Samsung 980 Pro is one of the highest-rated and widely-popular Gen 4 NVMe SSD out there. But, it has a lot of competitors as well. I have compared this SSD with various other Gen 4 SSDs in the market. And, today, we are going to compare it with Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus.
Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus is a pretty popular Gen 4 NVMe with a read/write speed of 7000/6850 MB/. However, the Samsung 980 Pro can reach up to 7000/5000 MB/s.
Both of them are DRAM SSDs. Both of them TLC NAND Flash and various other things are the same.
Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus lacks encryption which is the only drawback I see with this SSD. However, Samsung 980 Pro comes with AES 256 Bit Encryption. So, if you are serious about data security, you should choose 980 Pro right away.
However, in terms of endurance, the Rocket 4 Plus comes with massive TBW ratings and clearly beats 980 Pro in the domain. So, there are numerous things you will have to consider. Let me help you through all this below in this article.
Theoretical Specifications (Comparison)
Let’s compare the key specifications of both these SSDs first of all.
| Specification | Samsung 980 Pro | Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus |
|---|---|---|
| Storage Variants | 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, 2TB | 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 8TB |
| Theoretical Read Speed (Max.) | 7,000 MB/s | 7,100 MB/s |
| Theoretical Write Speed (Max.) | 5,000 MB/s | 6,600 MB/s |
| Form Factor/Interface | M.2 (2280)/PCIe® Gen 3.0 x4, NVMe™ 1.4 | M.2 (2280)/PCIe Gen 4.0 x 4, NVMe 1.3 |
| MTBF (Reliability) | 1.50 Million Hours | – |
| Warranty | 5 Years | 5 Years |
| T.R.I.M. | Supported | Supported |
| S.M.A.R.T. | Supported | Supported |
| Encryption | AES 256-bit Encryption | No AES 256-bit encryption |
| Heatsink Option | Not Available | Not Available |
| Image |  |  |
| Availability | Check Price | Check Price |
Almost everything looks similar here. Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus is looking better in terms of maximum sequential read/write speed. However, it lacks 256-bit encryption which could be a great turning point in this comparison. We will come to that later in this article.
Synthetic Benchmark Scores
These tests are done on a desktop with an Intel i5 12600K and 16GB DDR5 RAM kit. The motherboard is MSI Pro Z690-A. The tests are done on 1TB variants of both SSDs. The performance may vary on other variants but the differences will be almost similar.
PassMark Scores Comparison
AS SSD Benchmark Scores Comparison (8GB)
Anvil Storage Utilities (1GB Test)
CrystalDiskMark 8 Scores Comparison
Trace Testing PCMark 10
ATTO Disk Benchmark Scores
Both the SSDs have competed hard with each other to stay at the top. But during these tests, I found that the Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus was much better in data write operations. However, Samsung 980 Pro won some of the tests. But, by the graphs I have created above, you can find out which one has the best capabilities in terms of sequential and random read/write operations. In my opinion, Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus is a much faster and powerful SSD.
Games and Software Loading Time
See the YouTube video below to compare the game and software loading time using both these SSDs. The tests are done using an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X with 16GB DDR4 RAM.
Endurance and TBW
| Parameter | Samsung 980 Pro | Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus |
|---|---|---|
| TBW | 250GB: 150 TBW 500GB: 300 TBW 1TB: 600 TBW 2TB: 1,200 TBW | 1TB: 700 TBW 2TB: 1,400 TBW 4TB: 3,000 TBW 8TB: 5,600 TBW |
| Warranty | 5-Years Limited Warranty | 5-Years Limited Warranty |
| MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure) | 1.50 Million Hours | – |
I am really impressed with the high TBW (Total Terabytes Written) numbers of Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus. You can simply say that the Rocket 4 Plus is going to last longer as compared to the 980 Pro.
Technical Specifications
| Technical Specification | Samsung 980 Pro | Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus |
|---|---|---|
| NAND Flash Type | Samsung 3-bit MLC V-NAND | Micron’s TLC 3D |
| NAND Flash Layers | 128/136 | 96 |
| Controller | Samsung Elpis Controller | Phison E18 |
| Controller Configurations | Not Specified | Triple R5 + CoX, 8 Channels |
| Cache | DDR4 SDRAM | DDR4 DRAM |
| Heatsink Option | Available | Available |
| T.R.I.M. | Available | Available |
| S.M.A.R.T. | Available | Available |
| Encryption | AES 256-bit Encryption (Class 0) | Not Available |
| Website | Samsung 980 Pro | WD Black SN850 |
Price
The price of both these SSDs is almost similar. You can find some price differences depending on your location and the storage variant you are choosing.
Final Verdict: Which one should you buy?
I would suggest going for Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus if performance is your main priority. But, it lacks encryption which you will have to accept right away. Otherwise, Samsung 980 Pro is an equally fast and capable SSD. In fact, it is beating the Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus in some benchmark tests.
So, if you are OK with the price of the Sabrent Rocket 4.0 Plus and the lack of encryption, you can go for it. However, there are no problems with the Samsung 980 Pro.
Let me know what you think about this article in the comments!