M2 is interesting stuff, these smaller form factors storage units are evolving from being "just as fast" as a regular SSD towards double, tripling, heck... even quadrupling that performance. It comes in a different package , M.2. The M.2 interface is so much more capable as it can deal with way more bandwidth using PCI-Express lanes. As such, M.2 solutions are intended for enthusiast class motherboards. The M8Pe series M.2 SSDs are a breathtaking series of storage technology as they offer enthusiast class performance yet remain reasonable in pricing depending on NAND type. Though prices still need to go on-line, we already spotted our tested Corsair Force MP500 480GB for roughly 300 EURO, which would mean 63 cents per GB. Keep in mind you are looking at a product with @ 3.000/2.400MB/s reads and writes respectively. These new M.2 units use the NVMe protocol and that means storage technology at hyper fast speeds while remaining competitive in pricing.

The SSD is Corsair's first consumer-ready Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) M.2 form factor SSD available in 120GB, 240GB and 480GB capacities. The sticks 'o fun have been fitted with Toshiba NAND (15nm) and is located under product code CSSD-F480GBMP500. The performance numbers a good SATA3 SSD offers these days are simply excellent, but with NVMe you can triple maybe even quadruple performance, which offers serious numbers. The Corsair Force MP500 series M.2 product line is powered by a Phison PS5007-E7 NVMe controller. The SSD follows a smaller M.2 2280 (8cm) form factor so it will fit on most ATX motherboards capable of M.2 just fine. IOPS numbers are now reaching the 250K for read and 210K for writes marker (depends on volume size). At just one-tenth the weight of a traditional 2.5-inch SSD, the M.2 SSDs are ideal for users looking to upgrade their desktop or ultra-thin PCs with high-capacity, high-performance storage. You do need a modern motherboard with capable NVMe supported M.2 (PCIe 3.0 x4 connected) interface though, please do check out your motherboard manufacturer for that. But ever since Z97/Z170/Z270 chipsets have been released, the mainstream to high-end class motherboards mostly all support it very well.