Seagate · Updated July 2026
Seagate FireCuda 540: price, specs & release date
The Seagate FireCuda 540 costs $189.99, #3 cheapest of 9 internal ssds (median $239.99). It earns a Bronze Deskmark — 55/100 pay-blind standing, #6 of 10 in class.
Verified Jul 11, 2026 · figures linked to their source in the table below
- Best for High sequential throughput / impressive transfer rates; Class-leading sustained and full-drive write performance.
- Skip if Poor power efficiency and high heat output is a dealbreaker.
Seagate FireCuda 540, released 2023. Every price and spec below is linked to its source and dated — no guesses.
Source: seagate.com verified ✓ corroborated verify in ledger
Is the Seagate FireCuda 540 a good buy?
At $190, the Seagate FireCuda 540 is #3 cheapest of the 9 internal ssds we track, where the median is $239.99. On the spec sheet, its endurance tbw of 1000 is the highest of the 9, its seq read of 10000 Mbps is below the median of the 10, and its seq write of 10000 Mbps is below the median of the 10.
Evidence of Record
Our data- Independent labsmeasured it
- 2
- Physical metricsrecorded
- 4
- Outlets on record2 tested · 1 mention-only
- 3
Two independent labs measured this product across 4 physical metrics — speed, slc cache size, power and real-life performance vs. With a second lab on record, each figure comes from more than one independent hands-on source — a measure of how much evidence exists, not a rating of the product.
Review consensus · sourced & dated
What reviewers say about the Seagate FireCuda 540
Three whitelisted testers hands-on benchmarked the 2 TB FireCuda 540: Tom's Hardware and StorageReview at its 2023 launch, and TechPowerUp in a 2025 re-review. Consensus: a fast PCIe 5.0 drive with high sequential throughput, class-leading sustained/full-drive write speeds, and a standout support package (high TBW endurance plus 3-year data recovery), offset by poor power efficiency, high heat, and a hard requirement for a heatsink to avoid throttling. Both later-lens findings and StorageReview's enterprise tests show it only marginally leads top Gen 4 drives in real use and is weak in some write workloads.
Tested by Tom's Hardware, StorageReview, TechPowerUp
Consistently praised
- High sequential throughput / impressive transfer rates · 3 sources
- Class-leading sustained and full-drive write performance · 2 sources
- Strong warranty, high TBW endurance and 3-year data recovery service · 2 sources
Commonly flagged
- Poor power efficiency and high heat output · 2 sources
- Requires cooling; throttles without a heatsink · 2 sources
- Does not fully leverage Gen 5 - only marginally faster than top Gen 4 drives in real use, and weak in some write tests · 2 sources
- High price / price premium
Where reviewers disagree Write-performance framing diverges by test method and era. TechPowerUp rates sustained/full-drive writes a standout strength (full 2 TB fill at 3.1 GB/s, 'better than almost all SSDs'), and StorageReview's cache-bound BlackMagic run hit 9.6 GB/s write - yet StorageReview's enterprise VDBench workload placed the same drive's 64K sequential write (1.28 GB/s) and 4K random write (251K IOPS) near the bottom of its leaderboard. Value framing also splits: Tom's Hardware (2023, $319 launch) flagged the price as high, whereas StorageReview called it 'affordable' and TechPowerUp's 2025 re-review ($230) judged pricing 'in the right range' but noted newer Gen 5 controllers now outpace it, versus Tom's 2023 verdict that it was 'one of the fastest drives around.'
The sources (3)
It's also one of the fastest drives around.
4K random read (VDBench): 989K IOPS at 128.6us · 4K random write (VDBench): 251K IOPS at 98.7us · 64K sequential read (VDBench): 6.93 GB/s at 287.8us · 64K sequential write (VDBench): 1.28 GB/s at 773.6us · BlackMagic Disk Speed Test: 9.6 GB/s write, 6.74 GB/s read
the Blackmagic Disk Speed Test highlighted impressive write speeds of 9.6GB/s
it performed less favorably in 4K random writes and sequential writes
the FireCuda 540 demonstrated mixed results at times.
Full 2 TB drive fill write speed: 3.1 GB/s · SLC cache size: 205 GB · Peak controller power draw: 11 W · Idle power draw: 2 W · Real-life performance vs WD SN8100 (fastest Gen 5): 3% slower
Filling the whole 2 TB capacity completed at 3.1 GB/s, which is a highly impressive result that is better than almost all SSDs on the market.
Without a heatsink, it will throttle very quickly, even with lighter workloads.
On average, the drive is able to match the fastest Gen 4 disks, but falls behind the WD SN8100, the fastest Gen 5 SSD, by 3%
Specifications
| Price (US) | $189.99 US retail $189.99 for the 1TB variant (model ZP1000GM3A004), cited as the Amazon price at time of review in the Tom's Hardware review (published 7 July 2023). The review states Seagate's MSRP is lower but does not give the figure. Verbatim "$189.99". |
|---|---|
| Brand | Seagate |
| Released | 2023 |
| Capacity options (TB) | 1, 2 |
| Form factor | M.2 2280 |
| Interface | PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe |
| Seq read (Mbps) | 10000 |
| Seq write (Mbps) | 10000 |
| Random read kiops | — |
| Random write kiops | — |
| Nand type | TLC |
| Has dram cache | Yes |
| Endurance tbw | 1000 |
| Warranty years | 5 |
Source: seagate.com (verified 2026-07-11) · corroborated by tomshardware.com. Fetched the manufacturer FireCuda 540 datasheet (Seagate DS2120, file "firecuda-540-ssd-DS2120-2-2304-en_US.pdf", HTTP 200), confirming this is the exact FireCuda 540 NVMe PCIe Gen5 SSD; the datasheet PDF is image-based, so verbatim spec and price text was read from the corroborating Tom's Hardware review (published 7 July 2023). That review's specification table confirms the exact model via part numbers ZP1000GM3A004 (1TB) and ZP2000GM3A004 (2TB): M.2 2280, PCIe 5.0 x4, 232-layer Micron TLC with LPDDR4 DRAM, up to 10,000/10,000 MB/s sequential (2TB), 1000 TBW (1TB), a 5-year limited warranty, and a $189.99 Amazon price for the 1TB at review time (MSRP stated lower). Random IOPS are quoted only in millions ("1.49M/1.50M", 2TB), so the KIOPS fields were left null to avoid a non-verbatim conversion; independent retailer listings (Best Buy and Newegg, ZP1000GM3A004) corroborate the model and its 3D TLC NAND.
Is the Seagate FireCuda 540 worth it vs cheaper internal ssds?
Seagate FireCuda 540 against its closest cheaper and pricier internal ssds on the specs that matter — every value sourced. See all 9 ranked →
| Product | Price | Capacity options (TB) | Form factor | Interface | Seq read (Mbps) | Seq write (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seagate FireCuda 540 this | $189.99 | 1, 2 | M.2 2280 | PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe | 10000 | 10000 |
| WD_Black SN8100 | $179.99 | 1, 2, 4, 8 | M.2 2280 | PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe | 14900 | 14000 |
| SK Hynix Platinum P41 | $209.99 | 0.5, 1, 2 | M.2 2280 | PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe | 7000 | 6500 |
Frequently asked questions
What do reviewers say about the Seagate FireCuda 540?
Three whitelisted testers hands-on benchmarked the 2 TB FireCuda 540: Tom's Hardware and StorageReview at its 2023 launch, and TechPowerUp in a 2025 re-review. Consensus: a fast PCIe 5.0 drive with high sequential throughput, class-leading sustained/full-drive write speeds, and a standout support package (high TBW endurance plus 3-year data recovery), offset by poor power efficiency, high heat, and a hard requirement for a heatsink to avoid throttling. Both later-lens findings and StorageReview's enterprise tests show it only marginally leads top Gen 4 drives in real use and is weak in some write workloads. Praised: High sequential throughput / impressive transfer rates; Class-leading sustained and full-drive write performance; Strong warranty, high TBW endurance and 3-year data recovery service. Flagged: Poor power efficiency and high heat output; Requires cooling; throttles without a heatsink; Does not fully leverage Gen 5 - only marginally faster than top Gen 4 drives in real use, and weak in some write tests; High price / price premium. (From 3 tester reviews, 3 lab-tested.)
How much does the Seagate FireCuda 540 cost?
The Seagate FireCuda 540 has a US price of $189.99 (US retail $189.99 for the 1TB variant (model ZP1000GM3A004), cited as the Amazon price at time of review in the Tom's Hardware review (published 7 July 2023). The review states Seagate's MSRP is lower but does not give the figure. Verbatim "$189.99".), as of 2026-07-11.
How does the Seagate FireCuda 540 compare on price?
At $190, the Seagate FireCuda 540 is #3 cheapest of the 9 internal ssds we track, where the median is $239.99.
When was the Seagate FireCuda 540 released?
The Seagate FireCuda 540 was released 2023.
What are the Seagate FireCuda 540's key specs?
Seagate FireCuda 540 (Seagate): capacityOptionsTb 1, 2, formFactor M.2 2280, interface PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe, seqReadMbps 10000, seqWriteMbps 10000. Full sourced spec sheet verified 2026-07-11.
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