Western Digital admits it crippled write speeds with flash memory change

Date:
Fri, 27 Aug 2021 12:08:03 +0000

Description:
Western Digital replaced a key component of a popular SSD with an inferior one, and thought an updated product sheet would be enough.

FULL STORY ======================================================================

Western Digital has admitted that it swapped the NAND flash memory inside
one of its most popular solid-state drives (SSDs) , which reportedly
penalized performance by up to 50%.

The WD Blue SN550 is one of Western Digitals best selling M.2 NVMe SSD
models, but Toms Hardware confirmed reports of an unannounced NAND
replacement hurting the drives write speed, drastically reducing its performance.

According to its analysis, the new inferior NAND is unable to keep pace with the controllers writing requests, resulting in performance dropping from 610 MBps to 390 MBps in a 100 GB file copy test, once the 12GB SLC cache is exhausted. Heres our collection of the best solid-state drives (SSDs) Check our roundup of the best cloud storage services We've built a list of the best workstations on the market

While Toms Hardware notes that the change shouldnt impact the average user, who will never be able to move enough data to exhaust the SSDs SLC cache, the change will impact users who move big files. Victim of the chip crisis?

Responding to the article, Western Digital issued a statement admitting that it did indeed swap out the NAND on the SSD.

"In June 2021, we replaced the NAND in the WD Blue SN550 NVMe SSD and updated the firmware," reads the statement.

According to the company, it did note the change by updating the SSDs product sheet. However, going forward the company has assured that any internal; component change in an existing product, especially one that impacts in previously published specification, will be better communicated by changing the products model number.

While the company didnt reveal the reason behind swapping the drives NAND flash with a poorly performing alternative, Toms Hardware suggests it could
be a result of the ongoing semiconductor shortage making its mark on Western Digitals supply chain. Also check our collection of the best mobile workstations



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/western-digital-admits-it-crippled-write-speeds -with-flash-memory-change/


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