Plextor M6e 256 GB PCI Express SSD Review: M.2 For Your Desktop

[cryan]

Plextor's next-gen M6e is a M.2 2280 PCIe SSD combined with a x4 PCIe adapter. You probably don't have a M.2 PCIe slot yet, but Plextor hopes their Marvell 9183 powered SSD will find a home in enthusiast systems thanks to their adapter.

Plextor M6e 256 GB PCI Express SSD Review: M.2 For Your Desktop : Read more

 

[blackmagnum]

Nice product design, please make one in red (it will be faster).

 

[dgingeri]

Someone needs to build an adapter that connects to a PCIe x8 slot and has mounting points for up to 4 or 8 PCIe M2 SSDs.

 

[Au_equus]

lots of empty space on that PCB and its only a half height card. Maybe its possible we can see multiple TB PCIs SSDs in the consumer space or they may just restrict it to enterprise.

 

[Amdlova]

300 dollar for 256 gb... i can buy 4x 120gb v300 kingston (2200mb/s R) (1920mb/s W)
raid 0. too expensive. that plextor

 

[menetlaus]

Who keeps telling you there is no demand for M.2 drives?

I bought a Lenovo Y410P shortly after they were released (and was incorrectly told it had mSATA not NGFF/M.2 for the SSD), and have been waiting over a year for a decent M.2 drive to put in it.

 

[swordrage]

May be in a few years we will see an ssd connected to a PCIe x16 the and size of a graphics card.

 

[nekromobo]

How much does it add to boot-time with its bios loading stuff? Other PCI-e cards add as long as a 1-2 minutes to boot time.

 

[dgingeri]

It's only a single AHCI device, and it doesn't have to wait for spinup like other raid controllers, so likely only a second or so extra init time.

 

[cryan]

lots of empty space on that PCB and its only a half height card. Maybe its possible we can see multiple TB PCIs SSDs in the consumer space or they may just restrict it to enterprise.

The drive itself has no wasted space. The bridge board has plenty, being that the drive is only 22mm x 80mm.

Regards,

Christopher Ryan

 

[cryan]

How much does it add to boot-time with its bios loading stuff? Other PCI-e cards add as long as a 1-2 minutes to boot time.

It adds all of about a second. You'll never notice, and based on UEFI settings, you might never even see the Plextor op-rom splash screen at post.

Regards,
Christopher Ryan

 

[cryan]

Who keeps telling you there is no demand for M.2 drives?

I bought a Lenovo Y410P shortly after they were released (and was incorrectly told it had mSATA not NGFF/M.2 for the SSD), and have been waiting over a year for a decent M.2 drive to put in it.

On the desktop, the demand for M.2 storage is not very high yet. In laptops, SATA M.2s are in high demand, but there isn't much reason to have a pure M.2 native PCIe Phy drive in a desktop yet. The M6e we looked at is built around the AIB bridge board, and thus isn't detachable from the M.2 drive itself, so despite the M.2 drive at the heart of the board, you still really can't buy a M.2 native PCIe drive yet. And even if you bought a M6e, ripped it out of the bridge board, and installed it in the Lenovo -- it probably wouldn't see more than a single lane of connectivity.

Regards,
Christopher Ryan

 

[RedJaron]

Fun stuff here. Makes me interested what options I'll have to work with when I'm due for an upgrade in two years.

 

[Drinkperrier]

Work on the asus impact VI on the MPCIe combo 2 slot?

 

[west7]

this is a great product great speed and a nice price

 

[west7]

this is a great product great speed and a nice price

 

[Vadamo]

Ill pick one up, alot of space on that card tho, why not put another set and make it a full sized card?

 

[foscooter]

If you remove the SSD drive from the PCI-e adapter board, will it work in the new Z97 motherboards, in the M.2 slot?
BTW: I know it will void the warranty.

 

[foscooter]

If you remove the SSD drive from the PCI-e adapter board, will it work in the new Z97 motherboards, in the M.2 slot?
BTW: I know it will void the warranty.

 

[foscooter]

If you remove the SSD drive from the PCI-e adapter board, will it work in the new Z97 motherboards, in the M.2 slot?
BTW: I know it will void the warranty.

I posted the same question in the forums, and got an answer: NO!

If I wish to use a m.2 SSD, it looks like I'd have to get a Crucial M550 m.2 SATA SSD. No PCI-e SSD's available yet!

EDIT: 06/11/2014 - BTW, YES it will work. Mine does! And it uses the 2 PCI-e channels. My Z97 mobo sees it with no problems! That's what I'm running now.

 

[cat1092]

I believe this type of product will kick the mSATA drives to the curb before these can become popular. Won't be the first time I've seen this, though. A technology released, then quickly superseded for another.

Will be great to have these for notebooks, though an adapter will be needed for current releases, negating any performance gains. Because this option isn't dependent on, nor was designed for, a SATA 3 port. A true PCI-e port will be needed.

Who said that the PC was dead, again? We have every reason to keep them very much alive.

Cat

 

[CyberAngel]

My Next Windows laptop might have this kind of SSD

 

[cryan]

My Next Windows laptop might have this kind of SSD

Probably not this, since it's a M.2 PCIe SSD mounted in a half height/half length desktop add-in board. Technically, it's not a M.2 product. Removing the drive from the board kills the warranty, though Plextor is planning on releasing a M.2-only version for Z97 mobos and the few compatible laptops (there are very few that it'd work in).

Chances are, if the laptop has the capability to use x2 or x4 PCIe M.2 devices, it already has something as fast or faster installed.

Regards,
Christopher Ryan