I'm looking to buy a Crucial 710 SSD and I've noticed that the version with a heatsink is priced lower than the one without it on this website. It seems odd because I'd expect the heatsink version to cost more. Is there a reason for this price difference? I want to make sure there aren't any hidden issues since they appear to be the same drive, just one has an attachment.
5 Answers
Heatsink-equipped drives might have compatibility issues that the bare ones don’t. For example, I built a PC with a Corsair MP600 that had a heatsink, and I ran into some GPU clearance problems because of the height.
It’s not uncommon to see cheaper prices on the heatsink models, but it's definitely puzzling. Both drives should function the same. Maybe there was a pricing error when they listed the products.
The heatsink itself is pretty cheap, probably just a dollar or so. Generally, these price differences have more to do with retailer stock levels than the actual production costs of the SSDs.
There’s just more demand for SSDs without heatsinks, especially in consoles like the PS5 or Xbox, as well as for laptops.
A lot of people prefer the SSDs without heatsinks, so the model without it usually sells more. For instance, many motherboards come with their own heatsinks, so it wouldn't make sense to buy another one. If you're planning to use it in a console, you'd likely need to remove the heatsink too.
So, does that mean I get a free spare heatsink if I don’t use it?
Right? The heatsink looks removable too, so it’s a bit strange. I guess maybe someone just messed up the listing.