Lexar Launches NM800 SSDs: Up to 7400 MBps with Graphene Heat Spreader

Lexar has introduced its new lineup of SSDs that bring together extreme performance, a graphene heat spreader, and extended longevity. The Professional NM800 drives are designed primarily for high-performance desktops and inexpensive mobile or desktop workstations that can benefit from its characteristics. Interestingly, the SSDs are not too expensive too. 

Designed to compete with the best SSDs, Lexar's Professional NM800 comes in an M.2 2280 form-factor, has a PCIe 4.0 x4 interface, and is powered by an unknown NVMe 1.4-compliant controller coupled with 3D TLC NAND memory. The drives are set to be available in 512GB and 1TB versions. 

The 1TB SKU is rated for an up to 7400 MBps sequential read speed, up to 5800 MBps sequential write speed, up to 400K random read IOPS, and up to 750K random write IOPS. The 512GB model is slightly slower and is rated for up to 7000 MBps sequential reads, up to 3000 MBps sequential writes, up to 200K random reads, and up to 550K random writes, reports TechX. 

Typically, drives that are rated for up to 7400 MBps reads come with large heatsinks that prevent their installation into laptops and sometimes even into small form-factor desktops. By contrast, Lexar equipped its Professional NM800 SSDs come with a graphene heat spreader that is thin and allows the drives to be used inside notebooks. The manufacturer does not disclose which controller it uses, so we do not know anything how sustainable its performance is under high loads. 

But performance is not the only advantage that Lexar's Professional NM800 SSDs have. The drives are rated for 0.44 drive writes per day (DWPD), which is higher than that of typical consumer-grade SSDs and which will be appreciated by content creators who tend to write huge amounts of data. 

Lexar's Professional NM800 drives offer a unique combination of features, but unlike workstation-grade SSDs, these products are not too expensive. The 512GB SKU is priced at around €100 in Europe, whereas the 1TB version carries a €180 price tag.