Finding a new desktop or motherboard compatible with blazing fast PCIe 5.0 SSDs can be tricky. However, finding the drive itself is much more difficult. Months after the first case is available to consumers, it’s often still sold out on virtually every online listing. Corsair’s first Gen 5 drive, one of the most prolific memory vendors and especially popular among gamers, hopefully helps alleviate the problems with this speedy new storage drive.
The MP700 is Corsair’s first PCIe 5.0 SSD, available in the ubiquitous full-size M.2 2280 format. Corsair claims 10GB/s read and write on a typical 2TB drive on a Gen 5 drive with next-gen interface and NAND memory. The smaller drives are rated at 9.5 GB/s and 8.5 GB/s read and write respectively. Both drives are backward compatible with Gen 4 and Gen 3 M.2 slots if your system isn’t ready for this.
Despite being focused on gaming, Corsair omits the drive’s over-the-top coolers. This is probably why the price is so incredibly low. They cost $170 for a 1TB drive or $290 for a 2TB, and ship within 1 business day from Corsair’s online store (at least as I write this). Compared to a $135 2TB Gen 4 drive, for instance, it may not sound cheap, but it’s about half as fast. Sadly, if you want an officially Jedi-approved Gen 5 SSD, you may have to wait a year or two.