At present, there are three main types of interfaces for SSD solid state drives: SATA M.2 PCI-E. The Computer Configuration Network has previously compared and introduced SATA and M.2 interfaces. In order to provide a comprehensive understanding of solid state drive interface knowledge, this article has added PCI-E interface and other rare hard drive interfaces.

Firstly, for these three common solid-state drive interfaces, their speed ranking should be: PCI-E ≥ M.2 ≥ SATA

As for why an equal sign is added, it is because the interface form cannot fully represent its speed, for example, some M.2 interface solid-state drives now use SATA channels. This question is detailed in the article 'What is the difference between sata and m.2'.

In addition to the three common interfaces of SATA M.2 PCI-E, some motherboards nowadays can also find mSATA, SATA Express, and U.2 interfaces. However, mSATA basically only exists on older motherboards because M.2 can completely replace it now. The SATA E interface was originally intended to replace SATA 6Gbps, but unfortunately it has not been officially used since its birth and disappearance... Currently, only Intel is promoting the U.2 interface in consumer products, mostly used in servers and enterprise applications. There are not many motherboards with U.2 interfaces now.

Next, the editor will provide a detailed introduction to the three mainstream SSD interfaces currently available

1、 SATA 6Gbps interface

To be precise, the current SATA solid-state interface should be called SATA III, which has a speed of 6Gbps, so many people also refer to it as SATA 6Gbps. The SATA 6Gbps interface is currently the most common hard drive interface, and all hard drives and most SSDs in the consumer market use this interface. The interface and cables are as follows:

This is run using 850pro 256GB, which is basically the limit of SATA III interface

The SATA III port is currently the most mature interface, but it is also an outdated interface for SSDs because its speed limit is basically around 560MB/s. Nowadays, SSDs can basically reach this speed, and the SATA interface only supports the AHCI protocol, which is prepared for high latency HDDs. SSDs should actually use more advanced NVMe protocol.

2、 M.2 interface

M. 2 is currently the most common interface for high-performance SSDs

M. At the beginning, the 2 interface was called NGFF (Next Generation Form Factor), which appeared very elegant with a basic size of 22x42mm. If you want to estimate the maximum capacity, it can reach 110mm. Currently, most new motherboards have M.2 interfaces, and most laptops are equipped with M.2 interface SSDs, which are gradually becoming popular due to their small size and easy installation.

There are several types of M.2 interface solid-state drives available now: those that use SATA channel, those that use PCI-E 3.0 x2 channel, and those that use PCI-E 3.0 x4 channel, with speeds of 6Gbps, 16Gbps, and 32Gbps respectively (it is important to note that M.2 solid-state drives that use SATA channel have speeds that are basically the same as regular SATA III interface solid-state drives, which is why I added an equal sign in the conclusion at the beginning of the article)

3、 PCI-E interface

Most SSDs that directly plug into the PCI-E interface are high-end products, although there are also many that are converted from M.2 SSDs with adapter cards. Consumer grade PCI-E SSDs are mostly PCI-E 3.0 x4, with the same bandwidth as those M.2 SSDs. However, due to the fact that most PCI-E SSDs are equipped with heat sinks, their performance is more stable, and Intel's PCI-E SSDs mostly come with server lineage, with good performance and stability. The PCI-E SSDs used in servers come in PCI-E 3.0 x8 or even x16 versions, with strong performance and high prices.

Summary: Which solid-state drive interface is good? Which SATA M.2 PCI-E interface has the fastest speed

The speed of SATA M.2 PCI-E interfaces has been clearly described in the previous text. As for which solid-state drive interface is better to choose? This brings up the issue of cost-effectiveness again. If we don't consider the issue of money, PCI-E is naturally the best, followed by M.2. Although the speed of SATA interface is the slowest among these three, it is still sufficient for ordinary users. The key is that SATA is cheap, mature in technology, and there is no need to worry about high temperature problems like M.2 and PCI-E.