The Patriot Viper VP4300 (VP4300-1TBM28H) is a surprisingly interesting representative of the gaming series of drives from the well-known manufacturer Patriot (not to be confused with missile launchers). The key features of the model are a maximum read speed of up to 7400 MB/s and a write speed of 6800 MB/s. However, this is not the only interesting feature.
The box
But let’s talk about everything in turn. The user will receive the product in a fairly compact cardboard box with a design that perfectly combines a considerable amount of various technical information, product illustrations, and information about the manufacturer. Among other things, the packaging design features a hinged lid that “opens access” to the blister window.
Of course, the box from a product is something that is usually sent for recycling immediately (or almost immediately) after unpacking the product. But even if the packaging of the VP4300-1TBM28H suffers a similar fate, I recommend that you spend some time studying the data on the walls beforehand, because in total, there are many answers to various technical questions. We will do all this further. Stay tuned!
Information from the walls of the box
The key features of the model were put on the front wall, including notes on the maximum possible speeds, volume, product illustrations (one of which, by the way, indicates that the user will have to mount the cooling system himself), and other equally interesting “things.”
Behind it is a product passport, and in nine languages at once. I’m sure there is no need to explain what this means. Right next to it are the addresses of the manufacturer’s official pages on various social networks and You Tube, as well as the official PATRIOT website.
Among the other interesting things, I advise you to pay attention to the sticker on one of the side faces. See the illustrations below to find out what it is.
The fastening of the lid to the box is magnetic and reliable, so there will be no questions in this regard. Among the interesting things here is a rather informative information about Viper VP4300, product labeling, notes on maximum speeds and the “window” mentioned earlier. Let’s look at the illustrations below to see how everything is organized and what advantages the user gets from such a design.
The scope of delivery
The package was designed in an interesting way. In addition to the drive itself, the user is offered a graphene heat shield and a massive aluminum shield. The latter, by the way, has a rather cool and at the same time aggressive design. Why is everything separate, and not, say, as in the previously reviewed Patriot P400 Lite 1TB? I have an explanation for this question, but I’ll leave it for a separate section of the review below.
Another interesting thing in the box is a short user manual. If you have any questions about how to “assemble” all of these components into a single structure, you can get answers here.
Technical characteristics of the PATRIOT Viper VP4300
- Certificates – CE/FCC/RoHS;
- The warranty is 5 years;
- Weight: 25 g;
- The dimensions are 80x22x8 mm;
- Official speeds: write – 6800 MB/s, read – 7400 MB/s.
The board
To begin with, the product is soldered on a small brown textolite board. The dimensions of the latter are standard for its form factor – see the table of characteristics above. I am sure that it is unnecessary to speak for the fact that a carrier with such dimensions will “find” itself in any PC, laptop or ultrabook – it is a fact with which you cannot argue. Yes, you can use the module even without “coolers” if, for example, the “landing” dimensions of an ultrabook do not allow such an installation. If the aforementioned “add-on” is in place, you should not neglect it.
But let’s get back to the module itself. It is easy to see that the component base is soldered on both sides. In addition, the manufacturer has put a large sticker with various technical data on one of the sides. I advise you to pay attention to it for several reasons. The first is that this is a warranty seal, and damaging it will automatically have certain consequences. Second, there is a lot of interesting data here: labeling, volume, product name, etc. Thus, the time spent on studying it is unlikely to be wasted.
Component base
Regarding the component base, the first thing worth mentioning is the InnoGrit IG5236 controller. This solution belongs to the category of top-of-the-line solutions.
Next is the cache memory. We are talking about a chip labeled K4A4G16, which, by the way, can be found in Samsung solutions.
And finally, 4 3FC00577 modules. It’s easy to see – the soldering is done on both sides of the board.
Soldering quality
As for the quality of the soldering, I have no complaints in this regard. The work was done accurately, the component base is of high quality, and I cannot personally say that the manufacturer saved money at least at one of the stages. This, by the way, is also indicated by the 60-month manufacturer’s warranty, which, in my opinion, is significant.
Features of radiators
PATRIOT Viper VP4300 (VP4300-1TBM28H) has two radiators. As we remember, both of them are not directly attached to the SSD out of the box. Nevertheless, all the “fasteners” are taken into account, and there is also a corresponding manual to help with the installation, so the procedure should be not only quite simple but also interesting in its own way. But more on that later.
Installation of the radiator
In my opinion, everything is simple. All the necessary “fasteners” are already “out of the box” on the radiators, so you just need to remove the protective film and perform the appropriate “maneuver”.
What else is there to remember? Why didn’t the manufacturer place the coolers by default? It’s simple: to allow the user, figuratively speaking, to install the media even on frankly compact “landing pads”. In addition, it is possible that some of the “platforms” may already have coolers, and therefore the additional, by the way, rather massive aluminum plate “on board” the SSD will no longer be an advantage, but rather a nuance that needs to be addressed.
So, in my opinion, we have a reasonable and quite logical solution.
First connection in the format of external media – initialization and file system
The first time you connect an external storage device, you will need to initialize it. The illustrations below show you how to do it the easiest way.
Стосовно файлової системи, після завершення процедури вище, ви тримаєте носій з NTFS. Доступно переформатування під exFAT.
Test bench
For testing PATRIOT Viper VP4300 (VP4300-1TBM28H) I used a PC with the following component base:
- motherboard – ASUS PRIME B660-PLUS D4 (90MB18X0-M1EAY0);
- processor – Intel Core i5-12400F 2.5GHz/18MB (BX8071512400F) s1700 BOX;
- RAM – Goodram IRDM X 2×8 GB;
- HDD – Western Digital Blue 1TB;
- video card – MSI GeForce GTX 960;
- Deepcool DQ750ST power supply.
The software platform is Windows 10 Home Edition.
Test results obtained
Next, let’s get acquainted with the results of testing the media. As you can see, they are close to those declared by the manufacturer.
Expert opinion
Having worked with the drive in a variety of test configurations (in addition to the desktop, there were also ultrabooks and one gaming laptop), I want to draw your attention to the fact that you shouldn’t neglect coolers at all, especially since the aforementioned graphene screen won’t make the thickness of the media critically larger. On the other hand, the aluminum shell looks great in the conditions created by the “seat” on gaming laptops or desktop PCs.
In the end, we have a first-class gaming SSD for users who value speed. It is the price, the aforementioned speeds, and the interesting component base that make this model a good deal, especially in the eyes of a budget-conscious user who is demanding of SSD speeds.
The approximate price of the Patriot Viper VP4300 1TB SSD is 3900 UAH (∼105 USD).