Which is better, WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB or Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB? July 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 4 TB class. The interesting question becomes which manufacturer's implementation aged better.
Hardware-wise, the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB runs on an SMI SM2508 controller that drew industry attention in 2024 for finally taming Gen 5 thermals. The Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB pairs Samsung's Piccolo — a DRAM-less controller with flexible PCIe generation support.
Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB's $146.25/TB pricing edges out WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB's $175.00/TB by about 16%. Not transformative, but a real difference at 2-4 TB capacities where it adds up.
In the read department, the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB leads by roughly 7 GB/s. The difference is more academic than practical for typical use, but it does matter for video editors moving multi-GB project files.
Write performance separates them too. The WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB sustains 11,000 MB/s writes versus 6,300 MB/s for the Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB — a real advantage for video editors and anyone doing heavy file operations.
WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB bundles a DRAM cache chip; Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB is DRAM-less. This sounds like a big deal but reviewers have been arguing for years about whether it actually matters in consumer use. For most workloads, no.
For PlayStation 5 builds, the console's internal M.2 slot tops out around 5,500 MB/s sustained, so both WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB and Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB hit the same wall — pick whichever is cheaper at the moment you buy. For content creators routinely rendering 4K or 8K video, the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB's 11,000 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 WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB nor Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB fits without modification.
Zoom out from this pair for a moment. Among the 6 Gen 5 4 TB drives we track, the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB ranks #3 by $/TB and the Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB ranks #1. That puts at least one of them near the top of the value table — a reasonable head-to-head to be choosing from.
As of July 27, 2026, these tracked drives undercut both the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB and Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB on $/TB:
Lean toward the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB when meaningfully faster reads (14,900 MB/s), higher sustained writes (11,000 MB/s), and a dedicated DRAM cache chip top your priority list.
Lean toward the Samsung 990 EVO Plus 4TB when the lower retail price ($585 vs $700), and better $/TB economics ($146.25/TB) top your priority list. Samsung designed the 990 EVO Plus around the Piccolo controller's dual-PCIe support — a hedge against both Gen 4 holdouts and Gen 5 early adopters.