Product showcase

Before we can have a peek, we need to peel off the sticker. We'll test with it applied though.  The compact M.2 2280 (2280 = 80 mm) form factor ensures compatibility with next-generation desktop and mobile platforms that support the M.2 PCIe slot and interface. The front-facing side holds the controller, four NAND chips in total and a DRAM chip (cache) on each side of the PCB.

 
With the heatsink removed we see the top of the SSD, it also holds two NAND chips on the top side, two on the back, two DRAM cache chips sitting close to the Phison controller. Typically this is set up in a 1:1 fashion, so it should be a 1024 DRAM cache buffer in total.
  

 
The chip read out as a the Phison Series NVMe controller. The 5012-E12 controller is an 8-channel controller that makes use of the PCI Express 3.0 x4 (and not x2) interface and support both your regular and vertically stacked NAND flash. The controller supports the latest SLC/MLC/TLC/QLC as well as the latest 3D (vertically stacked) NAND (64-layer BiCs). 

 
We have seen this NAND IC before, TABBG55AIV. That would be a single package of 256GB (x4). TA, it is a Toshiba 15nm NAND flash memory, this time written at 3 bits per cell (TLC). You'll find four flash NAND packages.