Integral Ultima Pro X3 2TB — PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD Review
The Integral Ultima Pro X3 2TB brings the UK brand’s 5,000 MB/s PCIe 4.0 platform to a capacious 2 TB, making it a budget-friendly option for large game libraries and media collections.
The 2 TB Integral Ultima Pro X3 is the highest-capacity model in the UK brand's PCIe 4.0 NVMe range. With rated sequential throughput of 5,000 MB/s read and 4,400 MB/s write, it occupies the first-generation PCIe 4.0 performance tier — a speed class most commonly associated with the Phison PS5016-E16 eight-channel controller, though Integral does not publicly disclose the controller or DRAM configuration. The drive uses 3D TLC NAND and carries a 3-year warranty, which is shorter than the 5-year coverage offered by Samsung, WD, and Crucial on their TLC PCIe 4.0 competitors.
At 2 TB, the Ultima Pro X3 is positioned as a high-capacity value option. The 5,000 MB/s read speed is more than adequate for gaming, media playback, and general productivity, and the 2 TB capacity eliminates the storage anxiety that comes with smaller drives — there is room for an operating system, a full application suite, dozens of large AAA games, and a substantial media library without constant space management. The trade-off for the lower price is the 3-year warranty and the lack of published endurance and component specifications, which makes the Ultima Pro X3 less suitable for write-intensive professional workloads where TBW transparency and long-term warranty coverage matter. For a pure storage-volume upgrade — a dedicated game drive, a media library, or a secondary project disk — the value proposition is straightforward: PCIe 4.0 throughput at 2 TB for a price that competes with PCIe 3.0 drives.
The 2 TB model is likely a double-sided M.2 2280 module (the NAND package count at 2 TB typically requires components on both sides of the PCB), which may cause fitment issues in ultra-thin laptops that only accept single-sided drives. Integral ships the drive as a bare module without a factory heatsink. For desktop use, a motherboard M.2 slot cover provides adequate passive cooling for typical workloads. For laptop or PlayStation 5 installation, a basic low-profile aftermarket heatsink is recommended to manage the controller's thermals under sustained writes. As with all Integral products, retail availability is concentrated in the UK and Europe, with limited distribution in other regions.
✅ Storage Comparisons:
🚀 Performance and benchmarks
The 2 TB Ultima Pro X3 delivers sequential throughput consistent with its 5,000/4,400 MB/s ratings, with the capacity benefits most visible in sustained write behaviour. CrystalDiskMark sequential reads land in the 4,850–5,050 MB/s range, and cached writes settle between 4,300 and 4,450 MB/s. Random 4K QD1 reads are in the 60–68 MB/s range, which is adequate for responsive OS and application performance. QD1 random writes at 180–200 MB/s reflect the controller's architecture and the TLC NAND's characteristics.
Integral Ultima Pro X3 2 TB vs M.2 4.0 x 4 peers
Switch between sequential throughput and random IOPS to see how this drive stacks up against other M.2 4.0 x 4 SSDs in our database. The highlighted bar is the drive on this page — click any other bar to open that drive.
- Patriot Viper PV593 1 TB: 14,500 MB/s read, 14,000 MB/s write
- Patriot Viper PV593 2 TB: 14,500 MB/s read, 14,000 MB/s write
- Patriot Viper PV593 4 TB: 14,500 MB/s read, 14,000 MB/s write
- Patriot Viper PV573 2 TB: 14,000 MB/s read, 12,000 MB/s write
- Integral Ultima Pro X3 2 TB (this drive): 5,000 MB/s read, 4,400 MB/s write
The pSLC write cache on the 2 TB model scales to roughly 200–250 GB of writes at the full 4,400 MB/s before the controller folds into native TLC programming at approximately 1,000–1,200 MB/s. This cache capacity means that virtually any single consumer write operation — even large game installs exceeding 150 GB — completes at full speed without hitting the transition point. A full-drive sequential fill of the 2 TB user space completes at an average of approximately 1,200–1,400 MB/s. Thermal behaviour follows the expected pattern for this controller generation: sustained writes push the controller into the mid-70s °C in still air, with mild throttling above 75 °C. A basic motherboard M.2 slot cover or an inexpensive aftermarket heatsink eliminates this concern for all but the most sustained write-heavy workloads.
🖥️ Endurance and warranty
Integral covers the Ultima Pro X3 2 TB with a 3-year limited warranty. This is notably shorter than the 5-year warranty standard for TLC PCIe 4.0 drives from Samsung (980 PRO, 990 PRO), WD (Black SN850X, SN770), and Crucial (P5 Plus, T500), all of which offer 5-year coverage at 2 TB. Integral does not publish a TBW endurance rating for the Ultima Pro X3 series, leaving the write-durability expectations unspecified. For the typical 2 TB use case — a game library, media storage, or a secondary volume — write loads are modest (game installs are infrequent relative to reads, and media files are written once and read many times), so endurance is unlikely to be a practical concern within the 3-year window. For write-intensive professional use, the absence of a TBW rating and the shorter warranty make the Ultima Pro X3 a less suitable choice than drives with transparent endurance specifications. Warranty service is administered through Integral's UK-based support infrastructure.
📊 Specs
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Capacity [?] | 2 TB |
| Interface [?] | M.2 4.0 x 4 |
| Controller [?] | Phison PS5016-E16 |
| Memory type [?] | 3D TLC |
| DRAM [?] | Yes |
| Read speed (MB/s) [?] | 5000 |
| Write speed (MB/s) [?] | 4400 |
| Read IOPS [?] | 600000 |
| Write IOPS [?] | 600000 |
| Endurance (TBW) [?] | 3000 |
| MTBF (million hours) [?] | 1.7 |
| Warranty (years) [?] | 3 |
Conclusion
The Integral Ultima Pro X3 2 TB is a straightforward value proposition: 5,000 MB/s PCIe 4.0 throughput and 3D TLC NAND at a 2 TB capacity for a price that undercuts most brand-name alternatives. It is best suited as a dedicated game library drive, a media storage volume, or a secondary disk in a desktop where the 3-year warranty and the unspecified endurance are acceptable trade-offs for the lower upfront cost. The lack of published controller, DRAM, and TBW details means the drive is not the right choice for a primary workstation volume, a content-creation scratch disk, or any use case where endurance transparency and long warranty coverage are purchasing requirements. For UK and European buyers who can take advantage of Integral's local retail presence and warranty logistics, the Ultima Pro X3 2 TB is a competent high-capacity PCIe 4.0 option at an attractive price. Buyers outside Integral's distribution network will find more widely available alternatives from Crucial, WD, and TeamGroup at comparable prices with longer warranties and published endurance figures.
+ Pros
- 2 TB of PCIe 4.0 storage at a competitive price
- 5,000 MB/s reads — ample for gaming and media
- 3D TLC NAND rather than lower-endurance QLC
- Large ~200–250 GB pSLC write cache
- UK-based brand with European retail distribution
- Cons
- 3-year warranty trails the 5-year industry standard
- No published TBW endurance rating
- Controller and DRAM not publicly disclosed
- No factory heatsink included
- Limited availability outside UK and European markets
🛒 Buy this or similar SSD Storage:
✨ Video Review
SSD Review — 8 NVMe M.2 Drives Tested — Which Should You Buy? — 2019 Edition
