CONCLUSION

   When Patriot informed us that they were sending the 256GB variant of the VPN100 (due to stock issues, we will however try to also get one of its higher capacity brothers) we weren’t very thrilled mainly because we knew it couldn’t compete with the higher capacity models we’ve had by other manufacturers. Still this proved to be a good thing since today we know just how much of a performance gap (primarily in writes) an 256GB M.2 NVMe SSD based on the E12 controller by Phison has compared to an 1TB model. Higher capacity SSDs have always enjoyed better performance numbers but in this case the difference proved to be quite massive in some of our tests (as much as 1/3rd) although the VPN100 256GB is still much faster compared to regular M.2 SATA models. As for the heatspreader/heatshield it did make a difference in our SNIA tests (solely based on the temperatures on the drive) but since this isn’t a 1TB model we really can’t say by how much (although the base of the 1/2TB models doesn’t feature a heatspreader/heatshield).

   The pre-mounted heatsink/heatshield of the VPN100 M.2 NVMe by Patriot/Viper Gaming should cause the cost of the drive to increase but it didn’t, not really since you can currently find the 256GB variant for USD54.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 52Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). Of course, there are a few lower cost NVMe drives in the market like the P34A80 256GB but the latest models from for example Samsung and WD cost quite a bit more and so we think that price is just right for what you’re getting. Long story short if you’re looking for a small capacity yet very fast M.2 NVMe drive and your mainboard didn’t come with a bundled heatspreader the Viper VPN100 256GB M.2 NVMe SSD by Patriot is a safe bet and for that it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Very Good Performance (Up To 3200MB/s Read & 1000MB/s Write for The 256GB Model)
- 3 Year Warranty
- Heatspreader/Heatshield
- Temperature Sensor
- Looks
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Performance (Compared to Its Higher Capacity Brothers)
- Warranty Period (Competing Products Carry Longer Ones)