Official Review Hardware Updated

Review cover Corsair MP600 Mini NVMe (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review

Corsair has gotten in on the Steam Deck hype train, offering a 1TB SSD upgrade for those looking to cram as many games as possible on their handheld.

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Corsair has taken their traditionally sized NVMe and hit it with a shrink ray, bringing it down to fit the form factor of the Steam Deck. 2230 NVMe drives are on the rise thanks to the Deck, and with the upcoming ROG Ally utilizing them as well, these mini drives are all the more integral to the portable gaming experience. Demand is already outpacing supply, so if you're going to be able to grab one at all, is the MP600 Mini worth putting into your beloved Steam Deck?

In terms of available 2230 NVMe drives, there aren't many on the market. iFixit offers a 1TB Micron that is officially backed as ideal for the Steam Deck, but it doesn't offer the best speeds. Western Digital's option is being scalped at rates higher than MSRP, and Sabrent is struggling to keep their Rocket 2230 in stock. Corsair, should they have the ability to not get trapped in back-ordered purgatory, has the best drive of the bunch, with its sequential read/write speeds of up to 4,800MB/s. (a major improvement over the Steam Deck's out-of-the-box 3,500MB/s)

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The MP600 Mini uses PCIe 4.0 x4, which is great, especially if you're one of the few using it in a Microsoft Surface device, but Valve's Steam Deck only supports PCIe 3.0 x4, which feels like overkill, even if it makes it future-proof outside of that use-case. Again, coming back to the ROG Ally, it's worth noting that it will use PCIe 4.0, so it'll be able to take full advantage of the MP600's speeds. When used in a PC, CrystalDiskMark measured just a tick under Corsair's claimed speeds, resulting in 4,708MB/s write and 4,654MB/s read. 

Installing the drive is a seamless experience, especially due to iFixit's detailed guide. You can back up your initial install of SteamOS, or you can just roll with a clean install if you're okay with starting from scratch. Games installed to the NVMe run wonderfully fast, and while you might find yourself hard-pressed to notice a speed improvement while playing games, you'll most certainly feel the effects of having so much extra storage space. I hope to see a 2TB version offered in the future as well.

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Tech Specs

  • Capacity 1000GB
  • Form Factor M.2 2230
  • Interface NVMe PCIe Gen4 x4
  • Controller Phison PS5021-E21T
  • NAND 3D TLC
  • NAND Cache Size Dynamic SLC
  • Encryption AES 256-bit
  • Trim Support Supported
  • S.M.A.R.T Support Supported
  • Garbage Collection Supported
  • TBW Rating 600
  • MTBF 1,500,000hrs
  • Average Active Read Power 4.15W
  • Average Active Write Power 4.3W
  • Operating Temperature 0° C~70° C
  • Dimensions 22mm x 30mm x 2mm
  • Sequential Read (CDM) Up to 4800MB/s
  • Sequential Write (CDM) Up to 4800MB/s
  • 4KB Random Read Up to 850K
  • 4KB Random Write Up to 1100K

Coming in at an MSRP of $104.99, the Corsair MP600 undercuts the competition, giving you the best dollar-to-performance value available. Whether or not you'll be able to get your hands on it is another story entirely. Corsair plans to make the drive available on May 23rd, so be sure to keep an eye out. 

Verdict

What We Liked ...
  • PCIe 4.0 means it's future-proof for upcoming handhelds
  • Solid value
  • Runs fairly cool
What We Didn't Like ...
  • Hard to get ahold of
9.8
out of 10

Overall

Corsair's MP600 Mini is the perfect upgrade to your Steam Deck, with its only major flaw being its limited availability.
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Chary
chrisrlink said:
any alt's to this cause of the con of hard to get a hold of?
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Your best bet would be the Sabrent Rocket 2230, it's a tad slower, but it's just as hard to get ahold of, at an MSRP of $50 more than the Corsair (though it goes on sale to $110 sometimes). The Micron is also a good choice, but it's out of stock, scalped, and much slower than either.
 
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console
That's great. Be careful about Corsair have terrible support.

I heard ADATA is lousy.

I prefer all 2 TB of Crucial, Samsung, Kingston and Western Digital Black are top quality hardware. I owned three of 2 TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus (PCIe 3.0 x4) and 2 TB Samsung 980 Pro (PCIe 4.0 x4 - PS5 ready). All are 2280 types.

B-)
 
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Jayro
Judging by the photo in the OP, it doesn't look like there's anything stopping people from using normal 2280 NVMe drives in the steam deck, as I doubt the housing is THAT tight when it's all closed up. You just can't screw the drive down but some Kapton take can resolve that.
 
K3Nv2
Jayro said:
Judging by the photo in the OP, it doesn't look like there's anything stopping people from using normal 2280 NVMe drives in the steam deck, as I doubt the housing is THAT tight when it's all closed up. You just can't screw the drive down but some Kapton take can resolve that.
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The fear deck owners have with using full size 2280s is the battery as far as I know, could cause extra heat resistant causing more thermal throttling and risk for explosions. I've seen people get thrashed for adding 2240s with portables like these it's best to stick with recommend manufacturer suggestions.
 
K3Nv2
Jayro said:
Well let's hope their next version is PCIe4 ready and can slide a full sized NVMe in and out like an SD card.
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Yeah that's my main gripe with the deck, it gets hot easily, not much I/O support I'd love to see an OLED screen in v2 as well as full sized m.2 support. You can easily buy a type C external drive and enclosure and tack it in the back without it getting in the way but you loose charge abilities which is why an extra type c port would've been so useful I have seen 3rd party attachments allow for more USB options such as the following: Desktop and Portable Steam Deck Dock: 5-in-1 USB C Dock with TF Card Slot, HDMI 2.0 4K@60H, 2*USB-A 3.0, USB-C PD 100W Max, Stream Deck Dock Stand Base Accessories, Supports Other USB-C Devices and PC https://a.co/d/1BlpeOB
 
chrisrlink
Chary said:
Your best bet would be the Sabrent Rocket 2230, it's a tad slower, but it's just as hard to get ahold of, at an MSRP of $50 more than the Corsair (though it goes on sale to $110 sometimes). The Micron is also a good choice, but it's out of stock, scalped, and much slower than either.
Click to expand...
actually i think ifixit has the micron in stock as we speak though the price is steep about $229 for 2TB
 
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