After checking out the regular 2.5’’ MX500, it is time to also try out the M.2 2280 version but with a smaller, 250GB capacity. The 250GB version is single-sided and comes with rated speeds of 560MB/s (read) and 510MB/s (write). The product is using the same hardware combination as the 2.5’’ version, so we are expecting similar performance after performing the benchmarks. The MX500 M.2 version is shipped inside a small transparent plastic enclosure, with a top sticker that informs the user on the full product name, storage capacity, product code name but also the SN:

The inside contents is quite straight-forward: we do get the SSD, a guide on using the “Acronis True Image for Crucial” software but also mounting screws:

The SSD does feature a black sticker that covers the drive components; this can be easily removed in order to use the heatspreader from our motherboard (if applicable):

On the back side of the drive, we will find another sticker that does reveal the utilized bus, the power rating but also the product serial numbers and supported standards; since the 250GB version is single sided, we won’t find other components here:

After removing the logo cover, we can take a closer look at the internals:

The SM2258 4-channel controller does also feature SLC caching algorithms in order to get sustained performance from the packages; it is covered by a thermal pad in order to have a better heat dissipation:

The included DRAM chip is also manufactured by Micron and holds the D9PTK code name; we are talking about a 256MB of buffer on the 250GB MX500 version:

The board does also come with four 8HA2D NW912 3D TLC NAND packages: