by 10 reviews.
Western Digital 2TB WD Green SN350 NVMe SSD Review: A Budget-Friendly Storage Powerhouse
If you're looking to upgrade your computer's storage without breaking the bank, the Western Digital 2TB WD Green SN350 NVMe Internal SSD is a compelling option. With speeds of up to 3,200 MB/s, this SSD promises to deliver a significant performance boost over traditional SATA drives. But does it live up to the hype? Let’s dive into the details based on real customer experiences.
Product Overview
The WD Green SN350 NVMe SSD is designed for everyday computing, offering a balance of speed, reliability, and affordability. Its Gen3 PCIe interface and M.2 2280 form factor make it compatible with a wide range of systems, from laptops to desktops. With 2TB of storage capacity, it’s perfect for storing large files, games, and media. Plus, the WD SSD Dashboard allows you to monitor the drive’s health and performance, ensuring peace of mind.
Key Features:
- Up to 3,200 MB/s read speeds
- Shock-resistant, no moving parts
- Compact M.2 2280 design
- 2TB storage capacity
- 3-year limited warranty
Pros and Cons: What Customers Are Saying
Performance: Lightning-Fast Speeds
One of the standout features of the WD Green SN350 is its impressive speed. Customers have reported noticeable improvements in boot times, file transfers, and overall system responsiveness. One reviewer noted that the drive exceeded advertised speeds, achieving 2,700-2,900 MB/s in benchmarks. This makes it a great choice for everyday tasks like gaming, media editing, and multitasking.
However, some users pointed out that while the drive performs well for general use, it may not be ideal for heavy write-intensive tasks due to its QLC NAND technology. If you’re a power user who frequently writes large amounts of data, you might want to consider a higher-end SSD.
Usability: Easy Installation and Compatibility
The M.2 2280 form factor makes the WD Green SN350 incredibly easy to install. Many customers praised its plug-and-play simplicity, with no need for additional cables or adapters. It’s compatible with most modern motherboards, though users with PCIe Gen4 or Gen5 systems should note that this drive is limited to Gen3 speeds.
One reviewer mentioned that the drive runs cool, with temperatures staying in the mid-60s°C under load and dropping to the 40s°C at idle. However, if your motherboard’s NVMe slot is near a heat source (like a graphics card), a low-profile heatsink might be a good idea to prevent thermal throttling.
Durability and Reliability: A Mixed Reputation
The WD Green lineup has historically been associated with budget-friendly but less durable drives, and this NVMe SSD is no exception. While most customers reported no issues during their initial use, some expressed concerns about long-term reliability. One user mentioned that they relegated the drive to a secondary/game storage role due to these concerns.
That said, the drive comes with a 3-year limited warranty, which provides some reassurance. For the price, many customers felt that the WD Green SN350 offers excellent value, even if it’s not the most robust option on the market.
Value for Money: Hard to Beat
At its current price point, the WD Green SN350 is a fantastic budget-friendly option. One reviewer snagged the 2TB model for $139.99 on sale, calling it a “great deal” for the performance it delivers. Compared to traditional SATA drives or HDDs, the speed and efficiency gains are substantial, making it a worthwhile upgrade for most users.
However, if you’re planning to upgrade to a PCIe Gen4 or Gen5 system in the near future, you might want to invest in a faster SSD now to avoid needing another upgrade later.
Conclusion: Is the WD Green SN350 Worth It?
The Western Digital 2TB WD Green SN350 NVMe SSD is a solid choice for anyone looking to upgrade their storage without spending a fortune. It delivers excellent performance for everyday tasks, easy installation, and great value for money. However, its QLC NAND technology and mixed reputation for long-term reliability mean it may not be the best option for heavy workloads or users seeking a future-proof solution.
Final Verdict:
- Best For
Casual users, gamers, and anyone upgrading from a traditional HDD or SATA SSD. - Not Ideal For
Power users with heavy write-intensive workloads or those planning to upgrade to PCIe Gen4/Gen5 systems soon.
If you’re after a budget-friendly NVMe SSD that delivers a significant performance boost, the WD Green SN350 is a fantastic choice. Just keep its limitations in mind and use it accordingly.
Specification Western Digital 2TB WD Green SN350 NVMe Internal SSD Solid State Drive - Gen3 PCIe, QLC, M.2 2280, Up to 3,200 MB/s - WDS200T3G0C:
Comments from Amazon:
We were looking for a low-cost NVMe drive with good performance and reliability. We have no complaints about the performance, and it is running without any issues. It is a significant upgrade from a rotating rust drive of the same capacity with only a modest increase in cost.
This is my secondary/game drive, and has been rock solid. No complaints!
No issues so far
For my new PC I wanted two drives. The WD Blue is for the OS and applications, and for gaming I've chosen this WD Green. It's unashamedly on the low-end of NVME drives, but is reasonably priced and still FAR exceeds anything you can do with SATA. Putting it through benchmarks, it meets and even exceeds the advertised 2400MB/s speeds. I've personally seen ~2700-2900MB/s. In most cases, I can't imagine you would need a heatsink for this drive, but on my motherboard, the second NVME slot is right underneath the graphics card, so I actually did install a low-profile heatsink on mine, since anything is still better than nothing here. Highest temps I've seen were in the mid-60s (which is fine, as most drives are good up to 72-75C before they'll throttle down), but usually during gaming it sits around 55-58C, and at idle/light loads it's in the 40s. The box mine came in only listed Windows 7/8/10 as being compatible (whereas the box for the WD Blue lists Windows 11 as well). This could just be due to the fact that this particular drive was manufactured two months before Windows 11's official release, or maybe not, I don't know how far in advance Microsoft started handing around "Window's 11-Ready" certificates or whatever. As I planned on going with Windows 10 anyways, this didn't matter to me. It may not matter at ALL if you aren't going to use it as your OS drive, but I haven't tested that of course, so wanted to bring it up at least. The WD Green lineup has never had the best reputation when it comes to long-term reliability. It was a commonly-held view back when the lineup consisted of just HDDs, and it's still the case today with the NVMEs. That said, this thing is 60 bucks. It has a 3 year warranty. It's only been a month for me, but if it lasts me 3 years, I still think it'll have been worth it, and NVMEs as a whole should be cheaper overall by that point. Still, that reputation is what has relegated it to a "games only" use-case for me, and I think it's perfect for that.
This review is for the 2TB WD SN350. Sometimes Amazon consolidates reviews for different models together and I want to make sure that if you're reading this review, it corresponds to the product that you are considering. I paid $139.99 for it on sale which is a great price for a 2TB M.2 SSD. In addition, for a PCIE Gen3 SSD, it performs near the peak of that gen's capability. I think the fastest possible read speed for gen3 is 3,500mb/s and this drive achieves 3,150mb/s read and 3000mb/s write as shown in the attached pic from my test yesterday. Given its affordable price, this is an excellent result. One thing to keep in mind is that this is a PCIE Gen3 SSD. There are PCIE Gen4 and Gen5 motherboards that can handle faster m.2 drives capable of 5,000, 6,000 and even 7,000 plus megabytes per second read speeds. Since my laptop's motherboard is PCIE Gen3, I can't take advantage of the faster read/writes of Gen4 SSDs. This is about the fastest I can take advantage of until I upgrade my laptop in a few years. That said, I don't plan on upgrading for a few years and therefore I am not concerned about future proofing my SSD with a faster drive. If you plan on upgrading to a PCIE Gen4 or PCIE Gen5 motherboard soon, or if you currently have one, consider a faster drive, but expect to pay considerably more for it. That said, 3,000 plus read/write is plenty fast and at its current sale price, this is still an excellent deal for any motherboard.
I got this SSD for storing files. I don't use it for games, but it's important for me to have fast access to lots of files because of what I do. It works incredibly well and incredibly fast, and was a good purchase.
The WD Green SN350 1TB NVMe SSD is an excellent choice if you're looking for a solid, budget-friendly storage upgrade. With speeds of up to 3,200 MB/s, it significantly boosts system performance compared to a traditional SATA SSD or HDD. Boot times, file transfers, and overall system responsiveness have improved noticeably since I installed it. The Gen3 PCIe compatibility makes it a great fit for most mid-range systems, and the M.2 2280 form factor was easy to install on my motherboard without taking up extra space. Although it's a QLC SSD, the performance has been smooth for regular tasks like gaming, media editing, and day-to-day use, though it may not be the best for extremely heavy write-intensive tasks. For the price, it's hard to beat the value of this drive. It’s perfect for anyone looking to upgrade to NVMe speeds without spending too much. If you're after solid performance for general use and gaming, the WD Green SN350 is a fantastic choice