Performance: 38 out of 40
When you combine an excellent controller with excellent NAND and then ensure that it will not easily thermally limit the results are going to speak for themselves. Put simply, the XS70 1TB is going to be one of the more consistent PCIe 4×4.0 NVME drives available… or at least will be this side of z-height restriction ignoring models which have their own issues you have to overcome.
Technological Innovation: 18 out of 20
If there is a weak link of the XS70 series, it is the innovation it offers. Yes, on the one hand Silicon Power has combined a known good ‘reference’ E18 solid state drive with a known good after-market heatsink to ‘create’ a drive that is actually less costly than most E18 models. Including nude E18 models. On the other it is nothing you can not do yourself with any E18 NVMe and a quick trip to AliExpress or even just some careful consideration before purchasing your motherboard.
Build Quality & Warranty: 16 out of 20
On the one hand Silicon Power offers an excellent five-year warranty with a generous Total Bytes Written limitation. They also did not cut any corners on the hardware side of the equation – and thus lowering the chances of you ever needing to use said warranty. On the other, this is pretty much par for the course with reference Phison E18 models. The same is true of the heatsink which is good but not a standout example of what it is. So while good, it is not above average as of the release of this review.
Value: 20 out of 20
Yes, no sane person will be rushing out to buy this drive to replace their existing E18 with it. Yes, the heatsink is easily available on the open market. Yes, this is a reference E18 underneath that bog standard heatsink. None of this really matters all that much as Silicon Power has done something few others are willing to do – not price gouge their customers. Unlike others who tack on a… ‘handling fee’ for doing the exact same fee as Silicon Power, theXS70 actually costs less than some ‘nude’ or heatsink-less E18s. Performance, cooling, and price… all in the same package?! What a concept!
Final Score: 92 out of 100
While certainly not unique from a hardware, or even warranty, point of view the combination of known good performance, known good cooling, with excellent overall value is sure to impress most buyers. Put bluntly, the fact that Silicon Power can offer a heatsink equipped Phison E18 Solid State Drive for less than what most others asked for their non-heatsink equipped models just underscores their commitment to value.
