Lexar NM610 1TB NVMe SSD Review

Final Thoughts & Conclusions

After using and testing the Lexar NM610 drive for an extended period of time, we can say with certainty that it is without a doubt an entry-level NVMe drive. We came close to meeting the NM610 1TB drives rated sequential speeds of 2,100 MB/s read and 1,600 MB/s write as the primary drive with it over half filled. While those speeds are significantly faster than that of a SATA III SSD or SATA III hard drive, they fail to be competitive with mainstream or high-end NVMe SSDs. This is very evident in our test results that often saw the Lexar NM610 performing near the bottom when compared against nearly a dozen other NVMe drives.

So, while entry-level drives aren’t expected to do good in the performance tests we do expect them to be cost effective. Unfortunately, that is when things start to get really bad for the Lexar NM610. Not only does the drive struggle to compete against the other models in our benchmark testing, but it is actually one of the most expensive drives. Pricing on the 256GB model is $47.99 shipped, moving up to a 512GB drive runs $115.08 shipped and the 1TB model is $199.99 shipped. Those prices are direct from Amazon and not a third party seller. If you look over at Newegg they are asking $204.95 plus $15 shipping for the Lexar NM610 1TB drive from a 3rd party seller.

Pricing on the Lexar NM610 is currently the same as the Corsair Force MP600 Gen4 PCIe 1TB and Sabrent Rocket 4.0 1TB drives. The Lexar NM610 is a DRAM-less drive rated at up to 2000 MB/s read and 1600 MB/s write. Those two drives have DRAM ob-board and are rated at up to 5000 MB/s read and 4400 MB/s write. Not to mention they come with a longer 5-year warranty versus the 3-year warranty found on the Lexar NM610. Pricing on the Lexar NM610 needs to be closer to that of the entry-level drives like the Patriot P300 1TB NVMe SSD which can be found for $119.99 shipped.

At the end of the day the Lexar NM610 is a grossly overpriced entry-level drive. The pricing needs to be properly aligned with competitors on the entry-level NVMe market for them to sell well. We hope that the sales team over at Lexar will look at suggested price points again and make the needed corrections.

Legit Bottom Line: The Lexar NM610 is an entry-level PCIe 3.0 NVMe drive with the price tag of a high-end PCIe 4.0 NVMe drive.