Following on from a leak a few days ago, Samsung has now officially announced its new 990 SSD. While previously we would have expected to see a 1TB PCIe 4 based SSD to launch around the £100 to £130 mark, AI demand has sent prices skyrocketing. For a new-gen Samsung 990 (non Pro variant), you are now looking at a price tag of over £210 for 1TB, going up to over £400 for a 2TB model.

Samsung says the 2TB version can reach 7250MB/s sequential read speeds, while the 1TB model tops out at 7150MB/s. Both capacities deliver up to 6450MB/s sequential write speeds. Random performance also sees an uplift, with the 2TB model rated for 850K read and 1200K write IOPS, and the 1TB model rated for 700K read and 1100K write IOPS.

Thanks to newer NAND and other changes, Samsung says the new 990 SSD is significantly more power-efficient than the 990 Pro, but we would need to see independent testing to verify this.

The Samsung 990 SSD will be available starting this week, priced at £212.19 for the 1TB model and £411.99 for the 2TB model.

KitGuru Says: I have a slightly older Samsung 2TB PCIe 4 SSD that I got for less than the price of the new 1TB model. At this point, I'm just praying it never dies because with prices like this, I wouldn't be able to replace it.

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Samsung seems to be finalising the SSD 990, a new upcoming value-oriented M.2 NVMe Gen 4 SSD that recently surfaced briefly on the company’s Canadian website. Screenshots reveal details of the new drive, which slots underneath the existing 990 Evo Plus in Samsung's storage lineup.

The new entry-level drive spotted by VideoCardz uses a PCIe Gen 4 x4 interface, distinguishing it from the 990 Evo Plus, which features a hybrid Gen 4 x4 or Gen 5 x2 interface. According to the leaked specifications, the SSD 990 is a DRAMless design that relies on an updated in-house Samsung controller. The leak also indicates lower write endurance than the TLC-based 990 Evo Plus, suggesting the plain 990 uses QLC NAND flash.

Image credit: VideoCardz

Performance data from the product listings shows sequential transfer speeds reaching the upper limits of the PCIe Gen 4 era. The 2TB variant delivers sequential read speeds up to 7250MB/s, while the 1TB model scales back slightly to 7150MB/s. Both capacities are rated for sequential write speeds up to 6450MB/s. Endurance metrics are listed at 400TBW for the 1TB model and 800TBW for the 2TB model.

Unfortunately, availability is still unknown, but Canadian listings suggest the 1TB version would be around £180 (excluding VAT) and the 2TB model would be close to £350 (also excluding VAT).

KitGuru says: SSD prices are a mess at the moment, so we will have to wait and see how competitive this drive really ends up being. 

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Amazon Prime Day is upon us and if you are in need of an SSD, today may be one of your few chances to get one at a decent price. Acer has discounted a few different SSD models, including PCIe 4 M.2 Predator SSDs, portable SSDs and even SATA SSDs.

The Acer Predator GM7 PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 2280 SSD has been discounted, with the 1TB model reduced to £147 and the 2TB version priced at £245.99. These SSDs offer sequential read speeds up to 7200MB/s and are usable for both PCs and PS5 consoles, making them ideal for gamers.

The Predator GP30 portable SSD is also discounted, with the 1TB model available for £165.99, the 2TB version at £255.99 and the 4TB option at £482.99. The drive uses a USB 3.2 Gen2x2 Type‑C interface and delivers up to 2,000MB/s read and write speeds.

Acer’s SA100 SATA III SSD is the cheapest of the bunch, with a 240GB version priced at £44, a 480GB version at £79.99 and a 960GB version at £119.99.

KitGuru Says: Are you thinking of picking up an SSD during the Prime Day sales this week? 

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Kioxia has announced a new 4TB model in its Exceria G3 SSD Series, expanding its range of consumer PCIe 5 drives with the very first QLC NAND-based model. 

This new high-capacity option is among the first consumer-available PCIe 5.0 SSDs to use quadruple-level cell (QLC) NAND. It leverages the Kioxia's 8th Gen BiCS FLASH 3D flash memory technology to deliver higher storage density, reducing cost per terabyte while targeting mainstream desktop and laptop builds.

Performance figures from Kioxia list the drive with sequential read speeds up to 10,000MB/s and sequential write speeds up to 9,600MB/s. Other figures shared by the manufacturer include a maximum random read/write speed of 1,450,000/1,450,000 IOPS, an MTTF (Mean Time to Failure) of 1.5 million hours, and a rated endurance of 2,400TBW. SSD health and other features can be managed through Kioxia's SSD Utility software.

Retail shipments for the Exceria G3 SSD 4TB model are scheduled to begin this month. Like the other Kioxia PCIe 5.0 SSDs, the Exceria G3 4TB SSD is backed by a 5-year warranty.

KitGuru says: Looking for a big PCIe 5.0 SSD? Kioxia's new Exceria G3 4TB SDD might be a good option depending on price. 

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TeamGroup is preparing a wide range of new memory, storage and cooling products for Computex 2026, covering its T‑Force gaming line, T‑Create creator hardware and industrial‑grade solutions. The company’s showcase spans DDR5 modules, PCIe SSDs, external drives and new accessories.

T‑Force is marking its 10th anniversary with the Carbon Style series, introducing a new black finish across DDR5 memory and storage. The Delta RGB DDR5 Carbon Style kits offer a fresh aesthetic, alongside support for high capacities. The Xtreem DDR5 Carbon Style kits go a step further, offering capacities up to 128GB. On the storage side, the Z54E Carbon Style PCIe 5.0 SSD uses Phison’s E37T controller and reaches up to 14GB/s sequential read speeds.

For SSD cooling, TeamGroup has a new-generation Liquid II SSD cooler, which might be an upgrade to consider if you use a PCIe 5 drive regularly and want to maintain fast speeds for longer periods of time.

For creators, the T‑Create lineup includes the Expert AI LPCAMM2 module for workstation laptops, offering up to 64GB and speeds up to 8533MT/s. Desktop users get the Expert AI 4R CUDIMM, a 4‑rank module supporting up to 128GB per stick and 8000MT/s operation. There is also the ultra-fast Master AI I6E PCIe 6.0 SSD, which brings speeds up to 28GB/s. That last one doesn't mean much to consumers right now as PCIe 6 has yet to reach us.

For portable storage, TeamGroup is showcasing its Expert P33 external SSD with an integrated E‑Ink display. TeamGroup will also show ruggedised solutions including the ECC CU‑DIMM+ESD module with enhanced electrostatic protection, the U512T write‑protected USB drive with dual‑interface support, and the P250Q PCIe 4.0 SSD series with integrated hardware and software data‑erasure features.

KitGuru says: We'll be at Computex all week so stay tuned for our direct coverage. 

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We live in an age where we all need more storage than ever, especially if you like to back up your media libraries and other data locally. In an upcoming webinar, Seagate will deliver an easy-to-follow guide on building a dependable NAS set-up for home users and creators.

The webinar, which is free for anyone to view and join, will take place on the 10th of June from 11AM to 12PM UK time, hosted by Seagate and UGREEN, along with special guest Robbie from NAS Compares.

The session will cover:

• How NAS systems support expanding storage needs
• Why hard drive reliability is essential for always‑on storage
• What makes Seagate drives a strong fit for NAS environments
• How Mozaic 3 technology helps deliver higher capacities with better value
• What this means for performance, longevity, and price

You can register to participate, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Will you be tuning in to the Seagate NAS webinar next month?

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OWC has launched its annual Dads & Grads promotion, offering discounts across a range of storage, docking and connectivity hardware aimed at students, travellers and creative professionals. The campaign spans portable SSDs, Thunderbolt docks, RAID enclosures and other accessories.

The promotion highlights the OWC USB‑C Travel Dock, a compact hub designed to expand port options and add 4K display support for laptops and tablets. Portable storage features prominently, including the Envoy Pro Elektron, a rugged mini‑SSD built for fast transfers, and the Express 1M2, a USB4 NVMe enclosure available as a standalone chassis or in pre‑configured models.

For users needing more connectivity, OWC is discounting the Thunderbolt Go Dock, which offers full desktop‑class I/O without an external power brick, and the Thunderbolt 5 Dock, an 11‑port model aimed at high‑bandwidth workflows. Content creators can also pick up the ThunderBay 4, a multi‑bay RAID enclosure frequently used for photo and video libraries. The Envoy Ultra, OWC’s Thunderbolt 5 portable SSD, rounds out the storage lineup.

The gift‑guide page additionally promotes refurbished Macs as part of the seasonal offering, expanding the range beyond accessories.

KitGuru Says: Are you planning on picking up anything new during sales season? 

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The latest drive from Kioxia is the Exceria PRO G2, the new flagship model for the company's consumer range. The Gen 5 drive, which uses a combination of an 8-channel controller and 218-layer NAND, is Kioxia's fastest drive to date, rated up to 14,900MB/s and 13,700MB/s for sequential read and writes, respectively.

At the time of writing, the Exceria PRO G2 lineup consists of three capacities: 1TB, 2TB and the flagship 4TB model (the drive we are looking at here). At the heart of the drive is a Silicon Motion SM2508 8-channel controller paired up with Kioxia's BiCS8 218-layer 3D TLC NAND.

Kioxia rates the Sequential performance of the 4TB Exceria PRO G2 as up to 14,900MB/s for reads and up to 13,700MB/s for writes. The 2TB drive gets the same read rating as the 4TB drive, while the 1TB is rated up to 14,400MB/s. When it comes to write performance, the 2TB drive is rated up to 13,400MB/s and up to 12,700MB/s for the 1TB model.

Random performance for the 4TB drive is quoted as up to 2,300,000 IOPS for reads and up to 1,950,000 IOPS for writes. The 2TB drive is rated up to 2,250,000 IOPS and up to 1,950,000 IOPS for read and writes, respectively, while the 1TB gets 2,000,000 IOPS for reads and 1,900,000 IOPS for writes.

The 4TB drive gets a TBW endurance rating of 2,400TB, while the 2TB gets 1,200TB, and the 1TB gets 600TB.

Kioxia backs the drives with a 5-year warranty.

Physical Specifications:

• Usable Capacities: 4TB.
• NAND Components: BiCS8 218-layer 3D TLC NAND.
• NAND Controller: Silicon Motion SM2508.
• Cache: LPDDR4.
• Interface: PCIe Gen 5 x4, NVMe 2.0d.
• Form Factor: M.2, 2280.
• Dimensions: 80.15 x 22.15 x 2.63mm.

Firmware Version:  AZRA4103.

The post Kioxia Exceria PRO G2 4TB PCIe 5.0 SSD Review first appeared on KitGuru.

Sandisk has a new generation of portable SSDs hitting the market, including the Sandisk Portable SSD, Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD, and Sandisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD. The new Extreme model is available starting today while the remaining two will be rolling out later in the year.

Sandisk says the new drives are built to support a wide range of users, from students and everyday consumers to creative enthusiasts and production professionals. Each tier offers a step up in performance, with the Extreme Portable SSD now delivering read speeds up to 2000MB/s and capable of moving around 1000 high‑resolution photos in under a minute. It’s aimed at photographers, videographers, and creators working with larger files across multiple devices.

The Extreme PRO Portable SSD targets professional workloads such as real‑time editing and handling high‑resolution media. It reaches transfer speeds up to 4000MB/s and can move roughly 10 minutes of 12K video in under a minute, with capacities ranging from 2TB to a projected 8TB. At the entry level, the Sandisk Portable SSD offers read speeds up to 1000MB/s in a compact design suited for everyday backups, personal data, and general use.

All three drives feature ruggedised designs. The Sandisk Portable SSD is projected to withstand drops up to two metres, while the Extreme and Extreme PRO models are rated for three‑metre drops and carry IP65 protection against dust and water. The two higher‑end models also include password protection with 256‑bit AES hardware encryption.

The Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD is available now starting at $259.99 for 1TB, with 2TB and 4TB options also shipping and a 500GB model arriving in the second half of 2026. The Extreme PRO Portable SSD will follow later in 2026 in 2TB, 4TB, and 8TB capacities, while the Sandisk Portable SSD will launch in 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB configurations.

Discuss on our Facebook page, HERE.

KitGuru Says: Are you in need of a speedy portable SSD? Will you be considering Sandisk for your next upgrade?

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