Aorus rgb m.2 nvme ssd 512gb review in Spanish (full analysis)

AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB is the new SSD of AORUS, the gaming division of Gigabyte that dares with everything. It is an M.2 PCIe x4 unit available in 256 and 512 GB that offers us a performance worthy of the best on the market, and that also incorporates its own aluminum sink with RGB Fusion LED lighting. We could say that it is the first gaming SSD on the market.

And before starting the review, we must thank AORUS for temporarily giving us their product to carry out this review.

AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB technical characteristics

Unboxing and design

Well, we will start with the AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB Unboxing, a unit that comes inside a small very compact cardboard box and the truth is, very elegant. But we will also have a cover, also made of cardboard, on the outside that protects this box from openings.

Well, on the front we only found the AORUS logo, as well as the model in silver letters. On the back we have some information about the technical characteristics of the SSD in various languages.

As this unit is so small and relatively fragile and shock sensitive, we have a very strong protection inside, consisting of a dense block of black foam that keeps the unit firmly attached to the box. As accessories, so to speak, we have only the SSD installation instruction manual.

AORUS extends its catalog of gaming products with this AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB to give us the possibility of also having a hard drive with built-in LED lighting. At this point, the only thing missing is that the IHS of the CPUs incorporate lighting, time to time friends.

The case is that we are facing a solid state drive with M.2 format, specifically the 2280, the second longest format with permission of the 22110. In this way the measures of the SSD are 80 mm long and 22 wide. The fact of having a built-in heatsink makes the thickness rise to 8.1 mm, but you can easily remove it if your motherboard already has a heatsink, although of course, you will lose the lighting.

Speaking a little more about this heatsink, it is an element installed by means of two small screws to the SSD PCB and built in aluminum with a very good quality polished finish. In the central area it has the AORUS logo finished on a translucent plate that will show the lighting.

In fact, this lighting system is directly installed on the SSD, between the controller chip and the memory modules, by means of 3 LEDs that are compatible with Gigabyte RGB Fusion technology, and which of course can be managed with the corresponding program.

Let's leave the decorative elements aside to focus on the system that will allow the AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB to cool down. And as expected, we have a double silicone thermal pad attached to the heatsink that allows heat to transfer from the chips to it. It is a fairly fast SSD, so the presence of this element is necessary.

Keep in mind that many new generation boards have heatsinks built into their M.2, and of course these will not be compatible with the one it already brings, you must decide which one to remove.

In terms of performance and data sheet, this AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB incorporates memory technology based on NAND 3D TLC (triple level per cell), practically already a standard in high-performance SSDs. Specifically, they are the BiCS3 model that are manufactured by the Toshiba company, together with a Phison controller. They offer a working temperature between 0 and 70 ^o C.

Pending benchmark testing, the manufacturer offers sequential read rates of up to 3480 MB / s and sequential write rates of 2000 MB / s. An impressive rate in reading, although we still have faster units on the market in terms of writing. The important thing will be that they are fulfilled, at least. Similarly, it offers us information on the IOPS random read and write rates, being higher than 360K and 440K respectively.

Finally, we have a maximum load consumption of 5.48 W in reading and 4.08 W in writing, along with 0.272 W when it is in idle state. Imagine the difference in consumption compared to the mechanical units, there is no color. Also, it goes up a bit due to having lighting.

You will have already noticed that the connection slot is M-Key type, that is, with the grimace on the right side if we put the SSD in its correct position. You must make sure that your slots are of this type, and not B-Key. It is not worrying either, since all the current ones are of this type, although it is worth looking at the Specs on the board to verify if they support PCIe in addition to SATA, this is very important.

AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB also offers us a guarantee of 5 years or an equivalent of 800 TB of writing on the unit, which really is a lot in terms of a normal user, certainly more than 15 years.

Now without further ado, let's see the benchmark tests carried out on this unit.

Test and Performance Team (Benchmark)

Well, the team that we have used to test this AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB has used the native controller of the Z270 chipset, which will be enough to move these theoretical 4, 000 MB / s.

TESTING BENCH
Processor:	Intel i5-6500
Base plate:	Asus Z270-P
Memory:	16 GB DDR4 G.Skill
Heatsink	Corsair H100i Platinum SE
HDD	AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB
Graphic card	Nvidia GTX 1060
Power supply	Corsair AX860i

The gross performance does not matter, we only need an M.2 slot with a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, which you must remember that theoretically offers a transfer speed of 4, 000 MB / s. On this occasion we have used the following benchmark programs:

Crystal Disk MarkAS SSD BenchmarkATTO Disk BenchmarkAnvil´s Storage

All of them in their latest available version. Remember not to abuse these tests in your units, since the life time is reduced.

In view of these results, we see that the transfer rates practically reach the values promised in the CristalDiskMark software, in fact, this software is always the one that sets the most MB / s compared to the rest. In such a case, this AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB in sequential reading does not reach 3480 MB / s, but it stays close, and also in writing exceeds the registers of 2, 000 MB / s.

In the other programs, the rates offered are lower, especially in reading, specifically with Anvil's and AS SSH barely reach 2, 400 MB / s. The truth is that they are not too reliable readings, since they are abnormally low, so there could be some compatibility problem with the SSD tested.

Management software

We have not tested the RGB Fusion lighting software, having it more than threshed already, we consider the AORUS SSD Tool Box program more interesting.

This is simple software that we can download from the brand's official site and that will allow us to track our unit over time. It offers us a multitude of numerical records in terms of reading, writing, etc., and also makes an estimate of the health of the SSD and its operating temperature in real time. We also have the possibility to carry out maintenance with the optimization section, if necessary, and the possibility of safely deleting the content, using the last section.

We believe that it is a good tool as a complement, it weighs little and does not consume any resources, so we recommend it.

Final words and conclusion about AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB

AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB has provided us with great pure performance and that is why we can place it as a great purchase option due to its good quality / price ratio. AORUS has done a great job of design with this unit, incorporating a standard aluminum heatsink along with RGB lighting.

Regarding pure performance figures, we have obtained very high sequential read rates, exceeding 3, 200 MB / s and sequential write rates of about 2, 100 MB / s maximum. They are figures that are practically the same as promised and demonstrate the good optimization of the SSD. We also have management and monitoring software for both lighting and the product life cycle.

We recommend our guide to the best SSDs of the moment.

The AORUS RGB M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB is available in the main online stores in the country and internationally for an approximate price of 112 euros. It is a figure that certainly surpasses other SSD models, although with lower performance, also being cheaper than the powerful Samsung 970 pro. Without a doubt a very good option for those who want to mount gaming components on their PC, so highly recommended by us.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ NAND 3D MEMORY LONG LIFE TLC	- IT WOULD NOT BE WRONG TO LAUNCH A 1 TB DRIVE
+ QUALITY / PRICE RATIO	- NOT A MLC MEMORY
+ DESIGN WITH HEATSINK AND RGB
+ HIGH PERFORMANCE PCIE X4
+ AVAILABLE IN 256 AND 512 GB