The fake Samsung 990 Pro features a sticker that closely mimics the original. This is where the technical know-how comes into play. The drive may look authentic on the surface, but a closer inspection reveals drastic discrepancies. For starters, the Samsung 990 Pro leverages the brand's proprietary Pascal SSD controller. The fake uses the Maxio MAP1602 SSD controller, which has a different design and is smaller than the Pascal controller. Tellingly, the rear of the counterfeit SSD even openly states the Maxio model number.

Another key distinction lies in DRAM and NAND. The Samsung 990 Pro features LPDDR4 memory, a component absent from the fake due to the DRAM-less nature of the Maxio MAP1602 SSD controller. As for the NAND, the original uses Samsung’s 176-Layer V-NAND TLC flash, while the type in the counterfeit remains uncertain. It’s likely QLC, though, since counterfeiters won't spend extra on TLC for a product whose primary purpose is to bamboozle the buyer.

Typical Samsung 990 Pro lookalikes fall flat when you benchmark them. Some fakes are slower than a USB 2.0 pendrive, while others perform similarly to a PCIe 3.0 SSD. However, the one that Akiba PC Hotline! had in its possession exhibited a solid, very convincing performance. The drive delivered sequential read and write speeds of up to 7,255 MB/s and 6,090 MB/s, respectively, just a bit shy of the Samsung 990 Pro 1TB's rated speeds of 7,450 MB/s and 6,900 MB/s.