Which is better, Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB or TeamGroup Z540 1TB? September 2026 side-by-side with prices, specs, and verdict.
A like-for-like comparison: both drives target the same buyer segment at the same Gen 5 1 TB class. The interesting question becomes which manufacturer's implementation aged better.
Hardware-wise, the Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB runs on the proprietary Samsung Presto silicon found only in the 9100 PRO line. The TeamGroup Z540 1TB pairs Phison's E26 silicon, which kicked off the consumer Gen 5 era and typically requires a heatsink.
Heading to a PlayStation 5? Both drives drop into the console's M.2 bay and report identical real-world benchmarks since the PS5 caps storage at PCIe 4.0 speeds. The Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB wins this matchup on $/TB. For content creators routinely rendering 4K or 8K video, the Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB's 13,400 MB/s sustained write is the deciding factor — multi-GB project files land noticeably faster than on the alternative. Note for handheld gamers: M.2 2280 is the desktop/laptop standard. Steam Deck and the ROG Ally line need 2230 drives — neither Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB nor TeamGroup Z540 1TB fits without modification.
Zoom out from this pair for a moment. Among the 6 Gen 5 1 TB drives we track, the Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB ranks #3 by $/TB and the TeamGroup Z540 1TB ranks #4. Neither is a value leader right now — if $/TB is your priority, check the cheaper alternatives below before committing.
As of September 7, 2026, these tracked drives undercut both the Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB and TeamGroup Z540 1TB on $/TB:
Lean toward the Samsung 9100 PRO 1TB when the lower retail price ($248 vs $253), better $/TB economics ($248.00/TB), meaningfully faster reads (14,700 MB/s), and higher sustained writes (13,400 MB/s) top your priority list. Among consumer SSD makers, Samsung's PRO series consistently scores highest on long-term reliability surveys (Backblaze, Puget Systems Q1 2026 data).
The TeamGroup Z540 1TB captures the value tier well: same NAND class as flagships, paired with a DRAM-less controller that costs less and uses HMB for the address-mapping table.