Whether or not you need to again up the information in your PC, switch movies out of your Mac or offload just a few video games out of your PlayStation 5, a conveyable SSD is a fast and straightforward method to broaden your storage. These little bricks might value greater than conventional exhausting drives, however they’re considerably quicker, lighter and extra dependable. Determining the very best transportable SSD for you, although, isn’t so simple as simply selecting the one with the bottom worth or probably the most area. (Effectively, it can be, however that wouldn’t be very environment friendly.) To assist, we’ve weeded by way of the transportable SSD market, examined a bunch of contenders and sorted out which of them supply probably the most worth. You could find our prime picks under, plus an summary of what to know before you purchase.
Desk of contents
Greatest exterior SSDs for 2025
Different exterior SSDs we examined
The pre-built OWC Express 1M2 is a premium-feeling USB4 SSD that’s roughly as quick because the ADATA SE920, nevertheless it’s bigger and considerably dearer as of this writing.
For those who’re within the comparatively small group with a PC that helps USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 however not Thunderbolt or USB4, the Crucial X10 Pro is basically a quicker model of our prime choose. The Lexar SL600 is a bigger however barely faster possibility, whereas the Lexar SL500, Kingston XS2000 or Samsung T9 may additionally work in case you see them on low cost. As a reminder, although, drives like these are aimed primarily at content material creators and different professionals, and it’s important to be sure you received’t improve to a tool with a quicker USB interface anytime quickly.
The Samsung T7 Shield has a conveniently rugged design with a rubberized, IP65-rated shell. It additionally comes with each USB-C and USB-A cables. However it was persistently slower than the X9 Professional and XS1000 in our benchmark assessments, plus it has a shorter three-year guarantee.
The Silicon Power PX10 is an particularly reasonably priced USB 3.2 Gen 2 mannequin. Its peak speeds weren’t too far off the X9 Professional or XS1000 in artificial benchmarks, however it may possibly get distractingly scorching and its sustained writes are markedly worse. It took 50 seconds longer to maneuver our 70GB customized take a look at folder to this drive in comparison with the X9 Professional, for instance.
The Crucial X6 is one other low-cost possibility that’s a great bit slower than our prime picks. It’s restricted to a three-year guarantee and lacks an IP score as effectively. It’s not a horrible possibility for the fundamentals, however there’s little motive to get it over the XS1000 when their costs are related.
The OWC Envoy Pro FX is well-built and helps Thunderbolt 3 and USB 3.2 Gen 2, nevertheless it’s a smidge slower than the SE920 and Specific 1M2, and it’s a lot pricier than the previous.
What to think about earlier than shopping for an exterior SSD
Capability
The very first thing to determine earlier than shopping for a conveyable SSD is simply how a lot space for storing you want. Many of the drives we thought-about for this information can be found in capacities starting from one to 4 terabytes, although loads of smaller and bigger choices exist.
There’s no hard-and-fast rule for which dimension is “greatest” — that’ll in the end rely in your finances and what precisely you’re seeking to stash. However normally, it’s higher to overcompensate than underdo it. No person desires to be compelled into shopping for a second drive as a result of they stuffed the primary one up too rapidly. For those who’re backing up a PC, a great rule of thumb is to purchase an exterior SSD with twice as a lot area as your laptop’s inner storage. This fashion, it can save you at the very least one full backup whereas additionally having room for extra knowledge. If you wish to retailer a bunch of PlayStation or Xbox video games with large set up sizes, it’s possible you’ll want more room. For those who simply need to again up a small assortment of recordsdata, it’s possible you’ll be higher off saving your money and simply getting a smaller USB flash drive as a substitute, which aren’t fairly the identical because the exterior SSDs we examined for this information.
Worth
Basically, you get a greater price-per-gigabyte ratio the additional you go up the capability ladder. As of this writing, the 1TB Samsung T9 is priced at $130, or $0.13 per gigabyte (GB), whereas the 4TB version is out there for $297 or $0.07 per GB. That technically makes the bigger mannequin a greater “worth,” however not everybody must pay that rather more upfront.
SSDs in the identical pace class are likely to not fluctuate too wildly by way of efficiency, so a part of our decision-making for this information got here all the way down to which of them are sometimes the most cost effective. However costs can fluctuate over time; in case you see that one among our prime picks is priced method increased than a comparable honorable point out, be happy to get the latter. At this time limit, prices are broadly trending upwards.
Pace and USB interface
Nearly all exterior SSDs are considerably quicker than mechanical exhausting disk drives (HDDs), so that you’ll save time ready for recordsdata to switch and video games to load it doesn’t matter what. Throughout the market, nonetheless, there are distinct efficiency tiers. These are outlined largely by the USB interface a drive helps. Whereas the entire SSDs we thought-about for this information can join over USB-C, some USB-C connections can provide quicker switch speeds than others. Sorting by way of this will get actual complicated actual quick, so we’ll attempt to put it in easy phrases.
You may basically divide right now’s crop of transportable SSDs into completely different segments. On the very prime are drives that make the most of the (comparatively) new Thunderbolt 5 customary, which has a theoretical most switch fee of 80 gigabits per second (Gbps). (You might even see it promote speeds as much as 120 Gbps, however that increase doesn’t apply to storage gadgets.) However transportable SSDs that support this tech solely simply began to trickle out towards the top of 2024, and the marketplace for gadgets with Thunderbolt 5 ports remains to be fairly limited, with probably the most notable exceptions being Apple’s top-end Macs with a M4 Professional or M4 Max chip.
Thunderbolt 5 is constructed on a spec known as USB4, which may technically attain as much as 80 Gbps as effectively however is extra usually out there in a taste that tops out at 40 Gbps. Moveable SSDs primarily based on that customary began to roll out towards the top of 2023 however are nonetheless comparatively rare. The older Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4, which different high-end exterior SSDs proceed to make use of, assist the identical 40 Gbps most.
A third model of USB4, in the meantime, maxes at 20 Gbps, as does an older but extra often used customary known as USB 3.2 Gen 2×2. Under that’s USB 3.2 Gen 2, which maxes at 10 Gbps. Then there’s USB 3.2 Gen 1, which is capped at 5 Gbps. Lastly, we’ll bundle collectively SSDs that use older requirements and aren’t value contemplating right here.
To make this straightforward: For on a regular basis people, a great USB 3.2 Gen 2 drive is the candy spot between fast-enough efficiency, wide-enough compatibility and cheap-enough worth, so these make up our main suggestions above. For those who work in a inventive area or don’t thoughts paying additional to shave seconds off your giant file transfers, although, a “higher-tier” mannequin would make sense. Nonetheless, word that precise computer systems that make the most of USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 aren’t tremendous widespread — no Mac helps it, for one — and the interface is successfully being changed by USB4.
Basically, your chain is barely as robust as its weakest hyperlink: In case your laptop solely has USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, for instance, you may nonetheless use a Thunderbolt SSD, however you received’t get past Gen 2 speeds. Be sure to know what you’re working with before you purchase.
As a refresher, storage gadgets are broadly measured by way of learn and write speeds. The previous refers to how lengthy it takes to entry one thing from the drive; the latter, how lengthy it takes to save lots of one thing to it. From there, you’ll be able to break these metrics into sequential and random efficiency. Sequential speeds are likely to matter extra with transportable SSDs, since most individuals use them to save lots of or entry lengthy, fixed streams of knowledge akin to a bunch of high-res images. Random speeds can be vital if you wish to run video video games off the drive, since that’d contain studying and writing smaller, extra scattered recordsdata. Both method, how effectively an SSD can maintain its efficiency with prolonged use can also be essential.
Different efficiency components and enclosures
A contemporary transportable SSD’s speeds aren’t nearly its USB interface, although. Its efficiency can even rely on how superior its controller is, whether or not it has a local USB flash controller or a separate bridge chip to speak with a bunch machine, the sort and high quality of NAND flash reminiscence it makes use of, whether or not it has a DRAM cache or it’s DRAM-less, and extra.
We’re simplifying issues, however listed here are some fast ideas: Drives with triple-level cell (TLC) reminiscence aren’t as low cost as quad-level cell (QLC) SSDs, however they’re typically extra dependable they usually supply higher write efficiency. Having a devoted DRAM cache helps in case you plan to hit your drive with extra intense, sustained workloads, however is probably not value the additional value for most individuals. Some fashions with native flash controllers might not carry out in addition to these with a bridging chip, relying on the SSD inside, however they usually draw much less warmth and are bodily smaller. All of that is to say that an exterior SSD’s speeds aren’t fairly as simple as what the producer chooses to promote on the field.
It’s additionally value remembering that you could flip an inner SSD into a conveyable resolution with a great enclosure. You probably have a spare drive and don’t thoughts going the DIY route, this is usually a cheaper and extra versatile resolution, although we’ve caught to pre-built fashions for this information for the sake of simplicity.
Measurement, sturdiness, endurance and guarantee
Most transportable SSDs are impressively small and lightweight, in order that they received’t be troublesome to tuck in a bag (or perhaps a pocket) and tackle the go. We word above if any drive is bulkier than ordinary.
Nothing we’re speaking about issues in case your drive can’t final in the long run. It’s exhausting to definitively say which exterior SSDs are probably the most dependable, however we scoured by way of consumer critiques and suggestions whereas researching this information to make sure none of our picks present a sample of catastrophic errors. If there was an excessive amount of smoke round a selected mannequin, we steered clear. We dominated out sure drives from SanDisk and Western Digital, as an example, after reviews from Ars Technica and The Verge famous a difficulty that led to knowledge loss (and lawsuits) in 2023.
That stated, one of many massive causes you’d purchase an SSD normally is its superior sturdiness. As a result of it has no shifting mechanical elements inside, an SSD has far fewer avenues to failure than an exterior exhausting drive. You continue to don’t need to be careless with them, however an unintended drop shouldn’t be the top of the world.
Some transportable SSDs construct on this inherent ruggedness with plastic or rubberized casings and extra sturdy waterproofing. These aren’t vital for everybody, however in case you’re a frequent traveler or somebody who usually works outside, there are alternatives for you.
Nonetheless, all drives can fail. You probably have any kind of knowledge you’d be distraught to lose, you need to again it up commonly, then make a second backup, ideally with a cloud service. Alongside these protecting strains, we additionally took word of the guarantee coverage for every drive we examined. Nearly all of them are backed for both three or 5 years; in fact, longer is best.
Encryption and software program
It’s not unusual to retailer delicate knowledge on a conveyable SSD, so some fashions supply additional safety features like hardware-based encryption — i.e., direct scrambling of knowledge saved on the drive itself — built-in keypads and fingerprint readers to guard in opposition to unauthorized entry if the drive is misplaced or stolen. Whereas not prime necessities, perks like these are actually good to have. Some SSDs additionally include companion software program to additional handle the drive. The most effective of these could be useful to have round, however we wouldn’t name them important.
How we take a look at exterior SSDs
Sadly, we didn’t have entry to a tool that may make full use of USB 3.2 Gen 2, USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 and Thunderbolt/USB4 speeds interchangeably, so we needed to break up our testing throughout a number of gadgets, together with an M1 Professional MacBook Professional and an Alienware gaming PC working Home windows 11. Due to this, we primarily in contrast the transportable SSDs inside every “class” in opposition to each other. Earlier than switching OSes, we reformatted every drive to every platform’s customary file system format: APFS for macOS and NTFS for Home windows.
After researching which SSDs had sufficient optimistic suggestions to be value testing within the first place, we put 13 drives by way of a spread of artificial and “real-world” benchmark assessments. On Home windows, these included CrystalDiskMark, PCMark 10’s Information Drive Benchmark and 3DMark’s gaming-focused Storage Benchmark. On macOS, we used AmorphousDiskMark (successfully a Mac model of CrystalDiskMark), BlackMagic Disk Speed Test and ATTO Disk Benchmark.
We additionally timed how lengthy it took for every drive to learn and write a customized 70GB folder full of roughly 11,500 completely different recordsdata, together with images, movies, music recordsdata, PDFs and different giant and small knowledge varieties scattered throughout quite a few subfolders. We carried out a number of passes for every take a look at to keep away from irregularities, and we saved monitor of every SSD’s warmth ranges over the course of the entire suite. Our course of wasn’t an ideal science, nevertheless it gave us a common sense of how every drive compares to different fashions in its worth and efficiency vary.
Current updates
February 2025: We’ve checked to make sure the pricing information and hyperlinks on this information are nonetheless correct. We’ve additionally added particulars on the (comparatively) new Thunderbolt 5 interface, which has been applied in a pair latest transportable SSDs just like the OWC Envoy Ultra and LaCie Rugged SSD Pro5. We’ll look to incorporate testing notes for these for our subsequent replace, as they ought to be quicker than the ADATA SE920, our present premium choose, albeit for a a lot increased worth. For now, although, our prime picks stay the identical.
October 2024: We’ve taken a sweep by way of this information to make sure all pricing and availability information remains to be appropriate. Our suggestions are unchanged.
This text initially appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/equipment/best-portable-ssd-120043652.html?src=rss
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