The Phison E12 Reference Design Preview: A Next-Gen NVMe SSD Controller

Mixed Random Performance

Our test of mixed random reads and writes covers mixes varying from pure reads to pure writes at 10% increments. Each mix is tested for up to 1 minute or 32GB of data transferred. The test is conducted with a queue depth of 4, and is limited to a 64GB span of the drive. In between each mix, the drive is given idle time of up to one minute so that the overall duty cycle is 50%.

The mixed random I/O performance of the Phison E12 is unimpressive for its intended market segment: The HP EX920 and WD Black are 20% faster overall and the Samsung 970 EVO is 40% faster. The E12 delivers only a modest improvement over the previous-generation E7 controller.

Power Efficiency in MB/s/W	Average Power in W

The power efficiency of the Phison E12 during the mixed random I/O test is better than most TLC SSDs, but it is slightly beat out by the low-power Toshiba XG5 and top-performing Samsung 970 EVO, and they're all overshadowed by the extremely efficient WD Black.

Phison E12 960GBSamsung 960 PRO 2TBSamsung 960 PRO 512GBKingston A1000 960GBHP EX920 1TBSamsung 970 EVO 1TBPatriot Hellfire 480GBPlextor M9PeGN 1TBOCZ RD400 1TBWD Black 1TB (3D NAND)Toshiba XG5 1TBIntel Optane SSD 900P 280GBCrucial MX500 1TB

The Phison E12 gains performance slowly as the test progresses from pure reads toward write-heavy workloads. At the very end of the test the high random write speed of the Phison E12 helps bring the average up, but not enough to overcome the drives that show much more pronounced performance growth throughout the test.

Mixed Sequential Performance

Our test of mixed sequential reads and writes differs from the mixed random I/O test by performing 128kB sequential accesses rather than 4kB accesses at random locations, and the sequential test is conducted at queue depth 1. The range of mixes tested is the same, and the timing and limits on data transfers are also the same as above.

The mixed sequential I/O performance of the Phison E12 is very good, beating all TLC drives except the Samsung 970 EVO, which is only about 7% faster overall.

Power Efficiency in MB/s/W	Average Power in W

The power efficiency of the Phison E12 on the mixed sequential test is again very good, but still can't match the WD Black. Toshiba/SanDisk BiCS3 3D TLC seems to be very efficient for sequential I/O, but Phison's controller is a bit more power-hungry than Western Digital's in-house controller.

Phison E12 960GBSamsung 960 PRO 2TBSamsung 960 PRO 512GBKingston A1000 960GBHP EX920 1TBSamsung 970 EVO 1TBPatriot Hellfire 480GBPlextor M9PeGN 1TBOCZ RD400 1TBWD Black 1TB (3D NAND)Toshiba XG5 1TBIntel Optane SSD 900P 280GBCrucial MX500 1TB

The Phison E12 starts the test with a middling sequential read speed, but it barely loses any performance when writes are added to the mix and instead turns around to deliver modest performance growth, peaking in the second half of the test when most drives are at their worst. Near the end, the write volume is high enough that the E12's slow garbage collection begins to hurt performance.