What’s the difference between the FireCuda 520 and 530?

Seagate recently released the FireCuda 530. So, how does the new M.2 solid state drive compare to the older FireCuda 520?

You can find out in this comparison guide between these two Seagate SSDs.

Quick Summary

For the most part, the Seagate FireCuda 530 is quite a bit faster than the Seagate FireCuda 520 at maximum sequential reading, maximum sequential writing, maximum random reading and maximum random writing.

The only exception is that the 500GB FireCuda 520 is faster than the 500GB FireCuda 520 at random reads.

Unlike the FireCuda 520, the FireCuda 530 also comes with 3 years’ worth of Rescue Data Recovery Services.

On the other hand, the Seagate FireCuda 520 has better endurance and is more power efficient.

FireCuda 520 vs. FireCuda 530 Comparison Chart

You can take a look at Seeking Tech’s comparison table for the FireCuda 520 and FireCuda 530 below.

Capacity Options

The FireCuda 530 is the only one of the two to offer a 4TB capacity option.

You can find the list of available capacities for these products below:

FireCuda 520:

• 500GB
• 1TB
• 2TB

FireCuda 530:

• 500GB
• 1TB
• 2TB
• 4TB

Model Numbers

You can also find the model number associated with each capacity below:

FireCuda 520:

• 500GB: ZP500GM30002
• 1TB: ZP1000GM30002
• 2TB: ZP2000GM30002

FireCuda 530:

• 500GB: ZP500GM30013
• 1TB: ZP1000GM30013
• 2TB: ZP2000GM30013
• 4TB: ZP4000GM30013

Form Factor

The FireCuda 520 and FireCuda 530 both use the same M.2 2280-D2 form factor.

Dimensions

You can find the measurements, shown as Length x Width x Depth, below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 3.58 mm
• 1TB FireCuda 520: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 3.58 mm
• 2TB FireCuda 520: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 3.58 mm

• 500GB FireCuda 530: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 2.23 mm
• 1TB FireCuda 530: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 2.23 mm
• 2TB FireCuda 530: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 3.58 mm
• 4TB FireCuda 530: 80.15 mm x 22.15 mm x 3.58 mm

Weight

Furthermore, you can check out the weight for each capacity of both products below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: 8.0 grams
• 1TB FireCuda 520: 8.5 grams
• 2TB FireCuda 520: 8.7 grams

• 500GB FireCuda 530: 7.7 grams
• 1TB FireCuda 530: 8.1 grams
• 2TB FireCuda 530: 10.0 grams
• 4TB FireCuda 530: 10.6 grams

Interface

For the interface, the FireCuda 520 uses PCIe Gen4 ×4, NVMe 1.3 while the FireCuda 530 uses the PCIe Gen4 ×4, NVMe 1.4.

NAND

The two internal SSDs in this versus guide are equipped with 3D TLC.

Maximum Sequential Read Speed

When you compare the same capacity options, the 500GB FireCuda 530 is 2000 MB per second faster, or 40% faster, than the 500GB FireCuda 530 at maximum sequential reading.

The 1TB and 2TB versions of the FireCuda 530 is 2300 MB per second faster, or 46% faster, than the 1TB and 2 TB versions of FireCuda 520.

You can check out the maximum read speeds below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: Up to 5000 MB per second
• 1TB FireCuda 520: Up to 5000 MB per second
• 2TB FireCuda 520: Up to 5000 MB per second

• 500GB FireCuda 530: Up to 7000 MB per second
• 1TB FireCuda 530: Up to 7300 MB per second
• 2TB FireCuda 530: Up to 7300 MB per second
• 4TB FireCuda 530: Up to 7300 MB per second

Maximum Sequential Write Speed

The 500GB FireCuda 530 is 500 MB per second faster, or 20% faster, than the 500GB FireCuda 530 at maximum sequential writing.

The 1TB FireCuda 530 is 1600 MB per second faster, or 36.36% faster, than the 1TB FireCuda 520.

The 2TB FireCuda 530 is 2500 MB per second faster, or 56.82% faster, than the 2TB FireCuda 520.

You can find the maximum sequential write speeds below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: Up to 2500 MB per second
• 1TB FireCuda 520: Up to 4400 MB per second
• 2TB FireCuda 520: Up to 4400 MB per second

• 500GB FireCuda 530: Up to 3000 MB per second
• 1TB FireCuda 530: Up to 6000 MB per second
• 2TB FireCuda 530: Up to 6900 MB per second
• 4TB FireCuda 530: Up to 6900 MB per second

Maximum Random Read Speed

For maximum random reading, the 500GB FireCuda 520 is actually 30K IOPS faster, or 7.5% faster, than the 500GB FireCuda 520.

On the other hand, the 1TB FireCuda 530 is 40K IOPS faster, or 5.26% faster, than the 1TB FireCuda 520.

The 2TB FireCuda 530 is also 250K IOPS faster, or 33.33% faster, than the 2TB FireCuda 520.

You can check out the maximum random read speeds below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: Up to 430K IOPS
• 1TB FireCuda 520: Up to 760K IOPS
• 2TB FireCuda 520: Up to 750K IOPS

• 500GB FireCuda 530: Up to 400K IOPS
• 1TB FireCuda 530: Up to 800K IOPS
• 2TB FireCuda 530: Up to 1000K IOPS
• 4TB FireCuda 530: Up to 1000K IOPS

Maximum Random Write Speed

When it comes to maximum random writing, the 500GB FireCuda 530 is 70K IOPS faster, or 11.11% faster, than the 500GB FireCuda 520.

The 1TB and 2TB capacities of the FireCuda 530 is 300K IOPS faster, or 42.86% faster, than the 1TB and 2TB capacities of FireCuda 520.

You can check out the maximum random write speeds below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: Up to 630K IOPS
• 1TB FireCuda 520: Up to 700K IOPS
• 2TB FireCuda 520: Up to 700K IOPS

• 500GB FireCuda 530: Up to 700K IOPS
• 1TB FireCuda 530: Up to 1000K IOPS
• 2TB FireCuda 530: Up to 1000K IOPS
• 4TB FireCuda 530: Up to 1000K IOPS

Endurance

The FireCuda 520 has better endurance than the FireCuda 530.

You can find the TBW ratings below:

• 500GB FireCuda 520: 850 TBW
• 1TB FireCuda 520: 1800 TBW
• 2TB FireCuda 520: 3600 TBW

• 500GB FireCuda 530: 640 TBW
• 1TB FireCuda 530: 1275 TBW
• 2TB FireCuda 530: 2550 TBW
• 4TB FireCuda 530: 5100 TBW

Reliability

The two Seagate solid state drives in this comparison have the same Mean Time Between Failures rating at 1,800,000 hours.

General Features

The two SSDs also share the following general features:

• Halogen Free
• RoHS Compliance
• S.M.A.R.T.
• TRIM

Power Consumption Specifications

In general, the FireCuda 520 is more power efficient than the FireCuda 530.

You can find the power consumption specs below:

Average Active Power

• 500GB FireCuda 520: 4.6 W
• 1TB FireCuda 520: 5.6 W
• 2TB FireCuda 520: 6.0 W

• 500GB FireCuda 530: 5.8 W
• 1TB FireCuda 530: 6.5 W
• 2TB FireCuda 530: 8.0 W
• 4TB FireCuda 530: 8.4 W

Average Idle Power (PS3)

• 500GB FireCuda 520: 12 mW
• 1TB FireCuda 520: 15 mW
• 2TB FireCuda 520: 25 mW

• 500GB FireCuda 530: 14 mW
• 1TB FireCuda 530: 16 mW
• 2TB FireCuda 530: 24 mW
• 4TB FireCuda 530: 25 mW

Low Power L1.2 Mode

• 500GB FireCuda 520: 2 mW
• 1TB FireCuda 520: 2 mW
• 2TB FireCuda 520: 2 mW

• 500GB FireCuda 530: Less than 5 mW
• 1TB FireCuda 530: Less than 5 mW
• 2TB FireCuda 530: Less than 5 mW
• 4TB FireCuda 530: Less than 5 mW

Operating Temperature

The FireCuda 520 and FireCuda 530 have the same operating temperature range of 0°C to 70°C.

Storage Temperature

The two Seagate internal drives also have the same storage temperature range of -40°C to 85°C.

Non-Operating Shock Resistance

The shock resistance, during non-operation, is identical at 1500G, 0.5ms.

Rescue Data Recovery Services

The Seagate FireCuda 530 is the only one of these products to offer Rescue Data Recovery Services as it comes with 3 years of coverage.

Warranty

The Seagate FireCuda 520 Solid State Drive and Seagate FireCuda 530 Solid State Drive each comes with a 5-year limited warranty.

Resources:

• https://www.seagate.com/www-content/datasheets/pdfs/firecuda-520-ssd-DS2024-1-1909US-en_US.pdf
• https://www.seagate.com/files/www-content/datasheets/pdfs/firecuda-530-ssd-DS2059-1-2106US-en_US.pdf