Crucial E100 1TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD Review (2025) – Affordable Gen4 Speed with Some Trade-Offs
If you're in the market for a budget-friendly NVMe SSD that still offers the power of PCIe Gen4, the Crucial E100 1TB might just hit the sweet spot. Designed for mainstream users, this M.2 2280 drive offers solid performance, trusted reliability, and a price that’s easy on the wallet.
In this review, we break down the key specs, performance benchmarks, and the pros and cons of the Crucial E100 1TB SSD to help you decide if it’s the right upgrade for your PC or laptop in 2025.
Where to Buy: 👉 Check current price on Amazon website.
⚙️ Crucial E100 1TB – Key Specs
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Interface: PCIe Gen4 x4, NVMe 1.4
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Form Factor: M.2 2280
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Sequential Read: Up to 5,000 MB/s
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Sequential Write: Up to 4,200 MB/s
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Endurance (TBW): ~600 TB (varies slightly by model)
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NAND Type: 3D NAND
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Warranty: Limited 5-year warranty
✅ Crucial E100 – Pros
🚀 1. Great Gen4 Speeds for Everyday Use
With up to 5,000 MB/s read and 4,200 MB/s write speeds, the Crucial E100 significantly outperforms SATA SSDs and is a major leap for users upgrading from Gen3 NVMe drives.
💰 2. Affordable PCIe Gen4 Option
Compared to other Gen4 drives like the Samsung 980 Pro or WD Black SN850X, the E100 offers similar real-world performance at a lower price point, making it a great value SSD in 2025.
🧊 3. Cool and Efficient Operation
The E100 features efficient thermal management, with no need for a bulky heatsink in most consumer use cases. It runs relatively cool, even under sustained workloads.
🧠 4. Reliable for General Use
Built on Micron’s proven 3D NAND technology, the drive offers decent endurance and a 5-year warranty. It’s well-suited for gaming, content creation, and daily productivity tasks.
🔧 5. Easy Installation & Broad Compatibility
The M.2 2280 form factor fits most modern desktops and laptops, and installation is plug-and-play for systems supporting PCIe Gen4 or backwards-compatible Gen3 slots.
❌ Crucial E100 – Cons
⚡ 1. Not the Fastest Gen4 SSD
While its speeds are respectable, higher-end Gen4 SSDs like the Samsung 990 Pro or WD Black SN850X offer read/write speeds over 7,000 MB/s. Power users may notice the difference in heavy workloads like 4K video editing or large-scale data transfers.
🧮 2. Lacks DRAM Cache
The Crucial E100 is a DRAM-less SSD, relying on HMB (Host Memory Buffer). While this helps reduce cost and power draw, it can lead to slower performance in large file transfers compared to DRAM-equipped SSDs.
🔁 3. Not Ideal for Heavy Write Workloads
Although it has solid endurance for consumer tasks, those with write-intensive workflows (e.g., video editors, database managers) may want a higher endurance or enterprise-grade SSD.
🏁 Final Verdict: Is the Crucial E100 1TB Worth It?
The Crucial E100 1TB NVMe SSD is an excellent choice for everyday users, gamers, and professionals on a budget who want to take advantage of PCIe Gen4 speeds without overspending. While it doesn't top performance charts, it provides great value, solid speeds, and reliable performance for most use cases.
If you need the absolute best performance or are working with large datasets or write-heavy applications, a premium DRAM-equipped Gen4 or Gen5 SSD may serve you better. But for the average user, the E100 strikes a great balance of speed, price, and dependability.
📌 Buy It If You:
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Want a budget-friendly Gen4 NVMe upgrade
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Use your PC for gaming, streaming, and productivity
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Don’t need the fastest write speeds or highest endurance
⚠️ Skip It If You:
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Work with large-scale 4K+ media projects or databases
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Need DRAM cache for sustained performance
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Want top-tier PCIe Gen4 or Gen5 speeds
