# ADATA Swordfish 500GB Review — Budget PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD (2026)

The ADATA Swordfish 500GB is a budget PCIe 3.0 NVMe SSD that offers double the capacity of its 250 GB sibling, giving budget builders more room for games and files without a significant price jump.

Quick answer: The ADATA Swordfish 500GB is a sensible budget NVMe SSD for users upgrading from SATA or building an affordable system with more storage headroom than the 250 GB model. Its 1,800/1,200 MB/s speeds improve noticeably over SATA but lag well behind mainstream PCIe 3.0 alternatives like the Samsung 980 or WD Blue SN570. The drive's sustained write performance collapses under heavy loads, ruling it out for content creation workflows. It works well as a budget boot drive or secondary game storage, but buyers should compare pricing — if a faster drive costs only marginally more, it is the smarter long-term investment.

## Specifications

| Specification | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Capacity | 500 GB |
| Interface | M.2 3.0 x 4 |
| Controller | Realtek RTS5763DL |
| Memory type | ADATA 3D TLC |
| DRAM cache | Host Memory Buffer |
| Sequential read | 1800 MB/s |
| Sequential write | 1200 MB/s |
| Random read IOPS | 180000 |
| Random write IOPS | 180000 |
| Endurance | 330 TBW |
| MTBF | 1.8 |
| Warranty | 5 years |

## Performance

The ADATA Swordfish 500GB is rated for 1,800 MB/s sequential reads and 1,200 MB/s sequential writes, with up to 180,000 random read and write IOPS. These manufacturer-rated figures represent best-case performance with data already in the SLC cache. For everyday desktop tasks, the 1,800 MB/s reads deliver a roughly threefold improvement over SATA III SSDs, which max out around 550 MB/s. Boot times, application launches, and file browsing all benefit from the upgrade.

However, the Swordfish operates at roughly half the bandwidth of the PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, which tops out near 3,500 MB/s. Mainstream PCIe 3.0 drives like the WD Blue SN570 and Samsung 980 reach 3,000–3,500 MB/s reads and 2,500–3,000 MB/s writes, making the Swordfish look dated against current offerings. The HMB architecture also means that random I/O consistency depends on proper system-level HMB support.

Under sustained write loads, the Swordfish's entry-level hardware shows its limits. Independent testing found the drive's 4K random write performance dropping to approximately 9,710 IOPS under heavy workload stress, with extreme latency spikes and near-complete throughput stalls. The small SLC cache exhausts quickly when moving large files — video editors or anyone transferring tens of gigabytes at once will notice a sharp slowdown. For light use cases like web browsing, office productivity, and casual gaming, this behaviour is irrelevant. But the Swordfish is not a drive you would choose for sustained high-throughput workloads.

## Endurance, TBW & Warranty

ADATA covers the Swordfish 500GB with a five-year limited warranty, capped at 330 TBW (terabytes written). At a typical consumer write workload of 20 GB per day, 330 TBW translates to approximately 45 years of use — far exceeding the five-year warranty window. Even at a heavier 50 GB per day, the drive would last roughly 18 years. The TBW rating scales proportionally with capacity across the Swordfish lineup, and 330 TBW is adequate for the drive's target audience of budget desktop users and casual gamers. ADATA provides the SSD Toolbox utility for monitoring drive health, checking remaining endurance, and applying firmware updates when available. The warranty is limited to manufacturing defects and does not cover drives that exceed their TBW rating within the warranty period.

## Pros and Cons

**Pros:**

- 1,800 MB/s reads, 3x faster than SATA SSDs
- 500 GB capacity fits OS and several games
- Five-year warranty from ADATA
- HMB design keeps power draw low for laptops
- 330 TBW endurance suits daily desktop use
**Cons:**

- 1,800 MB/s reads well below PCIe 3.0 ceiling
- DRAM-less design with HMB dependency
- Sustained write performance collapses under heavy loads
- No included heatsink
- Larger capacities offer better speed per dollar


## Verdict

The ADATA Swordfish 500GB is a sensible budget NVMe SSD for users upgrading from SATA or building an affordable system with more storage headroom than the 250 GB model. Its 1,800/1,200 MB/s speeds improve noticeably over SATA but lag well behind mainstream PCIe 3.0 alternatives like the Samsung 980 or WD Blue SN570. The drive's sustained write performance collapses under heavy loads, ruling it out for content creation workflows. It works well as a budget boot drive or secondary game storage, but buyers should compare pricing — if a faster drive costs only marginally more, it is the smarter long-term investment.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### Is the ADATA Swordfish 500GB good for gaming?

The ADATA Swordfish 500GB handles gaming adequately for its price tier. The 1,800 MB/s reads provide faster game load times than any SATA SSD, and the 500 GB capacity is enough for the operating system plus several modern games. However, the drive's sustained write performance drops significantly under heavy loads, so installing multiple large games at once will be slower than on a mainstream NVMe. For a primary gaming drive, consider the 1 TB Swordfish or a faster alternative like the WD Blue SN570.

### Is the ADATA Swordfish 500GB compatible with the PS5?

No, the ADATA Swordfish 500GB is not compatible with the PlayStation 5. Sony requires a PCIe 4.0 NVMe M.2 SSD with sequential reads of at least 5,500 MB/s for PS5 storage expansion. The Swordfish is a PCIe 3.0 drive rated at only 1,800 MB/s reads, well below Sony's minimum requirement. It also ships without a heatsink, which the PS5 mandates for M.2 expansion drives. The Swordfish works as a PS4 hard drive replacement, but it cannot be used to expand PS5 storage.

### Does the ADATA Swordfish 500GB have a DRAM cache?

No, the ADATA Swordfish 500GB does not have a dedicated DRAM cache. It uses the NVMe Host Memory Buffer (HMB) protocol, which allocates a small portion of system RAM — typically a few megabytes — to manage the flash translation layer. HMB provides better performance than traditional DRAM-less SSDs for light workloads, but it cannot match the consistency of a true DRAM cache under sustained write loads. The Swordfish's 4K random write performance drops sharply when the SLC cache exhausts, a common limitation of budget HMB-based drives.

### What is the TBW endurance of the ADATA Swordfish 500GB?

ADATA rates the Swordfish 500GB at 330 TBW (terabytes written), covered by a five-year limited warranty. At a typical consumer write workload of 20 GB per day, 330 TBW would last approximately 45 years. Even at 50 GB per day, the drive would last about 18 years. The TBW rating is modest compared to mainstream NVMe drives — the Samsung 980 500GB is rated at 300 TBW, which is comparable — but it is entirely adequate for the Swordfish's target audience of budget desktop users, office workers, and casual gamers.

### Does the ADATA Swordfish 500GB need a heatsink?

The ADATA Swordfish 500GB does not ship with a heatsink, and it does not strictly require one for safe operation. As an entry-level PCIe 3.0 drive with modest 1,800/1,200 MB/s speeds, the Swordfish does not generate the same thermal output as high-performance NVMe drives. Most modern motherboards include built-in M.2 heatsinks, and if yours does, using one is recommended. If installing in a laptop or a motherboard without an M.2 heatsink, the Swordfish will operate safely under normal desktop and office workloads without additional cooling.

### How does the ADATA Swordfish 500GB compare to the Kingston NV2 500GB?

The ADATA Swordfish 500GB and Kingston NV2 500GB compete in the same budget tier. Both are DRAM-less drives using HMB, and both target budget builds and SATA upgrades. The Kingston NV2 500GB is rated at roughly 3,500/1,300 MB/s — significantly faster in reads than the Swordfish's 1,800/1,200 MB/s. However, both drives share similar sustained write limitations once their small SLC caches exhaust. In practice, the NV2 has a meaningful read-speed advantage for large file copies, while everyday desktop performance is comparable. Choose whichever is cheaper.

### Is the ADATA Swordfish 500GB good for a laptop upgrade?

Yes, the ADATA Swordfish 500GB is a reasonable laptop upgrade, particularly for older laptops still running a 2.5-inch SATA SSD. Its M.2 2280 form factor and single-sided PCB fit most laptops with an M.2 NVMe slot. The HMB design keeps power consumption low, which benefits laptop battery life. The 500 GB capacity provides more storage than typical 256 GB OEM drives. However, if your laptop supports PCIe 4.0, a faster drive like the WD Blue SN580 would deliver better performance for a similar price.

---

Last updated: 2026-05-17. Source: https://ssdrive.net/adata-swordfish-500-gb