Team Group T-Force Cardea Ceramic C440 1TB NVMe Review
The Team Group T-Force Cardea Ceramic C440 1TB is a PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD distinguished by its white ceramic composite heat spreader — an aerospace-inspired cooling solution for Phison E16 performance.
The Cardea Ceramic C440 is built on the Phison PS5016-E16 controller, the first-generation PCIe 4.0 design that launched alongside AMD's X570 platform. The E16 features dual Arm Cortex-R5 cores at 733 MHz with two CoXProcessor co-processors for NAND management, paired with 1 GB of SK Hynix DDR4 DRAM (two 512 MB packages, one on each PCB side). The NAND is Kioxia (Toshiba) BiCS4 96-layer TLC — a newer generation than the 64-layer BiCS3 used in the original Cardea Zero Z440.
At 1TB, the drive is rated for 5,000 MB/s sequential read and 4,400 MB/s sequential write with 750,000 random read/write IOPS. These are the same speeds across both the 1TB and 2TB capacities because the E16 controller is the bottleneck, not the NAND density. The 2TB model doubles the endurance to 3,600 TBW and offers more NAND dies for potential sustained-write benefits.
The standout feature is the white ceramic composite heat spreader, roughly 5 mm thick including the drive. Unlike most M.2 heatsinks that use aluminum fins, Team Group leverages ceramic's thermal properties for heat dissipation. The white finish targets builders with all-white or light-themed systems. The drive is double-sided, with NAND packages on both PCB faces.
✅ Storage Comparisons:
🚀 Performance and benchmarks
Team Group rates the Cardea Ceramic C440 1TB at 5,000 MB/s sequential read and 4,400 MB/s sequential write with 750K random read/write IOPS. Tom's Hardware and StorageReview confirmed these numbers in synthetic benchmarks, with the drive performing on par with other Phison E16 drives like the Corsair MP600 and Sabrent Rocket 4.0.
Team Group Cardea Ceramic C440 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
- Team Group Cardea Ceramic C440 1 TB (this drive): 5,000 MB/s read, 4,400 MB/s write
The drive employs a dynamic SLC cache measuring roughly one-third of usable capacity (about 333 GB at 1TB). Within the cache, write performance holds at the rated 4,400 MB/s. Once the cache fills, sustained writes drop to approximately 1,500 MB/s in TLC direct mode. For gaming and general desktop use, the cache is generous enough that the drop-off is rarely encountered. The ceramic heat spreader keeps controller temperatures around 80 degrees Celsius under heavy sustained writes — cooler than many bare-drive E16 SSDs that can hit 85 degrees and throttle. Random 4K performance at low queue depths is comparable to other E16 drives and suitable for gaming and OS use.
🖥️ Endurance and warranty
The 1TB model carries a 1,800 TBW endurance rating with a 5-year warranty. This is the same endurance level as other E16 drives using 96-layer TLC and is higher than what most E18-based drives offer at 1TB (typically 700 TBW). At 50 GB of writes per day, the 1,800 TBW rating translates to roughly 99 years. The MTBF is rated at 1.7 million hours. Team Group includes a case sticker and offers a basic SMART Tool utility for health monitoring and benchmarking, though it lacks the cloning and migration tools provided by Samsung and Crucial.
📊 Specs
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Capacity [?] | 1 TB |
| Interface [?] | M.2 4.0 x 4 |
| Controller [?] | Phison PS5016-E16 |
| Memory type [?] | Toshiba 3D TLC |
| DRAM [?] | Hynix DDR4 |
| Read speed (MB/s) [?] | 5000 |
| Write speed (MB/s) [?] | 4400 |
| Read IOPS [?] | 750000 |
| Write IOPS [?] | 750000 |
| Endurance (TBW) [?] | 1800 |
| MTBF (million hours) [?] | 1.7 |
| Warranty (years) [?] | 5 |
Conclusion
The Cardea Ceramic C440 1TB is a solid first-generation PCIe 4.0 drive with an unusual thermal solution and strong endurance. The ceramic heat spreader is both functional and aesthetic, keeping the drive cool while standing out visually in white-themed builds. Performance is on par with other E16 drives, meaning it trails the newer Phison E18 and Samsung Elpis generation in peak speeds and power efficiency. Builders who prioritize the white aesthetic and want a bundled cooling solution will find it a good match. For pure performance per dollar, the Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus or Samsung 980 Pro at 1TB are better alternatives.
+ Pros
- 5,000 MB/s read, 4,400 MB/s write on PCIe 4.0
- Unique white ceramic heat spreader
- 1,800 TBW endurance exceeds most E18 drives
- 750K random read/write IOPS
- 5-year warranty
- Cons
- E16 controller surpassed by newer E18 generation
- Double-sided PCB limits laptop compatibility
- Blue PCB visible beneath white heat spreader
- No hardware encryption
🛒 Buy this or similar SSD Storage:
✨ Video Review
TEAMGROUP T-FORCE CARDEA Ceramic C440 M.2 SSD Review
