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Building a flashy RGB-based build can be a daunting task at times, but it’s rewarding. The limited RGB storage options on the market may not suit your specific taste, leave you without control options, or even overheat just by being powered on. Achieving your desired aesthetic may take a few attempts to get it right, and even when it is right, the final piece may end flip upside down throwing it off.
RGB M.2 NVMe SSDs can add tasteful and subtle RGB lighting to your system without the need for extra cables or special mounting strategies. addlink’s X70 RGB pushes this design element a bit and is far more in-your-face-flashy than the other M.2 RGB SSDs we’ve tested so far. The diamond-cut design pairs well with G.Skill’s Trident Z Royal DRAM; you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better match.
While addlink is a fairly new SSD vendor, its partnership with Phison helps the company rank with the best of them. While the RGB lighting seemed to have a slight impact on the addlink X70 RGB’s random read/ write performance, Phison’s E12 NVMe controller still provided ample performance for any workflow we threw at it. At up to 3.5 GBps of performance, it absolutely smokes any HDD or SATA SSD, that’s for sure.
addlink’s X70 RGB outpaced Adata’s XPG Spectrix S40G, and at only a $10 premium. addlink’s X70 RGB clearly offers more performance for your dollar, and its heatsink keeps it cool. In contrast, the Spectrix S40G’s cooler is simply a diffuser and nothing more, though the S40G’s sleek curves and diffused lighting may be more appealing to some.
We can’t forget Patriot’s Viper VPR100. With essentially the same hardware, the VPR100 has the same price as the X70 RGB at the time of writing. Both will provide nearly the same performance, and both come with five-year warranties. Some will prefer the Patriot Viper VPR100’s aesthetics over the addlink X70 RGB’s: The matte finish and diffused lighting certainly do have a more refined look. You can’t go wrong with either, assuming the motherboard you pair it with can control the RGB lighting. At the end of the day, the choice comes down to your taste because both are pretty good picks.
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