSD write score calculated?
How is the AS SSD read score calculated?
How is the AS SSD total score calculated?
ALL FAQs »

 Best User Rated
The Best.
CPUGPUSSD
Intel Core i5-13600K $279Nvidia RTX 4060 $300Crucial MX500 250GB $40
Intel Core i5-12400F $134Nvidia RTX 4060-Ti $385Samsung 850 Evo 120GB $80
Intel Core i5-12600K $184Nvidia RTX 4070 $409Samsung 860 Evo 250GB $52
HDDRAMUSB
Seagate Barracuda 1TB (2016) $39Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3200 C16 2x8GB $40SanDisk Extreme 64GB $72
WD Blue 1TB (2012) $35Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 3000 C15 2x8GB $43SanDisk Extreme 32GB $28
Seagate Barracuda 2TB (2016) $51G.SKILL Trident Z DDR4 3200 C14 4x16GB $351SanDisk Ultra Fit 32GB $16
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