Phison Targets Affordable PCIe Gen5 SSD Builds With New E37T Controller, 14.7 GB/s Speeds, And Sub 2.3W Power Draw

Phison used CES 2026 to sharpen its PCIe Gen5 SSD roadmap with a controller that is clearly designed for the next wave of thin and compact devices that still want headline throughput without the thermal and cost overhead that often comes with flagship tier designs. The new PS5037 E37T controller lands as a value oriented option positioned alongside Phison existing Gen5 portfolio, which includes the higher end E28 controller and the E31T DRAM less alternative aimed at more affordable and heatsink light implementations.

Phison messaging around E37T is straightforward: it is an incremental architectural update focused on real world efficiency and practical platform fit, not a pure spec arms race. The controller uses a 4 channel design and supports 3D NAND with up to 4800 MT/s signaling. Phison claims this translates into a 38 percent performance gain on value oriented platforms, which is a key phrase here because it signals the target market is mainstream OEM and retail SSDs that need strong responsiveness and sustained behavior in smaller form factors.

On the top line performance side, Phison rates E37T at up to 14.7 GB/s sequential read and 13.0 GB/s sequential write, plus up to 2,000K random IOPs using 4KB workloads. Those numbers land close enough to premium class Gen5 marketing targets to matter in benchmarks and product listings, but the more strategic detail is power. Phison says E37T runs under 2.3W, which is exactly the kind of constraint that unlocks broader adoption in laptops, gaming handhelds, and mini PCs where controller efficiency often matters as much as peak throughput. The company also confirms E37T will show up across multiple M.2 footprints including 2280, 2242, and 2230, which aligns with the growing demand for fast storage upgrades in small devices and space constrained builds.

From a market perspective, E37T is positioned to make Gen5 less intimidating for buyers who want the experience uplift of higher bandwidth and better queue depth behavior, but do not want to pay the thermal tax or build complexity of heavier cooling. If Phison and its SSD partners execute well on firmware tuning and sustained performance consistency, E37T based drives could become the go to recommendation for portable systems that need modern throughput without chasing maximum controller power budgets.

Phison also used the same moment to reinforce its flagship track. The company says E28 based Gen5 SSD products are expanding into larger 8 TB capacities, with rated performance figures of up to 14.9 GB/s read and 14.0 GB/s write, plus 2,600K read IOPs and 3,000K write IOPs. That combination matters because it gives the ecosystem two clean lanes: E37T for efficient value builds and small form factors, and E28 for top end capacity and peak throughput oriented products.

No E37T branded retail SSDs were named yet, but the direction is clear. With this controller now public, the next major checkpoint is partner launches and validation exposure through 2026 industry events. If the timeline holds, it would be reasonable to expect the first E37T drives to surface ahead of Computex 2026 as brands finalize product stacks and platform support.

If you were shopping for a PCIe Gen5 SSD in 2026, would you prioritize peak sequential speeds, or would sub 2.3W efficiency and better thermals be the real deciding factor for your build?