Lexar Play 2230 1TB review

Our VerdictWith solid performance, low temps, and an affordable price, the Lexar Play 2230 swoops in and wins my recommendation for the best 1TB SSD to stick in a Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go.

Our Verdict

With solid performance, low temps, and an affordable price, the Lexar Play 2230 swoops in and wins my recommendation for the best 1TB SSD to stick in a Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go.

ForTrue to rated speedsHigh random 4K performanceSignificant SLC cache sizeGood priceLow tempsAgainstOnly 1TB capacity available

ForTrue to rated speedsHigh random 4K performanceSignificant SLC cache sizeGood priceLow temps

AgainstOnly 1TB capacity available

PC Gamer’s got your backOur experienced team dedicates many hours to every review, to really get to the heart of what matters most to you.Find out more about how we evaluate games and hardware.

The Lexar Play is a fantastic little drive for anyone looking to augment their Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go. I’ve been thoroughly impressed with the performance this drives offers in such a small form factor, which is suited to the cramped NVMe slot in thebest handheld gaming PCs.

We’ve previously reviewed two other drives intended for use in a handheld machine: theSabrent Rocket 2230and theSabrent Rocket Q4 2230. The Lexar Play is faster (and cheaper) than both. That’s in terms of rated speed from the manufacturer and the actual speeds I measured in benchmarking. It’s worth noting what slot your device has before pulling the trigger on a 2230 drive like this, however. The Steam Deck and ROG Ally both use that size slot, but the Legion Go requires an adapter to fit a 2230 drive, and others from Ayaneo and OneXPlayer use standard 2280 size SSDs.

Play 2230 specsCapacity:1TBInterface:PCIe Gen4 (NVMe)Size:2230NAND:Micron B47R 176-layer TLCController:Silicon Motion SM2269XTDRAM:NoneSeq read (rated):5200 MB/sSeq write (rated):4700 MB/sEndurance:600 TBWWarranty:five-yearPrice:$85|£85

Play 2230 specs

Capacity:1TBInterface:PCIe Gen4 (NVMe)Size:2230NAND:Micron B47R 176-layer TLCController:Silicon Motion SM2269XTDRAM:NoneSeq read (rated):5200 MB/sSeq write (rated):4700 MB/sEndurance:600 TBWWarranty:five-yearPrice:$85|£85

The Silicon Motion SM2269XT controller and Micron B47R 176-layer TLC NAND within this drive are working wonders for smaller read and write operations.

That’s just the best case scenario, however. To get an idea of the sort of sustained performance, I’ve run IOMeter for 15 minutes with a 1 MiB block size. This test spits out a very useful graph: it shows the initial burst of speed capable through SLC caching—effectively running a portion of the TLC NAND as SLC NAND for a performance boost—and the sustained speed once the SLC cache is maxed out.

Once that SLC cache is spent the drive dips to around 1900 MB/s, for a time. A secondary drop off sees it all the way down to around 930 MB/s. Provided the drive isn’t nearing max capacity this sort of speed should mostly be avoided.

(Image credit: Future)

Lexar Play 2230 1TB SSD on top of a Steam Deck.

Buy if…✅ You’re upgrading your handheld gaming PC’s storage:Quite simply, this is the best option for a 1TB 2230 drive right now.

Buy if…

✅ You’re upgrading your handheld gaming PC’s storage:Quite simply, this is the best option for a 1TB 2230 drive right now.

Don’t buy if…❌ You need a 1TB drive for your desktop PC:This 2230 form factor drive is designed for use in a tiny handheld. You can find better value, better performing drives for desktop machines.

Don’t buy if…

❌ You need a 1TB drive for your desktop PC:This 2230 form factor drive is designed for use in a tiny handheld. You can find better value, better performing drives for desktop machines.

What’s particularly impressive about the Lexar Play 2230 is how it maintained an incredibly steady temperate around the mid-40 degrees Celsius. During the 3DMark Storage benchmark I saw the temperature increase to 53°C, but that’s still a pretty low figure. This is especially important considering this drive’s intended purpose within a handheld gaming PC. Those little devices get hot enough as it is.

With admirable performance in the Final Fantasy: Shadowbringers benchmark, I’m pretty convinced about this drive. It’s rock-solid, fits the bill for handhelds, and it’s pretty affordable to boot. It receives an easy recommendation from me as the 1TB drive to buy for a gaming handheld storage upgrade in 2024.

If you’re curious as to how to swap out the SSD in your Steam Deck, I’ve put together a quick video running through the steps of how to go about this. Check it out over on thePC Gamer TikTok account.

The Verdict90Read our review policyLexar Play 2230 1TBWith solid performance, low temps, and an affordable price, the Lexar Play 2230 swoops in and wins my recommendation for the best 1TB SSD to stick in a Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go.

The Verdict

90Read our review policyLexar Play 2230 1TBWith solid performance, low temps, and an affordable price, the Lexar Play 2230 swoops in and wins my recommendation for the best 1TB SSD to stick in a Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go.

90Read our review policy

Lexar Play 2230 1TBWith solid performance, low temps, and an affordable price, the Lexar Play 2230 swoops in and wins my recommendation for the best 1TB SSD to stick in a Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go.

Lexar Play 2230 1TB

With solid performance, low temps, and an affordable price, the Lexar Play 2230 swoops in and wins my recommendation for the best 1TB SSD to stick in a Steam Deck, ROG Ally, or Legion Go.

TOPICSHardware

TOPICS

Latest

Dead By Daylight: The Junji Ito Collection

Image for Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’

Assassin’s Creed Shadows takes a run at improving parkour, as Ubisoft strives to make the system less ‘like a gas pedal’

Wordle answers

Today’s Wordle answer for Saturday, January 11

See more latest►

Most PopularTurtle Beach Stealth Pivot reviewIkea Matchspel gaming chair reviewASRock DeskMini X600 reviewZotac Zbox Magnus EN374070C reviewMinisforum AtomMan G7 Ti reviewSamsung Galaxy Book4 Ultra reviewNoctua NH-D15 G2 reviewGulikit KK3 Max reviewBallionaire reviewMarvel Rivals reviewBe Quiet! Dark Rock 5 review

Most Popular

Turtle Beach Stealth Pivot review

Ikea Matchspel gaming chair review

ASRock DeskMini X600 review

Zotac Zbox Magnus EN374070C review

Minisforum AtomMan G7 Ti review

Samsung Galaxy Book4 Ultra review

Noctua NH-D15 G2 review

Gulikit KK3 Max review

Ballionaire review

Marvel Rivals review

Be Quiet! Dark Rock 5 review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Our Verdict#

Our Verdict