Acer FA200 4TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 NVMe SSD Review

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Gaming & DirectStorage Performance

On this page, we will examine the game load time performance of the SSD, using a game, as well as the 3DMark DirectStorage test. We will utilize the DirectStorage test in 3DMark to look specifically at the DirectStorage benchmark on the SSD.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Benchmark

We are now including the Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Benchmark as well, which benchmarks the load times of several game scenes. This new and updated benchmark utilizes a new updated engine with updated and improved graphics textures and fidelity. The benchmark calculates the sum load time of the scenes and reports the number. We run the benchmark three times and take the average of the load times. This provides consistent, objective game load testing data we can use for comparison in a game scenario outside of DirectStorage. This benchmark uses DX11.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Benchmark Storage Performance Graph

In Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail benchmark, the Acer FA200 4TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 NVMe SSD does very well. In this game loading time benchmark, the Acer FA200 4TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 NVMe SSD does it in 6.469 seconds, which puts it toward the higher-end of game load times on this graph, which honestly is impressive. It is faster here than the Netac NV7000-Q and even the Samsung 990 PRO, only the Western Digital SN7100 and Teamgroup MP44 really beat it here. Considering no DRAM cache, this is very solid and a good indication for PC game loading times.

3DMark DirectStorage Benchmark

We are running the 3DMark DirectStorage feature test, and showing the overall feature test score, and individual test results as displayed when run on the SSD.

According to the 3DMark DirectStorage test, the Acer FA200 4TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 NVMe SSD is 168.7% faster with DirectStorage enabled. It shows that with DirectStorage off, we get 5.52GB/s, and then with DirectStorage on, that results in 14.82GB/s. Individual scores show the bandwidth of each run with and without DirectStorage.

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REVIEW OVERVIEW

The FPS Review Score
8.8

SUMMARY

The Acer FA200 4TB PCIe Gen4 M.2 NVMe SSD offers affordable PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe 2.0 M.2 2280 SSD performance upwards of 7GB/s sequential read. It does this by using the Maxio MAP1602 controller, and YMTC Xtacking 3.0 3D NAND flash. This QLC-based drive shows that QLC drives have improved over time, and are viable options for large performance drives. Acer offers this in 500GB, 1TB, 2TB and 4TB capacities to give you plenty of room for your games. It exceeded sequential performance, but does show its weakness in random 4K performance due to its QLC, DRAM-less nature. It does have some real weakness when it comes to small office type workloads, but otherwise does alright for gaming, or secondary storage needs, and hey, it's affordable.
Brent Justicehttps://www.thefpsreview.com
Former managing editor of GPUs at HardOCP for 18 years, Brent Justice has been reviewing computer components since the late 90s, educated in the art and method of the computer hardware review, he brings experience, knowledge, and hands-on testing with a gamer-oriented and hardware enthusiast perspective. You can follow him on Twitter - @Brent_Justice You can sub to his YouTube channel - Justice Gaming https://www.youtube.com/c/JusticeGamingChannel You can check out his computer builds on KIT - @BrentJustice https://kit.co/BrentJustice

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