Fake Samsung 990 PRO SSD with USB 2.0 speeds
The Redditor bought what was advertised as a 2TB Samsung 990 PRO from a known local distributor contact. The drive looked normal after installation. Windows detected the SSD as a Samsung 990 PRO 2TB. CrystalDiskInfo also looked convincing. It reported NVMe, firmware 0B2QJXD7, and a “Good” health status. The first odd detail was the link speed, which showed PCIe 3.0 x4 instead of PCIe 4.0.
However, Redditor was surprised after seeing file transfers that were extremely slow. Large copies dropped to about 20 MB/s reads and 9 to 10 MB/s writes. CrystalDiskMark confirmed similar numbers, which are nowhere near expected NVMe performance.
Looked normal… until I tried transferring large files. Speeds tanked to ~20 MB/s read and ~9–10 MB/s write. Like, what? Ran CrystalDiskMark to confirm – same disaster: 22 MB/s sequential read, 10 MB/s write. That’s slower than most USB 2.0 sticks, not even close to PCIe 3.0 levels (should be ~3,000+ MB/s) or full PCIe 4.0 (~7,000+ MB/s).
— xox-lover
The Redditor tried basic troubleshooting. That included drivers, BIOS checks, and reseating the drive. Nothing changed. The decisive test was Samsung Magician, which flagged the SSD as counterfeit. The seller agreed to work on a refund or replacement, since the buyer had a prior relationship.
Source: Reddit
Redditor shares the story as a lesson to others, if the price is too low, it is probably not a real or new product. Avoid high-end SSD deals that sit far below the normal local price, even from a seemingly trusted channel. Run the vendor tool early, benchmark the drive, and buy from authorized sources when possible.
Source:
