Just in time for Black Friday? Samsung may be preparing for launch of 990 Pro successor — PM9E1 SSD is its first PCIe 5.0 SSD but it isn't aimed at end users

Samsung recently announced that its PM9E1 NVMe Gen 5 SSD has entered mass production. The initial press release was pulled shortly after publication, but the details were later republished by TechPowerUp.

The PM9E1 is the successor to the PM9A1 SSD, which launched in 2021, and brings notable improvements in speed, capacity, and power efficiency.

The SSD appears to be mostly aimed at enterprise customers and those working with AI-driven workloads, offering enhanced storage solutions for data-heavy applications.

Large capacities

The PM9E1 SSD doubles both the read and write speeds of its predecessor, delivering 14.5GB/s read and 13GB/s write speeds. This is a significant improvement over the PM9A1’s 7GB/s read and 5.2GB/s write speeds. According to Samsung, the PM9E1 is built with an in-house 5nm controller and eighth-generation V-NAND (V8) technology, which allows it to offer better performance and efficiency.

The drive will be available in four capacities – 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB – with the larger models aimed at users who need high-performance storage for AI-generated content, gaming, and high-resolution video processing. The 4TB option, in particular, is intended for demanding enterprise applications, providing ample space for handling large data sets and real-time AI tasks.

In addition to increased speed, the PM9E1 is 50% more power-efficient than its predecessor, which Samsung claims will extend battery life, making it ideal for on-device AI applications. The SSD also features security enhancements, including Device Authentication and Firmware Tampering Attestation, provided through the updated SPDM Version 1.2 protocol. These features help protect against supply chain attacks and ensure that the device’s firmware remains intact during the production and distribution process.

“Our PM9E1 integrated with a 5 nm controller delivers industry-leading power efficiency and utmost performance validated by our key partners,” YongCheol Bae, Executive Vice President of Memory Product Planning at Samsung, said. “In the rapidly growing on-device AI era, Samsung’s PM9E1 will offer a robust foundation for global customers to effectively plan their AI portfolios.”

While the initial press release was pulled without warning and there is no confirmed pricing or release date, it is clear that Samsung is positioning the PM9E1 as a key component for enterprise and AI-driven applications. More details regarding availability will hopefully be made available soon.