Introduction
CORSAIR is launching its new MP700 PRO PCIe Gen5 NVMe 2.0 SSD, completely designed from the ground up for extreme performance, but also silent active cooling in an appealing aesthetic. The CORSAIR MP700 PRO 2TB with Air Cooler PCIe Gen5 x4 NVMe 2.0 M.2 SSD is CORSAIR’s new offering to provide fast SSD performance on the PCI-Express 5.0 interface and high endurance. The MP700 PRO uses the Phison E26 controller with high-density 3D TLC NAND with a DRAM cache on board. The MP700 PRO offers blazing-fast Gen5 performance up to 12,400MB/sec sequential read and 11,800MB/sec sequential write speeds with a stylish, quiet, and capable air cooler.
In today’s review, we take a look specifically at the new CORSAIR MP700 PRO 2TB with Air Cooler (CSSD-F2000GBMP700PRO) model with an MSRP of $339.99 (though prices are lower at the time of writing). CORSAIR is well known for its storage options, comprising of the PRO series of SSDs for enhanced durability and performance. The previous generation CORSAIR Force MP600, MP600 PRO, and PRO XT were well known for their performance at the time for Gen4-based SSDs. The new MP700 PRO is CORSAIR’s fastest option yet for SSD storage and provides performance at the top end of the Gen5 NVMe SSD generation with high endurance.
The CORSAIR MP700 PRO is a generational upgrade over the CORSAIR Force MP600 Gen4 SSD which we have reviewed all the way back in 2021. The CORSAIR MP700 PRO is also an upgrade over the previously released MP700, offering more performance and endurance. We will be comparing the new CORSAIR MP700 PRO with Air Cooler 2TB model today to a 2TB CORSAIR Force MP600 in our graphs so that you can see what moving from the last generation MP600 Gen4 to the new MP700 PRO Gen5 looks like. We will also be including comparisons to a previously reviewed PCIe Gen5 NVMe SSD for comparisons, and talk about that comparison.
CORSAIR MP700 PRO SSD with Air Cooler
When browsing the M.2 Solid State Drives section on CORSAIR’s website, you will find the newest offering listed at the top, the MP700 PRO with Air Cooler as well as the MP700 PRO without a heatsink. CORSAIR will offer the MP700 PRO without cooling, i.e. a bare SSD that you can attach your own cooling to or use your motherboard’s M.2 heatsinks. There will also be a special water-cooled capable build of the MP700 PRO called MP700 PRO Hydro X Series.
The MP700 PRO with Air Cooler will have two capacities available, a 1TB model capacity with an MSRP of $199.99 and a 2TB model capacity with an MSRP of $339.99. The bare drives without cooling will have a 1TB model capacity at $189.99 MSRP and a 2TB model capacity at $319.99. The MP700 PRO Hydro X Series will only come in a 2TB model capacity at $339.99 MSRP.
We are reviewing the MP700 PRO with Air Cooler 2TB model capacity that has an MSRP of $339.99. We have also found, at the time of writing, pricing may be about $15 cheaper on both Corsair.com and Newegg, so current online pricing is less than MSRP, which is great news, so keep an eye on deals as you will be able to get these SSDs at cheaper than MSRP pricing making them very appealing.
The CORSAIR MP700 PRO uses the new Phison PS5026-E26 controller and 3D TLC NAND flash. It is based on the PCI-Express 5.0 NVMe 2.0 interface and works on the latest Intel Z790 and AMD X670 platforms at PCIe Gen5 x4 speeds. CORSAIR is offering three cooling types, as we discussed above, one with air cooling, one that is bare, and one that can be water cooled. These are standard 2280 M.2 form factor. They are also backward compatible with PCIe Gen4 and Gen3 motherboards. CORSAIR also offers a five-year warranty on these SSDs.
The Phison E26 controller is a popular choice for Gen5 gaming performance and high-performance PCs. The Phison E26 is an 8-channel controller optimized for the PCIe Gen5x4 interface and is NVMe 2.0 compliant. It supports ONFI 5.0 and Toggle 5.0. It supports 14GB/s performance and capabilities up to 4TB and flash transfer rates up to 2,400MT/s. It supports LPDDR4 and DDR4 with transfer rates up to 3200Mbp/s. It supports Phison’s ECC LDPC engine and coding scheme as well as AES 256, SHA 512, RSA 4096, and TCG Opal.
Both the 2TB or 1TB CORSAIR MP700 PRO have a DRAM cache on board, the 2TB model has 4GB while the 1TB model has 2GB. Both capacities support dynamic SLC caching, TRIM support, SMART support, and garbage collection. According to CORSAIR the power usage of the 2TB model is 11.5W while the 1TB models are around 11W. The MTBF is 1.6M hours.
The sequential and random read and write performance, and the endurance of each SSD differs between the capacities (1TB or 2TB), not the difference in cooling solution. For example, the 2TB MP700 PRO with Air Cooler, or without, has the same performance, but the 1TB models do not. The capacities denote the differences, and the 2TB models of each one have the highest performance. The 2TB model has up to 1,400 TBW endurance and the 4TB model will have up to 3,000 TBW for incredible endurance.
The 2TB MP700 PRO (either with Air Cooler or without) has a sequential read of up to 12,400MB/s and a sequential write of up to 11,800MB/s. It has a 4KB random read of up to 1500K IOPS and a 4KB random write of up to 1600K IOPS. By contrast, the 1TB models of the MP700 PRO have a sequential read of up to 11,700MB/s and a sequential write of up to 9,600MB/s. It has a 4KB random read of up to 1400K IOPS and a 4KB random write of up to 1500K IOPS. What also makes the 2TB MP700 PRO special is the up to 1,400 TBW endurance rating, which makes it a good value for such a fast SSD. The 4TB model will have up to 3,000 TBW endurance for an incredible value.
What makes the CORSAIR MP700 PRO with Air Cooler unique is the cooling configuration. CORSAIR spent a painstaking amount of work and time on perfecting this cooling solution so that it can provide great cooling, but also not have to be extremely large or loud. The SSD is covered on both sides by the heatsink assembly, and the top portion extends out, so it is thicker than a Gen4 SSD, but not enormous, it is a tolerable and workable height that will fit well even in small form factor builds.
CORSAIR uses an active fan at the end of the SSD to push air down the heatsink channel, cooling the entire length of the heatsink fins. We have seen other implementations of active fans, typically at the top of the heatsink, pushing air downwards. This approach, with the fan at the end, pushing air across the heatsink fins seems to be more efficient and prone to less noise since it has a big chamber to push air across, instead of downwards.
This does mean, of course, that this SSD requires SATA power to run the fan, and you do want that connected to keep it at full performance from throttling. CORSAIR has also made the design easy to disassemble with easy-access screws. This is helpful if you wish to take the fan out and clean it, or if you need to replace the fan. This design is very clever, oh, and it looks cool too, pun intended.
When installed, the CORSAIR MP700 PRO with Air Cooler 2TB Gen5 NVMe SSD looks sleek and great in our system. The color is appealing and fits in well with any build, and the patterned texture visual on the top of the heatsink adds a professional flare to the overall look. Installation was simple, we had no clearance issues with the heatsink assembly or the fan cable when installing. The cable length is long enough to reach around the edge of the motherboard to the backside for power. We had no clearance issues with our AIO even with the tubes on the underside nearest to the SSD.