Crucial BX500 4000GB

The Crucial BX500 4000GB is a high-capacity, DRAM-less SATA drive that typically pairs a Silicon Motion SM2259XT controller with Micron 3D QLC NAND. It relies on a dynamic SLC pseudo-cache for burst performance, making the controller's garbage collection and the NAND's native write speed important for sustained workloads. The 4TB variant is almost exclusively populated with QLC NAND. The plastic enclosure has been noted to retain heat, resulting in higher idle and load temperatures and potential thermal throttling during extended large-file transfers. Write performance drops sharply once the SLC cache is saturated.

Key Specifications

• Interface: SATA III (6Gb/s)
• Sequential Read/Write: 540 MB/s / 500 MB/s
• Controller: Silicon Motion SM2259XT (Common configuration)
• NAND Type: Micron 3D QLC
• DRAM Cache: No (DRAM-less)
• Endurance: 1000 TBW
• Enclosure: Plastic Casing (Thermal retention noted)

Hardware Alternatives

• Samsung 870 QVO 4000GB: Uses QLC NAND with SLC caching and includes a discrete LPDDR4 DRAM chip for more consistent random I/O versus the DRAM-less BX500.
• SanDisk SSD Plus: Occupies the same hardware tier, often using DRAM-less controllers and prioritizing storage density over sustained write performance.
• Western Digital WD Green (SATA): Similar tier to the BX500, frequently DRAM-less and focused on capacity rather than sustained write speed.
• Crucial MX500 4000GB: Uses TLC NAND and includes DRAM, placing it in a higher performance tier for endurance and sustained transfer rates.