The first DRAM-free SSD controller to maximize PCIe Gen5 is also a power efficiency champion in the making

The upcoming Phison E37T SSD controller manages to maximize PCI-E 5.0 read speed at 14,900 MB/s.
It consumes less than a third of the power of Phison’s older DRAM-infused SSD controllers.
The move is crucial, aligned with Phison’s anticipation of high DRAM prices in the near future, aimed at providing relief to mainstream and enthusiast consumers.

As SSD prices have risen sharply in recent months, thanks to the relentless demand for AI across the board, consumers are increasingly looking to the lower end of the spectrum to bridge the gap between their budget and the cost of modern SSDs.

The upcoming Phison E37T SSD controller could help smooth things over. It is the first DRAM-free Gen 5 SSD controller to maximize bandwidth across all 4 lanes available for an M2 SSD on modern PCs, laptops and consoles.

The consumer-centric offering at least partially addresses the RAM crisis by delivering performance comparable to cutting-edge DRAM-infused SSDs, while remaining power efficient.

An economical but efficient offer for the general public

Based on a recent interview with Tweaktown, which also received a review sample of Phison’s E37T, Phison was already monitoring the situation as it saw DRAM prices being supported by insatiable demand for AI and had prepared a solution that catered to both performance users and gamers.

Phison Technical Marketing Director Chris Ramseyer said: “We knew this would be an issue later in the future for our flagship SSDs. And we needed a way, so we started working on a way. »

The E37T not only eliminates DRAM from the equation, just like the older E31T, which tops out at 10.3 GB/s, but also pushes PCI-E 5.0 SSD read speeds to the ceiling at 14.9 GB/s while offering equally powerful write speeds (13 GB/s).

With a peak power consumption of 3.4W and an IOPS increase of less than 50% over the E31T, it is aimed at consumers looking for enthusiast-level performance without the cost of its DRAM-equipped sibling, the E26.

Comparing the E37T to the E26 paints an even bleaker picture. With less than a third of the maximum power required by its predecessor, it also offers higher IOPS, maximum read and write speeds and avoids the need for active cooling, even though it supports much faster NAND flash (+33%).

While Phison is still testing the E37T and rolling out firmware updates across the board, some reviews are reporting mixed results, including a review from Tweaktown that failed to hit the mandatory 5,500 MB/s score on the PS5.

These issues should be resolved, however, when E37T-based SSDs finally hit the market later this year, in a future that looks increasingly DRAM-less for SSDs, at least until the current memory crisis subsides.

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