Kingston A400 480GB
Score: 54/100
Crucial BX500 1TB
Score: 75/100Rankings
The Crucial BX500 1TB is a budget-oriented SATA SSD that delivers solid sequential performance and high capacity for everyday computing, but it lacks DRAM cache and hardware encryption.
The Kingston A400 480 GB SATA SSD delivers budget-friendly performance improvements over mechanical drives, offering up to 500 MB/s reads and 450 MB/s writes with low power draw. It is ideal for older desktops and laptops that need a simple, cost-effective upgrade.
| Attribute | | |
|---|---|---|
480 GB | 1,000 GBbest | |
500 MB/s | 540 MB/sbest | |
450 MB/s | 500 MB/sbest | |
160 TBW | 360 TBWbest | |
3 yearsbest | 3 yearsbest | |
| ↓ lower better | 0.279 Wbest | — |
| ↓ lower better | 0.195 Wbest | — |
1,000,000 hours | 1,500,000 hoursbest |
Click an attribute name to sort · Green = best, red = worst (relative to this comparison)
| Attribute | | |
|---|---|---|
Performance(2) | ||
Sequential Read Speed (MB/s) | 500 MB/s | 540 MB/s |
Sequential Write Speed (MB/s) | 450 MB/s | 500 MB/s |
Storage(5) | ||
Capacity (GB) | 480 GB | 1000 GB |
Form Factor | 2.5-inch | 2.5" |
NAND Type | 3D TLC | TLC |
Endurance (TBW) (TBW) | 160 TBW | 360 TBW |
MTBF (hours) | 1000000 hours | 1500000 hours |
Design & Build(1) | ||
Weight (g) | 41 g | 54.4 g |
Products in the top-left offer the best value (high score, low price).
Professional reviewers position the A400 as a budget-friendly, value-driven SSD that revitalises older PCs. They praise its durability, low power draw and ease of installation, while noting the 2-channel controller limits peak performance and that it falls short of premium SATA or NVMe drives in speed and endurance.
Everyday users overwhelmingly appreciate the noticeable speed uplift and simple upgrade path, calling it a "no-brainer" for aging laptops. Common complaints revolve around occasional performance slowdown over time, missing mounting screws, and the drive's unsuitability for heavy-duty tasks.
Professional reviewers acknowledge the BX500 as a solid entry-level SSD that delivers the expected SATA performance at a low price. PCMag notes that while it performs well in benchmarks, the lack of DRAM cache and shorter warranty make the MX500 a better overall value. Gagadget praises its affordability and real-world speed but warns against heavy write workloads due to the SLC cache limitation.
Everyday users appreciate the noticeable speed boost over mechanical drives, the ease of installation, and the included cloning tools, while complaints focus on the sharp write-speed drop after the cache fills and the absence of mounting hardware.
“No-brainer upgrade for aging laptops.”
“Great value for a simple SSD swap.”
“Performance slowed after months of heavy use.”
