What is the difference of NVME and NGFF?
Posted by Deggabeat2@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 20 comments
Shopping for a SSD but Im very confused as I keep seeing different things. I know NVME is newer, but is it that much more important and crucial than NGFF? I plan to get a AM5 motherboard btw.
Loud_Papaya9788@reddit
NGFFとNｖMe違いは電源供給方法の違いです。スロットから供給するのか外部から直接投入するのか＿
むかし使い古しのシステムメインメモリーをスロットにまとめて挿して外部記憶装置として使えます的な商品が一時ありました。あれってPCIだからスロット供給なのでNvMe
直接電源を別につないで稼働するNGFFはノートpcとデスクトップと違って同じNGFFでも電源もデーターもスロットにさせるのがノートPC １２Vの電源ユニットから直接コートでつなぐのがデスクトップPC
いろいろあるよ
aragorn18@reddit
NGFF SSDs tend to use the SATA standard. Most AM5 motherboards don't support SATA M.2 drives.
skylinestar1986@reddit
If you visit chinese shops like AliExpress, you may see adaptors that say: NGFF yes NVME no, or NGFF no NVME yes. They are referring to SATA.
Proud-Pair1725@reddit
Non dire stupidaggini.
Little-Equinox@reddit
NGFF is what the slot is called, M.2 is the name of the retention screw.
aragorn18@reddit
That may be true on a technical level, but it's irrelevant to OP's question. When looking at product listing for SSDs, NGFF almost always refers to SATA drives.
Little-Equinox@reddit
I never seen NGFF uses for the name of SATA drives🤔
aragorn18@reddit
First few results on Amazon https://imgur.com/a/kBilOV9
Little-Equinox@reddit
I get a mix of SATA M+B key key and PCIe 3.0 SSDs. When NGFF was still used for both 😅 Mostly older SSDs.
So I guess it's a difference oer region as well. But NGFF is the slot, not the protocol.
aragorn18@reddit
Yes, as I said, you are technically correct. But, that doesn't help OP with their purchasing decision.
Little-Equinox@reddit
Then tell them the truth.
That NGFF is the slot and NVMe are the faster SSDs.
tinysydneh@reddit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M.2
The slot itself is now called M.2, and has nothing to do with the screw.
Quite a few things using the name NGFF would likely be SATA drives, just due to age.
Little-Equinox@reddit
It says in that Wikipedia article that M.2 was formerly known as NGFF, NGFF is the slot, has nothing to do with the protocol, it can be NVMe/PCIe or SATA.
M.2 was originally the name of the retention mechanism but they renamed NGFF to M.2 probably because NGFF can also have the retention mechanism of mPCIe or mSATA.
The difference between SATA and NVMe protocol is the NGFF/M.2 key.
tinysydneh@reddit
M.2 is the name of the slot now. That's literally what formerly means.
And yes, I'm aware that it's nothing to do with the protocol. When I say that most things using the name NGFF would be SATA, it's because NGFF is the older name for it and back then more things using that slot, and therefore using the name NGFF on marketing/specs, would have been SATA.
It has absolutely nothing to do with the retention screw like you claimed. M.2 is the name of the slot now, period, as well.
Unless you have a source, stop making things up.
Proud-Pair1725@reddit
NGFF è il tipo di connettore dove ci possono andare, se supportati, sia SSD con formato M.2 NVMe che SATA. Non ascoltare quelli che dicono che NGFF è sinonimo di SATA.
dweller_12@reddit
NGFF is SATA interface using m.2 connector. NVME is PCIe interface using m.2 connector. They have different keying as well.
AM5 boards do not support NGFF SATA, so it's going to have to be NVMe.
skylinestar1986@reddit
Modern intel boards don't support either.
groveborn@reddit
SATA vs. NVMe.
SATA is a standard that replaced IDE back in the early 00's. It's been a loyal and useful protocol that has survived many alterations over the decades.
But it tops out at 6Gb/s. That sounds like a lot, but your USB flash drive can do 40. It was designed for hard disks from way back. Older SSDs were faster at reading, but not writing. They started getting much better right about the time COVID hit.
The first SSDs could come in SATA or as a slotted card. The slotted card could go the full speed of the channel it was in, which was nice.
NGFF was merely an evolution on how it connected to the board - they've been trying to walk away from cables for a while now. Intel especially wants to push 12vo, eliminating most of the cabling in the system. Since an SSD in the older 2.5" format takes up about 1/4 of the actual space provided, it made sense to make it its own thing.
SATA was still widely available and was an easy entry point, but that adds complexity to the system. NVMe moves the controller onto the drive, rather than the motherboard. While that does add a bit of cost to the drive manufacturer, it also made the drive that much better - and it can go the full speed of an x1-x4 pci-e slot. Obviously, 4 is better than 1, but 1 was fine as well for most uses.
Since newer boards might not even come with a SATA interface at all, this reduces the cost of new motherboards, this just means we've got to be smart in how we shop for parts. Size matters, so a mini/micro board will support at most 2, with 1 being far more common, a full ATx or larger will support several.
So when you look for new hardware, consider the newest factors - NVMe for drives, unless you have a particular need for SATA or some other legacy.
I hope this helps!
Emerald_Flame@reddit
NGFF stands for Next Generation Form Factor. It's an old name that basically no one uses anymore, and most people refer to it as M.2 now.
NGFF/M.2 just describes the physical slot the SSD goes into. It is completely separate from NVMe. NVMe is the protocol that the SSD uses to talk to the computer.
While most M.2 SSDs are NVMe, especially these days, it's still possible to have M.2 SSDs that are SATA, and sometimes you'll even see M.2 ports that only support SATA drives, or only support Wifi cards, etc.
BmanUltima@reddit
NGFF was the term for M.2 when it first launched in 2013.
NVMe is a type of storage protocol that can be used in M.2 form factor SSDs.