Lexar NM990 2000GB

SSD Description

The Lexar NM990 is a PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe 2.0 drive built around the Phison PS5026-E26 8-channel controller paired with Micron 232-layer 3D TLC NAND running at 2400 MT/s. It uses a dedicated LPDDR4/4X DRAM cache to manage mapping tables for consistent random I/O and reduced latency during sustained mixed workloads. Due to the high power density of the E26 controller and the 14 GB/s throughput, thermal management is critical: passive motherboard heatsinks may be insufficient for sustained writes, and active cooling or high-mass heatsinks are recommended to avoid aggressive thermal throttling (which typically engages when controller junction temperature exceeds 80°C). The drive also uses a large dynamic SLC cache; once this cache is exhausted during massive file transfers, write speeds will fall to the native speed of the TLC NAND.

Key Specifications

• Interface: PCIe 5.0 x4 / NVMe 2.0
• Sequential Speeds: 14,000 MB/s Read / 10,000 MB/s Write
• Controller: Phison PS5026-E26 (12nm process)
• NAND Flash: Micron 232-Layer 3D TLC
• DRAM Cache: Yes (LPDDR4/LPDDR4X)
• Encryption: TCG Opal 2.01 supported
• Features: Microsoft DirectStorage optimized; SLC Caching (Dynamic)

Hardware Alternatives

• Crucial T700 2000GB: This is the closest hardware relative, sharing the same Phison E26 controller and Micron 232-layer NAND configuration. Performance characteristics and firmware behavior are nearly identical.
• Corsair MP700 PRO SE 2000GB: Another direct hardware clone utilizing the E26 reference design. Differences are largely limited to the stock cooling solution provided in the box and minor firmware tuning.
• GIGABYTE AORUS Gen5 12000: Shares the same core architecture but is often binned for slightly lower peak sequential speeds compared to the 14 GB/s ceiling of the NM990 and T700.