WD M.2 NVMe Gen 5 SSDs

The WD Gen 5 range here is the WD Black SN8100 in 1TB, 2TB, 4TB and 8TB, each as a bare drive (such as the WDS200T1X0M-00CMT0) or with a heatsink (WDS200T1XHM-00CMT0). All are rated up to 14900 MB/s read. Writes reach 11000 MB/s on the 1TB, 14000 MB/s on the 2TB and 4TB, and 13200 MB/s on the 8TB. The WD Blue SN5100 500GB also shows in this list, but its spec sheet gives a PCIe Gen4 interface at up to 6600/5600 MB/s. WD covers all of them with a 5 year warranty.

Gen 5 speeds need a motherboard with a PCIe 5.0 M.2 slot. Check the manual for which slot is wired for Gen 5, as many boards have only one. Choose the heatsink version if that slot has no cover. Choose the bare drive if the motherboard already has an M.2 heatsink, since the two cannot be stacked. 1TB suits a boot drive, 2TB to 4TB a large game library, and 8TB heavy video projects. The 1 TB, 2 TB and 4 TB models each have their own page.

Frequently asked questions

Will the WD Black SN8100 work on a PCIe Gen 4 motherboard? Yes. It is backward compatible and runs at Gen 4 speeds in a Gen 4 slot.

Do I need the heatsink version? Only if your motherboard has no heatsink over the M.2 slot. Gen 5 drives run warm under sustained load and need some cooling.

Is the WD Blue SN5100 a Gen 5 drive? No. Its spec points list PCIe Gen4 at up to 6600/5600 MB/s, which suits Gen 4 builds.