Western Digital · Released Jun 2022 Last verified June 15, 2026

WD Blue SA510 500GB Review

Name: WD Blue SA510 500GB
Brand: Western Digital

SATA · 560/520 MB/s · 500GB

Specdex verdict Western Digital's WD Blue SA510 500GB is a solid premium pick — strongly recommended, even if it doesn't unseat the category leaders.

Western Digital WD Blue SA510 500GB — SATA drive.

All WD Blue SA510 500GB matchups → From $50

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WD Blue SA510 500GB — SATA · 560/520 MB/s · 500GB

Specdex verdict

Strongly Recommended

Specdex doesn't run benchmarks in-house. The verdict is an editorial assessment based on manufacturer specs and public reviewer consensus. See methodology.

Compare

WD Blue SA510 500GB versus its closest rivals

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Editorial · Specdex take

Pros

+Plug-and-play (portable)
+Competitive per-GB cost
+3-5 year warranties typical

Cons

−Portable variants are USB-only
−SATA models capped ~550 MB/s
−DRAM-less drives slower sustained

Who's the WD Blue SA510 500GB for?

Quick verdicts for the most common buyer profiles, derived from the sub-scores above.

Power users and creators Skip

Compute scores trail current top-tier — look at our step-up alternatives below if performance is the priority.

Budget-conscious buyers Buy

At $50 this is a genuine value play — Specdex score of 85 far exceeds the typical sub-$500 baseline.

In the box

What you get when you unbox the WD Blue SA510 500GB.

SSD
M.2 mounting screw
Heatsink (where applicable)
Software activation key (Pro tier)

Standard contents — region/SKU may vary; confirm at retailer.

Sources & benchmarks

Cited, not generated

Specdex does not run benchmarks in-house. We're rolling out cited public benchmark data category by category — PassMark for CPUs and GPUs is wired today; DXOMark, RTINGS, Geekbench, and NotebookCheck will follow.

Sources we use when available: PassMark for CPU/GPU, Geekbench Browser for synthetic, DXOMark for camera scores, RTINGS for TVs, monitors, and headphones. See methodology.