TEST: Western Digital WD Red SA500 1TB SATA SSD

Technical data
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Manufacturer	Western Digital
Model number	WDS100T1R0A
Storage capacity	1024 GB (932 GiB)
pSLC-Cache	>400 GB approx.
Read speed	560 MB/s
Write speed	530 MB/s
Interface	SATA 6 Gbps
Connection	2.5"
Memory module (NAND)	TLC
TBW (Total Bytes Written)	600 Terabyte
Controller	Silicon Motion SM2259H
Price	ca. 104 USD (= 0,10 $ / GB)
Paid link	Buy on Amazon

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Compared to the top performer*

Read speed

83 %

Write speed

100 %

*) Test result evaluated according to AS SSD Score within the same size.

AS SSD Benchmark

Standard performance test

The standard test was performed using a 1 GB file. A total score of 796 points was achieved.

AS SSD	Read:	Write:
Seq in megabytes per second	423,94 MB/s	455,18 MB/s
4K in megabytes per second	37,13 MB/s	85,40 MB/s
4K-64Thrd in megabytes per second	229,64 MB/s	181,67 MB/s
Access time in milliseconds	0,040 ms	0,097 ms
Score	309	313
Total score	796

Copy Performance Test

A common everyday situation is simulated here. Three test folders are created:

• ISO (folder with two large files)
• Program (folder with many small files)
• Game (folder with small and large files)

The three folders are copied using the Windows Copy command (the cache remains enabled). The practical test of July 22, 2025 shows the performance for simultaneous write and read operations. The lower the duration, the better the performance.

AS SSD Copy-Benchmark	Transfer rate:	Duration:
ISO two large files	928,11 MB/s	1,16 s
Program many small files	1201,17 MB/s	1,17 s
Game small and large files	1456,65 MB/s	0,95 s

Compression Performance Test

This measures the write and read speed of the Western Digital SATA SSD, depending on the compressibility of the data (according to the manufacturer, these should be 560 MB/s and 530 MB/s respectively ).

CrystalDiskMark Benchmark

Here, two sequential and two random performance tests are performed, similar to the ones performed on the AS SSD.

CDM	Read [MB/s]	Write [MB/s]
SEQ1M Q8T1	454,86	483,63
SEQ1M Q1T1	531,95	477,35
RND4K Q32T16	232,49	194,02
RND4K Q1T1	39,31	91,14

HD Tune Pro Endurance test

This is a long term test to make full use of the memory capacity. You can see when a cache is full and the writing performance decreases. A test file of 400 GB was written to the medium. The exact cache size could not be determined, because the test file did not exhaust the cache (brought it to the limit). At least the test file could be read with an average write speed of 525 MB/s and written with 469 MB/s.

ATTO Disk Benchmark

Here, a 256 MB file is written several times to the Western Digital SATA SSD. The I/O block size varies (from 512 bytes to 64 megabytes). The larger the blocks, the faster they were written and read.

SSD-Z Benchmark

Similar to HD Tune, a 500 MB file is written to the Western Digital SATA SSD here. The transfer data is displayed. The more constant the line, the better.

The benchmark test was performed on July 22, 2025.
Information about the test system can be found at the bottom of the home page.
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