Gigabyte Aorus Gen4 7000s 1TB | Review
On paper, the Aorus 7000s is designed to compete with the best SSDs on the market: it offers sequential speeds of up to 7000MB / s read and 5500MB / s write, high endurance (700 TBW on the 1TB model we tested) and a full 5 year warranty. Such speeds are ensured by the Phison E18 controller, but they cause temperatures to rise a lot, which is why Gigabyte has included a well-designed heatsink supported by two thermal pads.
Apparently the Aorus 7000s is nothing special special: the heatsink has average dimensions and is nothing compared to the gigantic one of the Sabrent Rocket NVMe 4.0. What differentiates it from the others is the nanocarbon coating, which promises to lower temperatures by about 20%.
Technical specifications
The Gigabyte Aorus 7000s is only available in two memory denominations , 1TB and 2TB, which can be purchased at the time of writing this review for approximately 230 euros and 430 euros respectively. The 1TB model can reach a write speed of 5500MB / s, while the 2TB model can reach 6850MB / s; for both the maximum reading speed is 7000MB / s.As anticipated, the SSD is accompanied by a 5-year warranty and a resistance of 700 TBW on the 1TB model, which doubles on the 2TB model, reaching 1400 TBW. The Aorus 7000s also supports AES-256 bit encryption, ideal for protecting sensitive data.
Product Aorus 7000s 1TB Aorus 7000s 2TB Form Factor M.2 2280 M.2 2280 Interface / Protocol PCIe 4.0 x4 / NVMe 1.4 PCIe 4.0 x4 / NVMe 1.4 Controller Phison PS5018-E18 Phison PS5018-E18 DRAM DDR4 DDR4 Memory Micron 96L TLC Micron 96L TLC Sequential Read 7000 MB / s 7000 MB / s Sequential Write 5500 MB / s 6850 MB / s Random Read 350K IOPS 650K IOPS Random Write 700K IOPS 700K IOPS Encryption AES 256-bit AES 256-bit Resistance 700 TBW 1,400 TBW Model number GP-AG70S1TB GP-AG70S2TB Warranty 5 years 5 years The Aorus 7000s uses the classic M.2-2280 format with chips on both sides of the PCB. The heatsink measures 11.5 × 23.5 × 76 mm and is equipped with a large number of blades, which help to disperse heat very well (regardless of the nanocarbon coating). Both sides of the SSD are covered by the two thermal pads mentioned above and everything is held together by an aluminum base and four small screws.
As mentioned the controller used is the new Phison PS5018-E18, while memories are 96 Layer Micron TLC. The controller supports DRAM and uses a 3-core architecture, combined with proprietary CoXProcessor 2.0 technology, to always offer maximum performance. The cores are all ARM Cortex R5, the 3 main ones have a speed of 1GHz while the 2 secondary ones of CoXProcessor 2.0 have a lower frequency for greater efficiency.
The DRAM chips are of the DDR4 type and manufactured by SK Hynix. The 2TB model offers 2GB of memory (2 chips of 1GB each), while the 1TB Aorus 7000s provides 1GB of DRAM for the cache, with a frequency of 1600MHz. The Micron TLC 96L memories are instead arranged in different dies positioned on the PCB and operate at a maximum speed of 1200MT / s.
Performance
To measure the performance of the Aorus 7000s we carried out some benchmark, using mainly three software: CrystalDiskMark, DiskBench and Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood. In the graphics we have also included some PCIe 3.0 SSDs and the best PCIe 4.0 SSDs tested so far such as the Samsung 980 Pro, the Sabrent Rocket NVMe 4.0 and the Viper VP4100, PCIe 4.0 SSD with Phison E16 controller capable of reaching 5GB / s in reading and 4.4GB / s in writing.CrystalDiskMark
CrystalDiskMark is a program that allows you to get an idea of what the nominal performance of the drive is. In the graphs we have inserted both sequential and random performances at QD1, the most interesting for the end user.The sequential performance test does not disappoint: the read and write speeds are even higher than those declared and allow the Aorus 7000s to position itself at the top of our ranking, doing better than the Samsung 980 Pro.
Excellent results also in terms of random performance at QD1, where the Aorus 7000s registers a speed of write superior to all other SSDs. The reading result of 74.61MB / s is good, even if the Samsung 980 Pro is confirmed as the best with its 91.97MB / s.
DiskBench
DiskBench is a program that allows you to test the drive's write and read speed using files chosen by the user, so that you have a clearer idea of what the actual performance is. For our tests we use a 6GB file, a 50GB file and a 30GB folder with different types of files inside.In the 30GB folder write test the Samsung 980 Pro confirms itself as first in class , recording an average speed of approximately 140MB / s faster than that of the Aorus 7000s. Gigabyte's SSD still ranks second, with a slightly better result than the Viper VP4100 recorded.
The fight between the 980 Pro and the Aorus 7000s sees Gigabyte's SSD winner in the test reading a single 6GB video file. The Aorus 7000s closes the benchmark with a speed of 3983.04MB / s, detaching the Samsung model by about 750MB / s.
The Aorus 7000s is confirmed as the best even in the read and write test of a single 50GB video file, although this time the recorded performances in both cases are practically identical to those of the Samsung 980 Pro.
Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood
Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood is a very easy to use free benchmark that accurately measures the loading times of real game scenarios. For this test we have selected the maximum graphics quality and set the Full HD resolution.In the loading test of Final Fantasy XIV the Aorus 7000s records the worst time with 11.92 seconds, almost 4 seconds more than to the Samsung 980, first in the standings.
Temperature
During the writing test of the 30GB folder carried out with DiskBench we also measured the temperature reached by the SSDs. To do this we used HWInfo, a free software that allows you to easily monitor the various sensors on the different hardware components.The heatsink on the Aorus 7000s really does a great job: with an idle temperature of 29 ° C and under load of 42 ° C, the Gigabyte SSD is one of the coolest among those tested, recording a good 16 ° C less than the Samsung 980 Pro, without a heatsink. Better than the Aorus 7000s only the Viper VP4100, whose temperature under load stops at 38 ° C.
Conclusions
The Gigabyte Aorus 7000s is a high-end SSD, which offers performance from top of the range and competes with the best products on the market. As we have seen in the tests the battle with the Samsung 980 Pro is close, with results in favor of one or the other depending on the benchmark under consideration.The heatsink with nanocarbon coating manages very well the operating temperatures and, for the series “the eye wants its part too”, it is also beautiful to look at (probably one of the best seen lately). The 5-year warranty and support for AES 256-bit encryption increase the value of the product, but the price is higher than the Samsung 980 Pro, its direct competitor.
Looking at the 2TB models, at the moment in which we write this review the Samsung costs 389 euros, about 40 euros less than the Aorus 7000s. The situation is no different for the 1TB model: the Samsung 980 Pro costs 197 euros, about 30 less than the Aorus 7000s subject of this review.
In conclusion, beyond the price the Aorus 7000s offers high performance and won't leave you disappointed if you buy it. If you are looking for a new high-performance storage unit, capacious, able to handle temperatures well and maybe even beautiful to look at, you cannot fail to consider the Gigabyte Aorus Gen4 7000s in the choice phase. If, on the other hand, you do not have to manage loads that are too demanding for an SSD and you know that the heatsink integrated in your motherboard is sufficient to keep the temperature under control, we recommend that you evaluate the purchase of the Samsung 980 Pro.
performance, qualities and features offered, we give the Aorus 7000s our Award.
