WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB ($700) vs Samsung 990 PRO 4TB ($825). $/TB analysis, performance, and use-case recommendations.
When generations cross paths in a comparison like this one, the older-spec drive almost always wins on value while the newer one wins on benchmarks. Whether that benchmark advantage matters depends entirely on what you do with the drive.
Hardware-wise, the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB runs on the SMI SM2508 — a 6nm Gen 5 controller running notably cooler than first-gen Phison E26 designs. The Samsung 990 PRO 4TB pairs the in-house Samsung Pascal — engineered specifically for the 990 PRO at 8nm.
The cheaper drive — WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB at $175.00/TB — saves you $31.25 per TB versus the Samsung 990 PRO 4TB. Worth it if you're capacity-constrained; either works if you just want one fast drive.
Read speeds favor the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB: 14,900 MB/s versus 7,450 MB/s for the Samsung 990 PRO 4TB, a 50% advantage. Sequential-heavy workloads notice; transactional workloads don't.
The WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB writes about 37% faster (11,000 MB/s vs 6,900 MB/s). Whether that matters depends entirely on what you write to the drive — gameplay capture and large project saves benefit, browsing and gaming do not.
For PS5 expansion, both are PCIe Gen 4 M.2 2280 drives that meet Sony's minimum spec (7,450 MB/s read). The console can't take advantage of speeds beyond that, so save money by choosing the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB. The Gen 5 WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB pulls ahead on sequential bandwidth, but Gen 5 advantages rarely surface during everyday tasks — most software hasn't been rewritten to exploit 14,000+ MB/s pipelines. Heavy write workloads — video editing, RAW photo libraries, backup operations — favor the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB's 11,000 MB/s sustained write speed. Both drives use the 2280 form factor, which is too long for Steam Deck or ROG Ally — you'd need a 2230 variant if either manufacturer offers one, or a dedicated handheld-format drive instead.
Market context: the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB ranks #3 of 6 Gen 5 4 TB drives we track by $/TB, while the Samsung 990 PRO 4TB ranks #6 of 6 Gen 4 4 TB drives. Neither cracks the top of the value table, so it's worth glancing at the alternatives below before picking either.
As of July 27, 2026, these tracked drives undercut both the WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB and Samsung 990 PRO 4TB on $/TB:
The WD_BLACK SN8100 4TB is the right call if the lower retail price ($700 vs $825), better $/TB economics ($175.00/TB), meaningfully faster reads (14,900 MB/s), and higher sustained writes (11,000 MB/s) matter to you.
Among consumer SSD makers, Samsung's PRO series consistently scores highest on long-term reliability surveys (Backblaze, Puget Systems Q1 2026 data).