TeamGroup has introduced its new lineup of inexpensive SSDs featuring a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface and designed for users who need up to 8TB of capacity and can cope with average performance. The company's MP34Q drives use 3D QLC flash and can be used to replace HDDs of modest capacity. The drives start at $300.
TeamGroup's MP34Q is aimed at applications that need a 2TB, 4TB, or 8TB NAND flash storage, but which will be good with an up to 3400MB/s sequential read speed and an up to 3000MB/s sequential write speed (with SLC caching). In addition, to ensure decent performance, the drives support DRAM caching.
High-capacity SSDs for client PCs are usually made for rather specific target audiences: creators and workstation users. Since these audiences tend to have certain requirements for performance and endurance, these drives usually use expensive 3D NAND memory and controllers. Stepping back to QLC enables more capacity, though, but it comes in exchange for endurance. Unfortunately, that means the MP34Q won't be suitable for write-intensive applications, like Chia Coin mining.
Target applications not only include thin laptops that physically cannot house a high-capacity HDD but also machines that use multiple M.2 SSDs, like a high-performance M.2-2280 drive for an OS and applications as well as an M.2-2280 high-capacity drive for mass storage.
Since the MP34Q is based on 3D QLC NAND memory (and an unknown controller that supports DRAM caching), it can't really boast a truly high endurance rating. The 2TB drive is rated for up to 450 terabytes to be written (TBW) over a five-year period, whereas the 8TB model is spec'd for up to 1,800 TBW over five years.
In both cases, we are talking about 0.12 drive writes per day (DWPD), which is significantly below the DWPD ratings of higher-end client SSDs. In the case of an 8TB drive, 0.12 DWPD means nearly a terabyte, which may be enough for client workloads but may not be exactly suitable for those who need to deal with huge amounts of data.
The MP34Q SSDs are not exactly fast or durable, but they are cheap. The 2TB model carries an MSRP of $300, the 4TB SKU is priced at $700, whereas an 8TB version is set to cost $1,300. All SSDs will hit the market in mid-August.
