Lexar Introduces Thor Ultra PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSDs

Lexar introduced the Thor Ultra series of PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSDs with 512 GB, 1 TB, 2 TB and 4 TB capacities. The M.2 2280 drives use a PCIe 5.0 x4 interface and according to Lexar, they can achieve speeds of up to 11 GB/s sequential read and 10 GB/s sequential write on the 1 TB, 2 TB, and 4 TB models. The 512 GB version is "a bit slower," being rated at up to 9,9/5 GB/s. Random performance goes up to 2.2 million IOPS for reads and 1.9 million IOPS for writes, again, depending on capacity. Endurance is rated at 350 TBW for the 512 GB model, 750 TBW for 1 TB, 1,500 TBW for 2 TB, and 3,000 TBW for 4 TB.

The drives feature Dynamic SLC Cache and HBM, along with a 6 nm DRAM-less controller and power management system designed to reduce heat generation and thermal throttling. Lexar Thor Ultra NVMe SSDs are backed by a 1.5 million hours MTBF or a five-year limited warranty, whichever comes first. With the drives, Lexar adds its DiskMaster Manage, a dedicated software to be used for firmware upgrades, checking health status, optimizing performance, and data protection. Pricing and availability have not yet been announced.