Lexar NQ790 1TB: Budget PCIe 4.0 Speed, QLC Trade-offs (2026)
Quick answer
The Lexar NQ790 1TB makes sense for budget-focused buyers who want fast PCIe 4.0 burst speeds for gaming, a PS5 upgrade, or general desktop use, and don't regularly move huge continuous files.
Read: 7000 MB/s Write: 6000 MB/s Endurance: 600 TBW Warranty: 5 years Interface: M.2 4.0 x 4
The Lexar NQ790 1TB is a QLC-based PCIe 4.0 NVMe drive that delivers genuinely fast burst speeds at a budget price, with the usual QLC caveats attached.
Controller & Memory
Inside the Lexar NQ790 1TB is a Maxio MAP1602 controller paired with Intel 144-layer QLC NAND, sold under Lexar's Longsys branding, and no dedicated DRAM chip; the drive leans on Host Memory Buffer (HMB) technology and dynamic SLC caching to keep performance up. It runs over a PCIe 4.0 x4 link in the standard M.2 2280 form factor, and its DRAM-less design keeps power draw moderate, which helps in compact or thermally constrained builds.
The NQ790 is Lexar's budget QLC counterpart to the TLC-based NM790, sharing a similar look and price bracket but trading NAND type for a lower cost per gigabyte. It ships in 512 GB, 1 TB, 2 TB, and 4 TB capacities; this 1 TB model and the larger sizes all share the same 7,000 MB/s read and 6,000 MB/s write ratings, while the smaller 512 GB variant is noticeably slower on writes at 6,400 MB/s read and just 2,900 MB/s write.
The NQ790 1TB fits laptops, Mini PCs, and the PlayStation 5's M.2 slot without a heatsink required, though good airflow helps under sustained load. Lexar's own NM790 is the closest in-house alternative if you want TLC NAND and higher endurance at a higher price; outside the family, the WD Black SN770 and Crucial P3 compete in a similar budget PCIe 4.0 tier.
Storage Comparisons:
NQ790 Performance & Benchmarks
The 1 TB Lexar NQ790 is rated for up to 7,000 MB/s sequential reads and 6,000 MB/s sequential writes, with up to 800,000 IOPS on random reads and 600,000 IOPS on random writes. Independent testing of this drive has generally hit or exceeded those rated numbers in burst transfers, and everyday responsiveness, booting, launching apps, general file work, feels snappy.
Lexar NQ790 1 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
- Lexar NQ790 1 TB (this drive): 7,000 MB/s read, 6,000 MB/s write
The QLC NAND is the key trade-off: the NQ790 relies more heavily on its dynamic SLC cache to sustain peak write speed than a comparable TLC drive would, and once that cache is exhausted on a large continuous transfer, write speed drops more sharply than it would on the TLC-based NM790. For typical use, moving files a few gigabytes at a time, gaming, OS tasks, this rarely matters. It becomes relevant if you regularly copy hundreds of gigabytes in one continuous session, where the QLC drive's sustained write rate falls further behind its rated burst number than a TLC drive's would.
Lexar NQ790 vs Competitors
See how the NQ790 stacks up against other M.2 4.0 x 4 drives in our database:
Compare with rival drives:
Endurance, TBW & Warranty
Lexar rates the 1 TB NQ790 at 600 TBW and backs it with a 5-year limited warranty. At a realistic 20-30 GB per day write workload, 600 TBW works out to roughly 55-80 years before the drive reaches its rated endurance limit, far beyond the warranty period and the practical lifespan of the rest of the PC around it. QLC NAND inherently has lower per-cell endurance than TLC, which is reflected in the NQ790's lower TBW rating relative to the TLC-based NM790 at the same capacity, though 600 TBW is still comfortably more than mainstream users will ever write. Warranty service runs through Lexar's regional RMA process, so keep your purchase receipt on hand.
Lexar NQ790 1 TB Specifications
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Capacity [?] | 1 TB |
| Interface [?] | M.2 4.0 x 4 |
| Controller [?] | Maxiotech MAP-1602A |
| Memory type [?] | Intel 144L QLC |
| DRAM [?] | No |
| Read speed (MB/s) [?] | 7000 |
| Write speed (MB/s) [?] | 6000 |
| Read IOPS [?] | 800000 |
| Write IOPS [?] | 600000 |
| Endurance (TBW) [?] | 600 |
| MTBF (million hours) [?] | 2000000 |
| Warranty (years) [?] | 5 |
Verdict: Is the NQ790 Worth It in 2026?
The Lexar NQ790 1TB makes sense for budget-focused buyers who want fast PCIe 4.0 burst speeds for gaming, a PS5 upgrade, or general desktop use, and don't regularly move huge continuous files. Buyers doing sustained heavy writes, like large video exports or bulk data transfers, should look at Lexar's own TLC-based NM790 instead, which holds its write speed longer once any SLC cache empties. The WD Black SN770 is another reasonable alternative if QLC specifically is a dealbreaker. Overall, the NQ790 1TB is a strong value pick for everyday PCIe 4.0 performance, as long as you understand the QLC trade-off going in.
+ Pros
- 7,000 MB/s reads at a budget price
- 5-year manufacturer warranty
- 600 TBW endurance, ample for typical use
- PS5-compatible M.2 2280 form factor
- Dynamic SLC caching and HMB support
- Cons
- QLC NAND slows sharply after cache exhaustion
- Lower endurance than the TLC-based NM790
- No DRAM cache
- Not suited to sustained heavy write workloads
Buy this or similar SSD Storage:
Video Review
Lexar NM790 NVME - Great PERFORMANCE, even BETTER PRICE 😉
