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WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD Review
A highly affordable, high-performance internal storage option
By Andy Zahn Andy Zahn Writer Lower Columbia College Andy Zahn is a writer specializing in tech. He's reviewed cameras, weather stations, noise-cancelling headphones, and more for Lifewire. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on May 18, 2021 Tweet Share Email We independently research, test, review, and recommend the best products—learn more about our process. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a commission. 4.6 WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD
Lifewire / Andy Zahn What We Like Affordable price Great performance Slim size 5-year warranty What We Don't Like Utilitarian look Not as fast as high-performance SSDs The WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD is a great option whether you’re looking to build a new PC or expand your storage capacity. It’s quite fast and offers remarkable value for money. View On Amazon View On Walmart View On Sears.com 4.6 WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD
Lifewire / Andy Zahn View On Amazon View On Walmart View On Sears.com in this article Expand Design Performance Price WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD vs WD Black SN850 NVMe SSD Final Verdict Specs Western Digital provided us with a review unit for one of our writers to test. Read on for their full take. As important as processors and graphics cards are, data storage is often overlooked in the quest for greater computer performance. However, it might surprise you to learn that your hard drive or even relatively slow SSD could be a major bottleneck in your gaming rig. If this is the case, then the WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD makes for a compelling and affordable upgrade to rejuvenate your PC. Design Bland but functional
Aesthetic appeal is of minimal, potentially nonexistent importance when selecting internal computer components, but it’s still worth a mention. If you’re installing this drive in a spare slot in your laptop, or in a PC tower, then how a drive looks is meaningless. While it might not look great, the drive feels solid and reassuringly robust. However, many people have gaming PCs with glass sides and take pride in the internal appearance of their machines. In this case, aesthetics can be a major factor, and this is one of the few areas where the SN500 is less than excellent. The drive is very utilitarian in appearance, and the blue color is likely to clash with the color schemes of many gaming PCs. It sticks out like a sore thumb when paired with black or grey components, though perhaps it would go well with a rig kitted out with a blue RGB lighting scheme. Lifewire / Andy Zahn It’s worth noting that while the looks might not be great, the drive feels solid and reassuringly robust. Also, an important factor to consider is the drive’s slim profile M.2 2280 form factor, which is ideal for small PCs and laptops where space is at a premium. Setup Process Standard M 2 installation
If you’re familiar with computer building and upgrading, there’s nothing unexpected in the installation process for the SN500. Even for novices, this isn’t a difficult task. You just need to plug it into the M.2. slot in your desktop or laptop PC and fix it in place, then power on your device and format the drive. Lifewire / Andy Zahn Performance Solid and snappy
The SN500 performs as you’d expect from its specifications, offering 1700MBps read and 1450MBps write speeds. Read-dependent tasks are blazing fast, while write-dependent tasks aren’t quite so snappy. In general, though, this drive is quick, and I wouldn’t hesitate to use it as primary storage for a new gaming rig or workstation build. I had no trouble playing games stored on it, and photo and video files stored on it loaded quickly in Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop. Read-dependent tasks are blazing fast, while write-dependent tasks aren’t quite so snappy. Lifewire / Andy Zahn Price Highly affordable
A key advantage of the SN500 is its affordable price tag. The base 250GB model is just $55, while the 500GB model I tested is even more attractive at $70. At $130, it offers plenty of capacity for the money, and even the $250 2TB model offers a ton of high-speed storage for not too much money. A key advantage of the SN500 is its affordable price tag. Lifewire / Andy Zahn WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD vs WD Black SN850 NVMe SSD
At about twice the price of the Blue SN500 for a comparable quantity of storage, the Black SN850 offers many times the performance. With the Black model, you get a crazy 7000MBps read speed and 5300MBps write speed, and its cool aesthetic will blend a lot better inside of a decked-out gaming rig. However, Blue SN500 can shave a lot of money off of a budget gaming build, or offer a cheap but meaningful upgre to an existing PC. The 9 Best NVMe SSDs of 2022 Final Verdict An SSD that offers plenty of power at a very attractive price point. Though it’s not the most powerful SSD on the market, the WD Blue SN500 NVMe SSD is a very competent option, particularly if you’re on a tight budget. There’s a lot to love about this pint-sized powerhouse, and its low price makes it a highly compelling option. Similar Products We' ve Reviewed
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Product Name Blue SN500 NVMe SSD Product Brand WD MPN WDS500G2B0C Price $60.00 Release Date December 2019 Weight 0.247 oz. Product Dimensions 3.15 x 0.87 x 0.09 in. Color Blue Price Starting at $55 Warranty 5 years Interface PCIe Form Factor M.2 2280 Transfer Speed 2400/950 Mbps read/write Capacity Options 250GB, 500GB, 1TB, 2TB Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire The 9 Best NVMe SSDs of 2022 The 7 Best Mini PCs for Gaming in 2022 WD My Passport SSD Review: Portable and Affordable How to Add and Use an External Hard Drive with Xbox Series X or S WD_BLACK P50 Game Drive SSD Review: High-Performance SSD What to Look For in a Gaming PC The 10 Best SSDs for Gaming in 2022 The 10 Best Hard Drives for Gaming in 2022 WD Blue 4TB Hard Drive Review: A Decent Hard Drive That Won’t Break the Bank How to Add Extra Storage to Steam Deck The 9 Best SATA Hard Drives, Tested by Lifewire The 6 Best Gaming PCs of 2022 The 7 Best Cheap SSDs of 2022 Alienware Aurora R7 Review: Power for a Price The 7 Best SSDs for MacBook Pro in 2022 WD Black P10 Review: Dedicated Gaming Storage in a Slick Package Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies