Verdict and Conclusion
This is one of the first SSDs that we’ve tested in the M.2 2230 form factor. It’s perfect for handheld gaming consoles, Steam Deck, ROG Ally and laptops, but not really ideal for PC desktop systems (unless your motherboard has the screw mounts for the M.2 2230 form factor).
During our benchmarks, the Lexar PLAY 2230 was surprisingly fast and performed pretty good in all of our tests. During our Crystalmark 32GB tests, it produced a Read speed of 5,264 MB/sec and Write speeds of 4,662 MB/sec. It performed better than advertised and that, is always a good thing.
The Lexar PLAY 2230 doesn’t come with any heatsinks or heatshield, and the reason for this is because it’s designed for handheld gaming consoles, Steam Deck and ROG Ally. And the second reason is that, it uses the Silicon Motion SM2269XT DRAM-less SSD controller, which uses less power and thus produces less heat.
We tested the Lexar PLAY 2230 SSD on both our test bench (with desktop PC components) and the Asus ROG Zepherus laptop (Ryzen), and it worked flawlessly. One other good news, if you own an older laptop, the Lexar PLAY 2230 is also backwards-compatible with PCIe Gen3.
Right now on Lexar’s website, the PLAY 2230 is currenly only available in 1TB version, although I sure they will soon have the smaller 512GB or larger 2TB sizes. You can buy the Lexar PLAY 2230 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD for around USD $109.99 $85 (sale) from Amazon – https://amzn.to/3vKjNfs
Final Thoughts
If you need extra storage space for your handheld gaming console, Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or a laptop that supports the M.2 2230 form factor, then it’s no brainer. Get the Lexar PLAY 2230 PCIe 4.0 1TB SSD now. It’s fast, affordable, consumes less power and comes with a 5-year warranty.
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