Intel dominates the processor market but excels in storage too, offering SATA SSDs, NVMe PCIe drives, and the innovative Optane technology powered by 3D XPoint memory. This non-volatile solution bridges the gap between DRAM speed and NAND capacity, delivering low-latency performance. Here's a deep dive into what Intel Optane is and how it transforms storage.
Optane's edge lies in IOPS (input/output operations per second), a critical measure of random access speed that mirrors real-world tasks like booting apps or loading files for superior system responsiveness.
Take the Samsung 970 EVO, a leading PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD: it hits 3,400MB/s sequential reads and 2,500MB/s writes (up to 1TB capacity). A comparable Optane drive manages 2,600MB/s reads and 2,200MB/s writes.
IOPS reveal Optane's strength. The 970 EVO peaks at 500,000 random write IOPS and 450,000 random read IOPS at queue depth (QD) 32, falling to 15,000 write and 50,000 read IOPS at QD 1. Optane counters with 575,000 random write IOPS and 550,000 random read IOPS at QD 16—even on smaller drives. Thriving at low QD makes it ideal for latency-critical workloads.
Performance comes at a premium: a 1TB 970 EVO costs around $130, while the 960GB Optane 905P starts at $1,262. The 380GB M.2 905P is $505 but fits few motherboards over three years old.
If you can afford it, boot your OS from Optane—its random read/write prowess delivers unmatched snappiness. Budget-conscious? A high-end NVMe like the 970 EVO suffices admirably.
Dig deeper into storage with our guides: SSD tweaks for Windows 10, Linux file systems for SSDs, and SSDs vs. SSHDs—are hybrids worth it in 2020?
