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As a SATA-based internal solid-state drive, the TeamGroup Vulcan Z QLC (starts at $109.99 for 2TB; $199.99 for 4TB as tested) is much faster than a spinning hard drive, but slower than most modern M.2 SSDs. This handsome 2.5-inch slab is a modest performer, even among its SATA ilk, and it has a relatively low durability rating, making it best for low-impact tasks. Still, it lets you add up to 4TB of storage to a desktop computer at a bargain price, and is a godsend if you’ve used up all your M.2 slots.SATA Drives 101Internal SATA drives are the Rodney Dangerfields of the SSD world: They don’t get no respect. Largely overlooked in a scene of ever-faster PCI Express NVMe M.2 SSDs—people new to computers may not even have heard of them—companies seldom pitch them to us for review anymore, and we hadn’t tested one since 2021. However, SATA drives still have their appeal for savvy users. They have a low cost per gigabyte compared with other SSDs; they come in capacities up to 8TB; and you can fit them into desktops that lack a spare M.2 slot, as I did with my home computer. Although they’re much slower than even PCI Express 3.0 M.2 SSDs, they tend to be about three times as fast as spinning hard drives. I use my SATA drive mostly for archiving media files rather than for tasks that demand speed.
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SATA stands for Serial Advanced Technology Attachment, and is a legacy hardware interface for connecting many different kinds of components (not just SSDs) to a computer. Most SATA SSDs come in a 2.5-inch form factor (though M.2-interface SATA SSDs do exist, too) and have the same length (3.95 inches) and width (2.75 inches) while varying slightly in thickness—the Vulcan Z’s height is 0.25 inch. The drive can be fastened to a bracket in a desktop computer or a 2.5-inch slot in laptops that support them (mostly older models). On one short end is a pair of connectors, which require one power supply lead and one data cable to interface with the computer, attaching to the power supply and motherboard, respectively. The Vulcan Z does not include a SATA data cable, so you will need to order one if you don’t have any. (If you installed your own desktop motherboard, there may be a cable in the box.) The top of the Vulcan Z QLC is handsomely and tastefully decorated; it’s charcoal gray with the TeamGroup logo and Vulcan Z name in white, and words such as “TeamGroup,” “quad-level,” and “T-Force” in black type, silver type, and outline type running diagonally. Finally, you’ll notice an inch-long red bar in the lower right corner. Enjoy it while you can, because unless you have a see-through PC case, the only time you will see the Vulcan Z after you install it is when you need to open your case back up.
The Vulcan Z is a SATA 3 drive. Its rated speeds, for both its 4TB and 2TB capacity, are up to 550 megabytes per second (MBps) for sequential read and 500MBps for sequential write. It employs quad-level cell (QLC) flash memory, a technology that stacks four bits per memory cell. SSDs with QLC memory generally cost less than triple-level cell (TLC) memory and can be built at high capacities, but can come at the expense of write-durability. (For more on SSD terminology, check out our handy glossary.)
The terabytes-written spec is a manufacturer’s estimate of how much data can be written to a drive before it starts to take failing cells out of service. The 4TB Vulcan Z QLC has a rating of 900TBW, which is modest for an SSD of its capacity, even compared with the QLC-based Samsung SSD 870 QVO, an Editors’ Choice-winning SATA drive that we reviewed in mid-2020. That model, which comes in capacities up to 8TB, has durability ratings of 720TBW at its 2TB capacity and 1,440TBW for 4TB. The ADATA Ultimate SU750, a TLC-based SSD, comes in capacities that max out at 1TB, but that model has robust durability for its much lower capacity, with an 800TBW rating. TeamGroup warranties the Vulcan Z QLC for three years or until you hit the rated TBW figure in data writes, whichever comes first. Still, you’re unlikely to write enough data to it to exceed even its relatively low TBW rating, so this Vulcan will almost certainly live long and prosper in the right PC.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)
Testing the Vulcan Z QLC: SATA Through and ThroughWe test SATA internal SSDs using the same desktop testbed we use to test PCI Express 4.0 M.2 SSDs. The rig has an MSI X570 motherboard and an AMD Ryzen CPU, 16GB of Corsair Dominator DDR4 memory clocked to 3,600MHz, and a discrete Nvidia GeForce graphics card. We put the Vulcan Z QLC through our usual solid-state drive benchmarks, comprising Crystal DiskMark 6.0 and PCMark 10 Storage. For comparison drives we only included SATA SSDs we’ve reviewed that are still for sale through major retailers and which we tested using the current PCMark version (PCMark 10).Crystal DiskMark’s sequential speed tests provide a traditional measure of drive throughput, simulating best-case, straight-line transfers of large files. On these tests, the Vulcan Z QLC fell slightly below its read- and write-speed ratings. Crystal DiskMark’s 4K read test measures how long it takes to access a group of files in 4K cluster sizes. The Vulcan Z’s read score on this test was in the middle of our group of comparison drives, and its 4K write score was better than the SU750’s, though well below the SSD 870 QVO’s. Good 4K write performance is especially important for an SSD used as a boot drive, though we test them as secondary drives.
The PCMark 10 Overall Storage test measures a drive’s speed in performing a variety of routine tasks such as launching Windows, loading games and creative applications, and copying both small and large files. The Vulcan Z QLC lagged the ADATA SU750, while both of these drives scored far lower than the Samsung SSD 870 QVO.
In PCMark trace testing, which evaluates some of the individual components that go into the overall score, the Vulcan Z QLC generally turned in scores that were slightly below the ADATA SU750’s and well below the Samsung SSD 870 QVO’s. It did worst in the game-launching trace, and best in the file-copy trace, where both its large-file (ISO) and small-file copy scores topped the SU750 and its ISO copy score was within striking distance of the SSD 870 QVO.Verdict: Cheap Storage That’s Best for ArchivingWe are glad that TeamGroup sent us the Vulcan Z QLC, because SATA drives still play an important role in adding voluminous storage to a desktop PC, particularly in situations where all of a computer’s M.2 slots are already filled. (Lower-end desktops often have only one.) However, with a relatively low durability (TBW) rating, it’s not a good choice if you need to constantly write and overwrite files to a drive. Between that and its lackluster performance on PCMark 10, it’s best for low-impact computing tasks, such as archiving media files.The Editors’ Choice-winning Samsung SSD 870 QVO still rules the high-capacity SATA SSD roost, as it is faster and more durable than the TeamGroup Vulcan Z QLC. It also includes the acclaimed Samsung Magician suite of SSD optimization tools, and comes in capacities up to 8TB. That said, the Vulcan Z beats it hands-down in price. So it’s well worth considering as a way to boost your storage on the cheap.
TeamGroup T-Force Vulcan Z QLC
Pros
Modest price
Handsome design
Cons
Relatively low durability rating
Lackluster performance on the PCMark 10 Overall general storage benchmark
Lacks SATA power and data cables
The Bottom Line
While it is neither fast nor overly durable for a SATA SSD, the TeamGroup T-Force Vulcan Z QLC provides up to 4TB of internal storage at a modest price.
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