Samsung uses two NAND chips and a DRAM module with 1 GB for the Pro version of the 980, which makes the SSD much faster than the entry-level version. It is one of the top performers in the synthetic benchmarks, but does not quite reach the values of the Cardea A440. The big advantage of the 980 Pro over the other PCIe 4.0 SSDs is its low heat build-up...

Among the 2.5-inch SSDs, the Samsung 870 QVO took first place with very high speed and very good programme acceleration. This also applies to the first-placed PCIe 3.0 SSD: The SK Hynix Gold P31 not only took the test victory, but also the price-performance victory. The Samsung 990 Pro did the same with the PCIe 4.0 SSDs: It also achieved the test and price-performance victory here...

The differences in the synthetic measurements are large, but they blur in the practical benchmarks. A fast and expensive SSD is only worthwhile if you also use it, for a simple office PC a cheap SSD with PCIe 3.0 is sufficient. However, if you only look at the performance and only consider the SSDs from this test, you can hardly get past the Acer Predator; the Adata Legend 840 and the HP FX900 follow...

Curious: among the fast PCI Express 4.0 SSDs, two models achieved both test and price-performance victory thanks to identical test scores and the same sales price - the Western Digital Black SN850 and the Samsung 980 Pro. This is rare for Computer Bild.

It's fascinating how fast SSDs have become - even faster with PCIe 4.0. However, this comparative test also seems to reveal an unattractive tendency: The faster the SSDs become, the less durable they are likely to be. At least that is what the TBW suggests. However, we did not measure this.

The Samsung 980 Pro has some small weaknesses that prevent a better ranking. It, too, lacks a heat sink.