Sabrent Rocket 1TB 2230 SSD (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review
Product Information:
- Official Store: https://sabrent.com/products/sb-2130-1tb
Review Approach:
In an age of modern gaming, fast storage is quickly becoming a commodity. Not only do you need 100+ GB for your latest AAA adventure, but you’ll also be wanting something something with the speed to get you from screen to screen with minimal down time. Now SSDs aren’t new, and in recent years they’re almost an expectation when it comes to gaming. What is somewhat new however is the advent of handheld PC gaming thanks in no small part to the Steam Deck, and with this new dawn we find ourselves fighting for the best speeds with the most capacity at the best price for for what was until recently a niche form factor. How does Sabrent’s 1TB Rocket stack up against the rest?
Now for a bit of context here, what I’ll be comparing the Rocket against for the majority of this review is the 2230 SSD that comes as standard with the ROG Ally, this being Micron’s 512GB 2400 series (MTFDKBK512QFM). With 512GB just not cutting it for a lot of people nowadays, a 1TB SSD is an upgrade on paper, but what I really wanted to look at is how Sabrent justify their slightly above-average price point with a few real world tests alongside the more standard benchmarks.
Tech Specs
- Model: SB-2130-1TB
- Capacity: 1TB
- Interface: PCIe Gen. 4x4
- Maximum Read: 4750MB/s
- Maximum Write: 4300MB/s
- NAND Flash Memory: 3D TLC
On paper alone, those specs are incredibly impressive compared to the Micron 2400’s 4200MB/s max sequential read and 1800MB/s max sequential write speed. Putting both of these to the test with CrystalDiskMark the results are actually quite interesting.
The stock Micron SSD is on the left, and the Rocket on the right.
While the Rocket is considerably ahead on sequential write speed, and marginally wins out on sequential read speed, it actually falls short on both random read and write when compared to the stock Micron SSD. It should be noted that other outlets have reported higher speeds here, closer to 80MB/s random read and 250MB/s random write speed so your mileage may vary; I assume the drive being 77% full will have impacted performance here, but with this being how many people will end up using it, I feel it's a realistic benchmark.
As a bit of a real world test, I decided to pit the two SSDs against each other in terms of loading game save files, and it probably won’t be too much of a surprise to know they’re relatively evenly matched. The Rocket did come out ahead by a few seconds when loading Final Fantasy 15 (31 seconds vs 35 seconds on the Micron), but on Skyrim and Danganronpa V3, results were almost identical. You’re more likely to see the benefits of the Rocket’s superior sequential read and write speeds during the initial setup of your system, where you’ll be moving large files around. In gaming though where your random read and write speeds are more important, you’re looking at an experience relatively on par with the stock configuration.
Assuming you’re using a device that’s limited to 2230 form factor SSDs, Sabrent’s Rocket is still a great pick. Though you’ll likely have to debate whether the superior sequential performance is worth the price at its RRP of £150 (vs slower competitors around the £85 mark), it is currently listed at £105 at the time of writing in a number of UK retailers. At that price, the additional £20 or so you’re paying over the competition is an absolute no-brainer. If you’re running out of space on your Ally, this is one to check out.
Verdict
- Great sequential read and write speeds
- Current price offers good value
- Random read and write speeds fell short of expectation compared to the stock ROG Ally SSD
