What is the difference between PCIe Gen 3 and PCIe Gen 4?

PCIe has been the standard interface for connecting high-speed peripheral components to computer motherboards for the past decade. The fourth generation of this interface, PCIe 4.0 standard, was announced in 2017. However, we did not see SSDs or graphics cards using the new tech until Computex 2019. Today, PCIe 4.0 has attracted an upsurge of excitement for this technological innovation whether it be SSDs, GPUs, motherboards or high-powered expansion cards. But what is PCIe Gen 4? We’ll break down the basics.

What is PCIe Gen 4?

PCIe Gen 4 is the fourth and latest generation of the PCI Express specification. The successor to PCIe Gen 3, PCIe Gen 4 is the fastest PCIe generation available on the market today.

What does PCIe Gen 4 do?

PCIe Gen 4 allows systems to connect to high-performance PCIe devices such as GPUs and PCIe NVMe SSDs.

Why is PCIe Gen 4 necessary?

Advancement in PCIe technology is necessary to accommodate the growing need for a high-speed data bus that enables increasingly demanding user applications and workloads.

What is a PCIe NVMe SSD?

PCIe NVMe SSDs are solid state drives that use the high-speed PCIe bus for data transfer as well as the NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory Express) protocol to communicate with the host system. As these drives operate on the PCIe bus, they offer vastly improved bandwidth and quicker response times than SATA SSDs.

Does PCIe Gen 4 make PCIe NVMe SSDs faster?

PCIe Gen 3 was unable to accommodate the full bandwidth of high-speed PCIe NVMe SSDs. This was effectively creating a bottleneck in SSD performance. PCIe Gen 4 solves this performance bottleneck, allowing PCIe NVMe SSDs to read and write data at much faster speeds.

What form factors are used by PCIe NVMe SSDs?

PCIe NVMe SSDs can use various form factors such as add-in card (AIC), M.2, and U.2. Client PCIe NVMe SSDs typically only use the M.2 2280 form factor because its slim design allows it to easily fit into desktop and notebook PCs. Enterprise-class PCIe NVMe SSDs will use all three form factors, with U.2 being the most popular because of its compatibility with server backplanes.

Conclusion

PCIe 4.0 platforms allow for more flexibility and available bandwidth. SSDs that utilize a PCIe 4.0 interface are ideal for data-intensive workloads. They load applications and games faster while also optimizing boot load up time. PCIe 4.0 also brings power-saving enhancements, meaning your device runs cooler while consuming less power. With the emergence of more products adopting PCIe 4.0, the decision between PCIe 3.0 and 4.0 is a no-brainer. PCIe 4.0 will be an industry standard before you know it.

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