Crucial P310

Introduction

The Crucial P310 is Micron’s latest ‘budget’ PCIe 4.0 SSD, seemingly designed to replace the popular P3 Plus model that launched several years ago.

It is, essentially, a full-sized version of the smaller M.2 2230 P310 that launched in July 2024, which is compatible with Steam Decks and other handhelds, with a DRAM-less QLC-based arrangement with solid speeds and value for money against key rivals such as the WD Black SN7100 and Crucial’s own T500.

I’ve been testing the P310 for the last couple of weeks to see how well it performs in a range of tests and real-world use, and to see if it turns out to be one of the best SSDs we’ve tested.

Specs

• Single-sided for better thermals for PC and PS5 use
• Reasonable capacity choices
• QLC-based isn’t the best for durability

The P310 isn’t overly exciting by way of looks, with an all-black frame and a small sticker on the front showing the Crucial logo and model designation over the NAND chips.

It is a single-sided drive for better thermals under a heatsink, and this is a drive that’s compatible with both PC and PS5, being both the standard M.2 2280 size and form factor that’ll fit in the respective PCIe 4.0 slot. You can also purchase it with a heatsink from Crucial directly, or obtain a cheaper third-party option.

On the reverse side is a label displaying capacity, model numbers and more besides. There is also a separate sticker for compliance information.

The P310 comes with 232-layer Micron QLC flash, which is designed more for affordability than anything else, while also lacking a DRAM cache. Crucial’s choice isn’t alone in that, though, as other value heroes such as the Lexar NM790 also forego it, too. Its controller is the Phison E27T.

This SSD is available in capacities ranging from 500GB up to the top 2TB model I have, which means it isn’t the best option for data hoarders who want as much storage as possible.

Being a QLC-based drive also means durability isn’t its strong point against key rivals, with the base configuration having a 110 TBW rating. This scales with capacity, with the 1TB version having a 220 TBW rating, and the top 2TB config with a 440 TBW rating. That’s just shy of a third of the 1200 TBW offered by the WD Black SN8100.

Full Specs

Test Setup

Of course, for testing any quantity of PC components, SSDs included, I needed to make sure I had a solid PC to do so. Hence, I took the decision back in early 2024 to upgrade my ailing HP pre-built to a fully custom rig with a system that benefits from brisk gaming performance and excellent compatibility with modern and future hardware.

The full system specs can be found below:

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
• Motherboard: NZXT N7 B650E
• GPU: Nvidia RTX 4080 Super Founder’s Edition
• RAM: 32GB (2x16GB) Corsair Vengeance DDR5-6000 CL36
• Cooler: Noctua NH-D15
• PSU: 1200W NZXT C1200 80+ Gold ATX 3.0
• Case: NZXT H9 Flow

The long and short of the setup is that the Crucial P310 was placed in a compatible PCIe 4.0 x4 slot on my B650E motherboard, and then a range of real-world and synthetic tests were run. These included the classic CrystalDiskMark 8 with its Sequential speeds at a queue depth of 8 and 1, as well as its Random 4K performance at depths of Q32 and Q1. The Sequential tests are handy in proving the actual raw speed of the drive for fast file copies and access, while the Random 4K tests are more indicative of loading a game up.

For the usefulness of a quantifiable ranking, I’ve also included the Quick System Drive and Data Drive benchmarks from the PCMark 10 suite.

As for real-world testing, I’ve elected to see the transfer rates in moving over a set of test files totalling 120GB (in reality, a set of ripped Blu-Rays of recent Marillion concert film and hi-res audio) using the Windows File Explorer, noting down its average transfer rate, and to see the speeds at which it can move over the 110GB Dirt Rally 2.0 using Steam. As for game loading times, I’ve taken note of how quickly the P310 runs the Final Fantasy XIV Endwalker standalone benchmark running at 1080p and Maximum settings, as is consistent with our other testing.

Performance

• Excellent sequential and random performance
• Faster file transfer and game loads
• PCMark10 results are more in line with a ‘value’ drive

The P310 served up some decent results across the wide range of tests put in front of it, with some good numbers in the CrystalDiskMark tests that match well against the claimed speeds from Crucial.

As for its top-line results, the P310 provided excellent sequential speeds of 7168.54 MB/s for reads and 6342.99 MB/s for writes, which exceed Crucial’s own speeds for the drive, and sitting virtually in-between the T500 and WD Black SN7100.

However, its results at the Q1 level were quite far behind in terms of reads against both the T500 and the SN7100, as were its 4K results, which were quite disappointing.

In spite of this, the 120GB file transfer took 37.3 seconds, which puts this drive more towards Gen 5 sustained transfer speeds against the comparably sluggish results of the T500 and SN7100. It works out to an average transfer rate of 3.22GB/s. In addition, the Final Fantasy XIV Endwalker benchmark spat out a load time of 7.87 seconds, which is well in the ballpark for a brisk Gen 4 drive.

The PCMark 10 Data Drive and Quick System Drives fall more in line with the SN7100, and WD’s own value choice, their older SN580.

Should you buy it?

FAQs