Corsair SSD MP700 PRO :
Unboxing the Corsair MP700 PRO:
The Corsair MP700 PRO is a PCIe 5.0 SSD in M.2 2280 format, using the NVMe 2.0 protocol. This is currently the most common format when you buy an SSD to integrate directly onto your motherboard. Corsair has announced two capacities available at launch, a 1 TB version and a 2 TB version. It’s this second model that we received in its ” aircooling ” version, i.e. with an active air cooling system. Corsair also plans to combine this new SSD with its in-house “Hydro X Edition” waterblock, which we’ve already seen on other models.
If you’ve read our latest reviews of Corsair’s liquid cooling loop, the packaging of this Corsair MP700 PRO will no doubt remind you of the components we tested. Indeed, the dominant colors of the box are black and yellow. There’s no need for installation instructions, as these are available directly online via the QR Code revealed when the box is opened.
The front panel shows a photo of the MP700 PRO, along with its main technical specifications and capacity. We learn that read speeds can reach 12,400 MB/s with up to 1,500K IOPS, and write speeds of 11,800 MB/s with up to 1,600K IOPS. These are the values given by the manufacturer, which we will verify during our tests.
When you open the box, you can see the Corsair MP700 PRO perfectly protected in a foam casing and already equipped with its cooling system.
An active cooling system :
Most PCIe 5.0 SSDs are equipped with an active cooling system, as they tend to generate a fair amount of heat. Our sample of the day is no exception, featuring an air-cooling solution. It features an imposing aluminum radiator topped by a cover that allows the air swept by the 20 mm fan to keep it cool.
Here’s our MP700 PRO SSD stripped bare, which, as we specified above, is in M.2 2280 format, corresponding here to dimensions of 22 x 80 x 3 mm versus 24 x 80 x 20 mm when the heatsink is installed.
To take full advantage of the fan, it will be powered via its SATA port.
What’s under the hood?
Let’s take apart the cooling system to reveal the SSD and the components used. We can see right away the presence of several thermal pads designed to optimize heat exchange between the SSD’s chips and the radiator.
As its main component, this Corsair MP700 PRO uses a Phison PS5026-E26 controller. This is the controller used on high-end PCIe 5.0 x4 models. This is the company’s current flagship product, supporting eight flash channels and NVMe 2.0, using an Arm Cortex design. By the way, right now, if you want top-level storage performance, you’ll have to turn to a Phison controller.
The four flash memory chips are 3D TLC NAND from Micron, each with a capacity of 512 GB. As this is the 2 TB version, there are two chips on each side; on the 1 TB model, there are only two and on one side only. The Hynix DDR4-4266 chip provides a total of 4 GB of DRAM memory for the SSD’s mapping tables.
Corsair MP700 PRO data sheet:
To conclude this presentation, here’s the full data sheet for Corsair’s two MP700 PRO SSDs, with 1 TB and 2 TB versions. At MSRP, the 1 TB model will be invoiced at 234.99 euros and the 2 TB at 384.99 euros. The warranty remains unchanged at 5 years.
