The Kingston NV1 SSD was one of the best-value PCIe Gen 3 SSDs due to its impressive price-to-performance ratio and build quality. Continuing the NV1’s legacy is an updated PCIe Gen 4 SSD model released last September 2022, the Kingston NV2 series. With capacities ranging from 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB, the new Kingston NV2 SSD is an affordable PCIe Gen 4 SSD without the premium costs associated with the latest protocol. Let’s take a look at the Kingston NV2 2TB.
Kingston NV2 2TB SSD Specs
| Kingston NV2 2 TB SSD | |
|---|---|
| Brand: | Kingston |
| Model: | SNV2S/2000G |
| Capacity: | 2000 GB (931 GB usable) 24 GB additional overprovisioning |
| Controller: | Phison PS5021-E21 |
| Flash: | Toshiba 112-layer 3D TLC BiCS5 Rebranded to Kingston FB25608UCT1-AF |
| DRAM: | N/A, but 64 MB Host-Memory-Buffer |
| Endurance: | 640 TBW |
| Form Factor: | M.2 2280 |
| Interface: | PCIe Gen 4 x4, NVMe 1.4 |
| Device ID: | KINGSTON SNV2S2000G |
| Firmware: | ELFK0S.4 |
| Warranty: | 3 years |
Kingston NV2 2TB Unboxing and Overview
Kingston retained the same packaging on the NV2 albeit with updated art that’s in line with its post-HyperX sell-off design.
Being a budget Gen 4 NVMe SSD, the Kingston NV2 2TB(and the rest of the SSD variants) has no built-in or pre-attached heatsink. This makes the NV2 SSD compatible with any device as you won’t have clearance issues with a pre-attached heatsink. The back side of the NV2 doesn’t have any IC or chips.
The Kingston NV2 NVMe SSD uses the Gen 4 protocol but doesn’t maximize the PCIe Gen 4×4 bandwidth as the NV2 is rated at 3000MB/s to 3,500MB/s read and 1,300MB/s to 2,800MB/s write depending on the capacity. Our specific NV2 2TB model has a rated speed of 3,500MB/s read and 2,800MB/s write.
Test Bench Setup and Benchmark Methodology
Kingston NV2 2TB Testbench Specs
| CPU | Intel Core i9 13900K |
| COOLER | ASUS ROG RYUJIN II 360mm V2 – Noctua NT-H2 Thermal Paste |
| MOTHERBOARD | Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Master |
| MEMORY | Kingston Fury Beast RGB 32GB(2x16GB) 6000 MHz DDR5 |
| GPU | Nvidia RTX 4090 FE |
| STORAGE | Kingston KC3000 1TB PCI-E Gen 4 SSD |
| POWERSUPPLY | ROG Thor 1000W Platinum II PSU |
| OPERATING SYSTEM | Windows 11 Pro Build 22H2 |
| DISPLAY | Lenovo Legion Y27Q Gaming Monitor |
We use CapFrameX 1.7.0 Stable as our primary FPS capture and analysis tool for all our gaming benchmarks. The latest build version of Windows 11 Pro and WHQL-certified drivers are used for our benchmarks. Readings such as temperatures and power draw are recorded using HWINFO64, and other relevant software for cross-checking.
THROUGHPUT Performance
Developed by Noriyuki Miyazaki, CrytalDiskMark is a free benchmark tool that is being used by thousands of experts. This tool measures SSD’s sequential read and writes speeds. That means how fast files can be read from and written to the drive, usually measured in MB/s.
IOPS Performance
IOPS or Input/Output Operations Per Second is a measure of how many inputs or outputs an SSD can perform in a short period. IOPS is a useful parameter to measure how fast it can process small amounts of workload that are similar to real-world usages, such as loading a webpage and launching apps.
ACCESS TIME
Access time or latency is just as crucial as sequential, random, and IOPS for an SSD. It wraps up all the values from the previous performance and shows the SSD’s responsiveness, whether it be small or heavy workloads.
AS SSD’s Copy benchmark simulates copying various file types namely, ISOs, Games, and applications. Different file types result in different transfer speeds.
Kingston NV2 2TB SSD Temperatures
PCIe Gen 4 SSDs are notorious for their ridiculously high temperatures but the Kingston NV2 is impressive as it doesn’t have a built-in heatsink like most Gen 4 SSDs. The 70°C peak temperature is well below the concerning temperature for a Gen 4 SSD. A 51°C idle temp is to be expected given that it’s a Gen 4 SSD without a heatsink.
Conclusion
The Kingston NV2 2TB NVMe SSD despite having Gen 3 speeds outperforms our Gen 3 SSDs, especially in small-size and random operations. The Kingston NV2 2TB SSD’s price at Php 7,999 rivals most Gen 3 2TB SSDs and Gen 4 2TB SSDs. That said, the NV2 can be looked at as the middle ground of the two generations. It’s a Gen 4 SSD with Gen 3 speeds making it a compelling option for users looking to get the latest hardware without breaking the bank. That said, it also has the drawbacks of being in the middle especially its throughput performance depending on how you look at it. However, the Gen 4 protocol does have its advantages specifically when it comes to future-proofing your system and support for next-generation consoles.
The Kingston NV2’s performance that’s just slightly above most Gen 3 SSDs is a sweet spot that justifies its slight premium price without going overboard where most users won’t really notice the extra speed benefit. Overall, the Kingston NV2 2TB SSD is an excellent entry-level Gen4 SSD that’s great for users looking to get a value storage upgrade whether it be for their PC or console.
Grant is a Financial Management graduate from UST. His passion for gadgets and tech crossed him over in the industry where he could apply his knowledge as an enthusiast and in-depth analytic skills as a Finance Major. His passion allows him to earn at the same time help Gadget Pilipinas' readers in making smart, value-based decisions and purchases with his reviews and guides.
