SSD Temperatures

The best temperatures for our PCIe Gen 4 and Gen 5 SSDs were decent, but a little mid-table with the Gen 4 SSD being the most competitive sitting third overall. As both top and lower heatsinks had M2 ports underneath, it was a rare occasion of being able to test our PCIe Gen 5 SSD in more than one slot on a more affordable motherboard. The top slot, as expected thanks to its double-sided cooling, was the one to go for with PCIe Gen 5 SSDs sitting at peak of 71°C during our stress test, rising to 80°C in the lower slot. Our PCIe Gen 4 SSD was largely indifferent to either slot, but was marginally cooler in the top slot.

PCIe Gen 4 Performance (Samsung 990 Pro)

PCIe Gen 5 Performance (Team Group T-Force Z540)