M.2 M vs. M.2 (B+M): Learn the Differences

Most computers ship with at least one M.2 SSD. Two common types of M.2 are M.2 SATA and M.2 NVME. Learn the difference between M.2 M and M.2 (B+M).

What is an M.2 SSD?

The M.2 Solid State Drive is a tiny form factor Solid State Drive (SSD) used in the memory expansion cards housed inside. M.2 SSDs provide high-performance storage in tiny, power-constrained devices such as ultrabooks and tablets, and meet the industry standard.

They are often smaller than similar SSDs such as the tiny Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (mSATA).

Solid state drives are solid state drives with flash memory that store persistent data. Unlike a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive has no moving parts that can fail or cause it to spin up or down.

Next Generation Form Factor was the original name for the M.2 SSD interface standard. However, it was changed to M.2 after the chevalier (pronounced M-dot-2). M.2 SSDs are ideal for gaming, 3D animation, video editing, and large file transfers when building or upgrading a PC or laptop.

M.2 is compatible with a variety of interfaces and applications, including PCIe and SATA. SSDs aren’t the only M.2 compatible devices. The M.2 standard also supports protocols such as USB and Wi-Fi and can be used in graphics cards and AI accelerator cards.

SATA International and the PCI Special Interest Group, a group of technology sector vendors, have jointly developed the M.2 form factor standard.

M.2 SSDs: Powerful performance in a small form factor

In recent years, solid-state drives (SSDs) have become faster and more capable of handling huge amounts of data. However, the interfaces they are connected to limit or limit their full potential.

Gen 3 Serial ATA ports have a maximum native transfer rate of 6Gb/s and are designed for much slower mechanical hard drives.

The SATA 6 Gb/s connection limits the Mini-SATA (mSATA) interface, designed primarily to provide the smallest form factor for SSDs.

The M.2 standard, a specification for embedded computer expansion cards, was created to remove the limitations of mSATA and provide additional options for small form factor cards such as SSDs of various sizes and capacities.

M.2 was officially rebranded as M.2 in 2013 after becoming known as Next Generation Form Factor (NGFF). M.2 is based on the mSATA standard, which uses the physical card structure and PCI Express® mini-card ports.

M.2, as the “successor”to mSATA, offers increased performance and capacity while reducing the module footprint.

The SATA interface or PCI Express (PCIe) lane is used to connect the M.2 SSD module to the host. Although M.2 supports both SATA and PCIe, an M.2 module can only be connected to one of the two interfaces.

So check your motherboard documentation to make sure your module fits and works with the correct connector.

What is the purpose of an M.2 SSD?

Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, near field communications, and wireless wide area networks are just some of the types of devices that M.2 modules can communicate with. However, M.2 form factors are most commonly associated with SSDs for storage.

No cable is required to connect M.2 SSDs to the motherboard. Instead, they use a dedicated M.2 connector to connect directly to the motherboard.

Both SATA and PCIe protocols can be used with an M.2 SSD. SATA is a connection and data transfer standard for hard drives and computer systems. PCIe, or Serial Expansion Bus, is a standard for connecting a computer to one or more peripherals.

M.2 SSDs also support PCIe Express Non-Volatile Memory (NVMe) drives. Over the PCIe bus, NVMe can speed up data transfer between client PCs and SSDs. NVMe support has been created to help eliminate bottlenecks and improve performance.

It also allows read and write requests to be processed in parallel. Due to its architecture, NVMe compatibility can provide up to five times the throughput of SATA M.2 models, allowing the computer to better perform tasks such as file transfers.

Single-sided and double-sided M.2 SSDs are available. Single-sided M.2 boards are used in ultra-thin laptops when space is limited. On the other hand, double-sided chips take up more physical space but contain more data.

Module keys are notches on one end of an M.2 device that act as connections. Rectangular M.2 modules. There is an edge connector on one side and a mounting hole on the other.

The edge connector has 75 pins and 75 locations. Each pin is rated for 50 volts and 0.5 amps.

M.2 module keys

The M.2 product type is identified by keys, which are notches on the edge connections of the M.2 modules.

M.2 SSD modules are connected to circuit boards via connectors on both sides. M.2 SSD cards, unlike mSATA, have two types of connections or connectors: B-key connectors and M-key connectors.

Both types of keys can be found on the same map. The key type determines the number of PCIe lanes supported by the socket. The AB key can contain one or two PCIe lanes, while the M key can contain four. The edge connection of key M has five contacts, and the edge connection of key B has six.

M.2 cards are for slots A and E on the motherboard for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth wireless adapters. Most M.2 wireless cards support A and E key slots.

Pros and cons of M.2 SSDs

Using an M.2 SSD has many advantages:

Size and Capacity An M.2 SSD takes up significantly less space and consumes much less power in a notebook than a traditional SATA or Serial-Attached SCSI (SAS) SSD. On the other hand, other form factors are likely to be a better fit if a mobile device needs more storage capacity.

Performance. For example, M.2 SSDs based on NVMe standards can read and write data faster than SATA or SAS SSDs.

Adaptable UI PCIe, SATA, USB 3.0, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi are supported by the M.2 SSD. If a customer buys a laptop with an M.2 interface, they will have many options for configuring peripheral equipment.

Below are some disadvantages of M.2 SSDs:

Price. An M.2 SSD is more expensive than a SATA SSD. Prices for 2.5″SATA SSDs have dropped as they have been produced.

Capacity is limited. While 1 TB or 2 TB of storage is likely sufficient for most mobile applications, business storage needs more capacity.

What are your options for purchasing an M.2 SSD?

Newer mobile computing devices often use M.2 cards. M.2 SSDs are not compatible with older systems and may not be suitable for large enterprise storage devices due to their form factor being different from mSATA cards.

On the other hand, enterprise storage vendors are starting to use M.2 SSDs in their hybrid and all-flash arrays. The small size and density of M.2 SSDs allows storage vendors to cram large, high-performance capacity into a small space, even when there is local capacity.

Adata XPG SX8200 Pro or Samsung 970 EVO Plus are two different M.2 SSDs to choose from . The Adata M.2 SSD has capacities ranging from 256GB to 2TB with read and sequential write speeds of 3500MB and 3000MB per second respectively.

Mean time between failures (MTBF) is 2 million hours. However, compared to other options, the random access speed is lower, which means that the storage speed will be slower.

M.2 providers

A 2TB M.2 SSD typically costs between $150 and $200; smaller capacities cost much less: 256GB M.2 SSDs cost less than $50. As mentioned earlier, for example, Adata and Samsung offer a wide range of M.2 SSDs in various capacities. Other M.2 SSD manufacturers:

Micron Technology owns Crucial, Kingston Technology, Plextor Team Group and Toshiba.

Intel is also the leading manufacturer of M.2 wireless adapters.

What factors should I consider before buying an M.2 SSD?

As M.2 SATA drives and M.2 NVMe drives become less expensive and more common, they are generally recommended for new PC builds and upgrades.

When buying an M.2 device for your computer, the first thing to look at is whether it has one or two M.2 connectors. If the laptop is M.2 compliant, it will have a physical interface.

The operating system must already have the required Extended Host Controller Interface drivers installed to allow the installation of an M.2 memory card.

You may need to configure the device’s underlying I/O engine to discover M.2 storage.

An M.2 SATA drive should be sufficient if the computer will be used primarily for everyday work or gaming. An M.2 NVMe drive should be used if the user requires maximum compute performance or high sequential read and write speeds for use cases such as 4K video editing or large file transfers.

If the motherboard does not have an M.2 slot, the user can purchase an M.2 drive on a card from companies such as Asus or MSI. They install an M.2 drive on a PCIe expansion card, allowing it to be used in PCIe slots.

What is the difference between M.2, mSATA, and NVMe SSDs?

Although M.2 is sometimes referred to as the successor to mSATA, mSATA SSDs are still available. They may continue to do so for some time, especially on portable systems that support this form factor.

M.2 and mSATA cards cannot be connected to the same devices as they are different and have different connections, but they are still used.

M.2 refers to the type of SSD, which can be SATA or PCIe NVMe.

Most mSATA cards are slower and contain less data than M.2 SSDs. Unlike mSATA, which only supports SATA interface standards, M.2 SSDs support a range of interface standards, including PCIe 3.0, SATA 3.0, and USB 3.0. M.2 SATA SSDs perform the same as mSATA cards while M.2 PCIe cards perform faster.

Also, SATA SSDs can reach 600MB per second, while M.2 PCIe cards can reach 4GB per second.

M.2 cards can also use the NVMe protocol thanks to PCIe support. Reduced latency, higher IOPS, and lower power consumption give NVMe devices a significant performance advantage over traditional interface devices.

Conclusion

As SSDs continue to transform the way businesses manage data, choosing the right storage media in the right form factor and with the right interfaces will be important.

M.2 SSDs that provide smaller, faster, more efficient storage expand the options and solutions available to match workloads with price and performance.

Compared to SATA and mSATA, the key advantage of NVMe-based PCIe SSDs is speed. NVMe drives run at 1 GB per second at low end, while SATA drives run at 750 MB per second. M.2 NVMe SSDs are the right solution for applications that use a lot of hard drives or require a lot of hard drive reads and writes.

FAQ

What is the maximum transfer rate of an SSD?

The 2.5″SATA SSD is the most common form of SATA SSD because it can be used in older machines. SATA drives have an average speed of 500-550Mbps and a maximum speed of 600Mbps or 6Gbps.

Are all SSDs compatible with motherboards?

Your motherboard’s SSD compatibility depends on both components. SSD drives require a motherboard with at least one SATA port.

Is an external SSD as fast as an internal one?

Internal SSDs can read and write faster than external SSDs because they have fewer components to slow them down.

What is the lifespan of an SSD?

Under ideal conditions, a modern SSD can last 5 years. How you use solid state media and environmental conditions can affect its durability.