Latest news with #AorusStealthIce
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Yahoo
Gigabyte's Spring Loaded SSD Cooler Drops Temperatures By 12 Degrees
Gigabyte has introduced a new SSD cooler design for its latest AMD 800-series Aorus Stealth Ice motherboards, called M.2 EZ-Flex. This spring loads the SSD backplate, forcing tighter contact between the SSD's various chips with the SSD heatsink. That leads to better thermal transfer when the drive heats up, prompting up to 12-degree temperature drops during peak load. Storage cooling has rarely been something gamers or PC enthusiasts needed to consider. While classic hard drives could get toasty in jam-packed small form factor systems, SSDs haven't given us much in the way of thermal issues to date. But the latest generations of PCI Express 5 SSDs, which can perform sustained read operations close to 15 GB/s, are starting to generate a lot of heat. When the controller gets too warm, it throttles performance, reducing the drive's capabilities. Hence, companies like Gigabyte are exploring novel ways to improve SSD cooling without resorting to active cooling methods like miniature fans. These are often noisy, have poor performance, and introduce another point of failure in the system. Credit: Gigabyte Instead, M.2 EZ-Flex seems to introduce notable temperature drops in fast SSDs without the need for active cooling. Gigabyte does make it clear that this is in reference testing only and is unlikely to be replicated directly in the real world, but shaved-off degrees are shaved-off degrees. Cooler SSDs tend to run better, so if you're looking for peak SSD performance, having a board that can keep it cool enough is paramount. Although Gigabyte has introduced M.2 EZ-Flex on its flagship X870 AMD motherboards, it's also introducing it to more mainstream options, like its B850 Aorus Stealth motherboards. These are still quite premium designs, aimed at eliminating visible cabling by placing the ports on the back of the board, but they are more affordable. The entire Aorus Stealth Ice lineup includes other premium features too, such as Wi-Fi 7 support, 5G LAN connectivity, tool-free M.2 installation, and a BIOS Wi-Fi driver, as per TechSpot. However, there seems to be no reason that such a spring-loaded design couldn't be added to just about any motherboard. If it proves effective and is likely a relatively cheap change to motherboard design, I wouldn't be surprised to see this in a wider range of Gigabyte boards before long. Especially if we keep talking about it. Want to upgrade your SSD? Here are the best SSD deals for May 2025.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
Gigabyte's pressurized thermal pads lower SSD temperatures in M.2 slots by up to 12C
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Gigabyte has added pressurized thermal pads to M.2 slots for SSDs on its latest Aorus Stealth Ice motherboards (via Uniko's Hardware) to maximize heat dissipation of high-end SSDs. The motherboard maker claims that its pressurized thermal pad may reduce SSD temperature by 12 degrees Celsius, though it admits that the effect depends on multiple factors. Thermals often constrain the performance of high-end SSDs in an M.2 form-factor, as both the controller and memory packages tend to heat up under high loads. Most high-end drives come with a pre-installed heat spreader, and many high-end motherboards come with their thermal solutions for SSDs. However, these thermal solutions are mainly designed to cool down the controller and the upper side of the drives, whereas backplates are tailored for single-sided or double-sided drives. Apparently, Gigabyte has found a flexible solution. Literally. Gigabyte's EZ-Flex solution, introduced on its B850 Aorus Stealth Ice motherboard, addresses these shortcomings by combining pressurized thermal pads with a spring-loaded, flexible backplate. This setup adapts to the thickness of both single- and double-sided M.2 SSDs, maintaining uniform pressure and ensuring better thermal contact on both sides of the drive. As a result, SSD temperatures can be reduced by up to 12°C, helping to prevent thermal throttling and sustain high performance during intensive workloads. Gigabyte's EZ-Flex design not only improves thermal performance and enhances compatibility with both single- and double-sided SSDs, but it also ensures more consistent mechanical pressure for better stability and reduces the risk of installation errors due to its adaptive fit. As a bonus, such a design could reduce SSD bending after prolonged usage. In addition, lowering temperatures helps extend the lifespan of SSD components. It minimizes performance throttling under sustained workloads, making it especially beneficial for users handling large data transfers or demanding applications. It remains to be seen whether EZ-Flex will now be a part of all Gigabyte's motherboards, or will only be featured on premium solutions. Considering that the B850 is not a premium platform, EZ-Flex will likely be a widespread feature on Gigabyte mainboards. After all, just two springs are not expensive, right? Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button.
