Phison E28 Controller: Demos and Scans of the SM2508 Challenger 8 comments
Image: phoisonne
Silicon is currently the efficiency leader among SSD controllers for Fast PCIe 5.0 SSDs and is generally also ahead in performance. But Phison is taking a counter-punctual approach and could offer even more power with the upcoming E28 controller with lower power consumption.
Phison E28 is efficient for computing
This suggests at least the first performance demos are expected to be around 2025. In the MSI Raider GE78 HX gaming notebook with Intel Core i9-14900HX and 32GB DDR5, there is a pre-production model, likely a reference design, of a PCIE 5.0 SSD with Phison E28 (PS5028-E28). Nearly 14,300 MB/s are achieved in the Crystaldiskmark, with Phison even advertising up to 14,500 MB/s. In the case of sequential throughput, the E28 SSD averages only 6.17 watts, while a competitor averages 7.39 watts.
Notebook with Phison E28 SSD demo (Image: The SSD Review)
The fact that Phison compares itself to Silicon Motion’s SM2508 (“competitor S”) is an overly obvious assumption. The computer base also measured around 7.3 watts during sequential reading in the SanDisk WD_BLACK SN8100 test with this controller. According to the demo, the E28 SSD also requires less energy than the opponent when writing sequential writes and transfers without choice with the Crystaldiskmark 8. The bottom line was that the efficiency with similar performance could be even higher than the SM2508, which is now celebrating its breakthrough with many models.
Appropriately for Calpex’s announcement, Phison claims “up to 15% lower power consumption compared to competing 6nm controllers,” and it’s clear what the chip means.
Phison PS5026-E26 Phison PS5028-E28 Silicon Motion SM2508 Motion SM2504xt Phison E31T Interface PCIE 5.0 X4 Protocol NVME 2.0 Fabrication 12nm (TSMC) 6nm (TSMC) Package 576-ball FCCSP, 16 × 16 mm? 576-ball EHS-FCBGA, 15 × 15 mm 252LD Ball FCCSP-C, 11.6 × 6.8 mm 228-ball FCCSP, 8.0 × 12.5 mm CORES CPU 2 × ARM CORTEX R5
3 × Cox processor? 4 × ARM Cortex R8
1 × cortex M0 3 × ARM CORTEX R8 1 × ARM CORTEX R5
2 × Cox Processor NAND-Channel (CE) 8 (32) 4 (16) SSD capacity (max.) 32 TB? ? ? 8 TB Throughput/channel 2400 MT/S 4,200 MT/S 3,600 MT/S DRAM DDR4/LPDDR4 (3200 MT/S) GDR4/LPDDR4 (3200 mt/s) non-dedicated (HMB) ECC 5th Gen LDPC? LDPC 4K + LDPC 7th generation LDPC Security AES 256
Sha 512
RSA 4096
TCG OPAL 2.0? AES 256
Sha 384
TCG OPAL 2.0 AES 256
Sha 512
TCG OPAL 2.0 AES 256
Sha 512
RSA 4096
TCG OPAL 2.01
Pyrite 2.01 seq. Read 14,000 MB/s 14,500 MB/s 14,500 MB/s 11,500 MB/s 10,600 MB/s SEQ. Write * 12,000 MB/s 14,500 MB/s 14,000 MB/s 11,000 MB/s 9,500 MB/s 4K Random Read 1,500,000 IOPS 3,000,000 IOPS 2,500,000 IOPS 1,700,000 IOPS 1,500,000 IOPS 4k Random Write * 2,000,000 IOPS 3,000,000 iop Slc-cache
All information according to Phison (as of January 2024 / May 2025) and SMI (as of August 2024 / May 2025)
Phison had previously provided a smaller view of the performance level. In PC Mark 10, the E28 performed significantly better than the Samsung 9100 Pro, the Micron 4600, and the Acer Predator GM9000 (each with an SM2508 controller). It was certainly no coincidence that this “preview” appeared almost simultaneously with the end of the embargo on testing the WD_BLACK SN8100 with the SM2508 controller.
The E28 entered series production without any problems.
Phison takes another stab at the SM2508 in the calculx press release. Under the motto “First Cut, First Success,” it is emphasized that the E28 is already successfully in production in the first design version. This underscores Phison’s “sound IC design expertise and extensive production experience” and, in turn, indirectly illustrates “the delays and competitive issues with product stability.”
In fact, the SM2508 only reached the market after considerable delays. The chip was originally scheduled to appear in 2023. However, it ultimately fell to the end of 2024 for Asia and the second quarter of 2025 for the rest of the world.
Patience May Pay Off
Enthusiasts who aren’t in a hurry can still wait for the Phison E28 to appear when purchasing a high-end SSD. However, it is unclear when it will be available during the year. This suggests that partners aren’t showing off the E28 for Computex, which will take some time.
The selection of SSDs with the SM2508 controller, on the other hand, is growing rapidly, and many models are already available in this country.
Topics: Computesx 2025 Flash Space NVME PCIE 50 Phiss SSD SSD SSD Syone Syone, The SSD Review
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