Sandisk starts selling its new internal SSD brand, SANDISK Optimus, through authorised retailers and online stores in Japan on September 17, 2026. The brand pulls the drives that used to be split between WD_BLACK and WD Blue under a single name, and the first Japanese lineup consists of six models. The flagship is a PCIe 5.0 drive rated at up to 14,900MB/s sequential read.
Folding WD_BLACK and WD Blue into one name
SANDISK Optimus was introduced at CES in January 2026. Drives that had been marketed as WD_BLACK for gaming and WD Blue for mainstream use were reorganised under the Sandisk name. Sandisk is the semiconductor maker that separated from Western Digital and now trades on Nasdaq, and this move carries the brand familiar from SD cards and USB drives squarely into internal storage.
The lineup splits into three tiers: SANDISK Optimus for the standard grade, SANDISK Optimus GX for gaming, and SANDISK Optimus GX PRO at the top. The naming alone tells you roughly where a drive sits in terms of speed and intended use, which is easier to follow than reading WD_BLACK model numbers.
The flagship hits 14,900MB/s, with street prices starting in the ¥56,000 range
The headline product is the SANDISK Optimus GX PRO 8100 NVMe SSD. It uses a PCIe Gen5 x4 interface with NVMe 2.0 and reaches up to 14,900MB/s sequential read. The flash is eighth-generation SANDISK BiCS TLC 3D CBA NAND. Heatsink versions ship with an anodised aluminium heatsink designed for efficient heat transfer.
Write performance varies by capacity, which is worth noting before ordering. The 1TB model is rated at up to 11,000MB/s sequential write with 600TBW of endurance, while the 2TB model climbs to 14,000MB/s and 1,200TBW. The 4TB model matches the 2TB speeds and raises endurance to 2,400TBW. The more your workload leans on editing or heavy cache writes, the more reason there is to go above 1TB.
| Capacity | Sequential read | Sequential write | Endurance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1TB | Up to 14,900MB/s | Up to 11,000MB/s | 600TBW |
| 2TB | Up to 14,900MB/s | Up to 14,000MB/s | 1,200TBW |
| 4TB | Up to 14,900MB/s | Up to 14,000MB/s | 2,400TBW |
Random read tops out at 1.6M IOPS on the 1TB model and 2.3M IOPS on the 2TB and 4TB models, with random write rated at up to 2.4M IOPS across the range. Five variants have been confirmed in retail channels for launch day: 1TB and 4TB with a heatsink, and 1TB, 2TB and 4TB without one. Street prices run from 56,674 yen to 214,329 yen. The GX PRO 8100 also won a Red Dot Design Award 2026, recognition for a design that balances cooling with appearance.
Six drives, each aimed at a specific machine
What stands out about this lineup is how explicitly each drive names the hardware it targets.
The PCIe 4.0 SANDISK Optimus GX PRO 850X NVMe SSD scales to 8TB and is aimed at editing work that keeps high-resolution footage on hand. The SANDISK Optimus GX PRO 850P NVMe SSD is built for the PS5, focusing on shorter load times and room for more installed titles.
Handhelds get equal attention. The SANDISK Optimus GX 7100 NVMe SSD uses a power-efficient design for laptops and portable consoles, connects over PCIe 4.0 and reads at up to 7,250MB/s. The short M.2 2230 SANDISK Optimus GX 7100M NVMe SSD names the Steam Deck, MSI Claw, Microsoft Surface and Dell laptops directly, supporting expansion up to 2TB. The SANDISK Optimus GX 7100X NVMe SSD covers the ROG Xbox Ally [X] and PCs, tuned to keep power draw down and play sessions longer.
Handheld gaming PCs have multiplied over the past few years, and the storage they ship with rarely feels like enough. Choices in the 2230 form factor have been thin, so a major vendor filling out the category works plainly in buyers' favour.
On show at Tokyo Game Show 2026
Sandisk is exhibiting at Tokyo Game Show 2026, held at Makuhari Messe from September 17 to September 21, 2026. The booth is 01-C03 in the general exhibition area of Hall 1. Visitors can play on consoles fitted with SANDISK Optimus drives, and a prize drawing is planned. Stage segments will feature players from the professional esports team DetonatioN FocusMe. Since the launch date falls on the opening day, shoppers can handle the hardware the same week it reaches shelves.
Summary
SANDISK Optimus consolidates the internal SSDs previously spread across WD_BLACK and WD Blue under the Sandisk name, with six models going on sale in Japan on September 17. The flagship GX PRO 8100 is a PCIe 5.0 drive rated at up to 14,900MB/s, priced between 56,674 yen and 214,329 yen at retail. The defining trait of this lineup is how directly it maps drives to specific machines such as the PS5, Steam Deck and ROG Xbox Ally [X], which makes picking the right one considerably simpler.
