If you wish to again up beneficial information out of your PC, switch movies to a Mac or offload just a few video games out of your recreation console, a great exterior SSD might help. These tiny bricks could price greater than a standard moveable arduous drive, however they’re noticeably quicker, smaller and way more dependable in the long run. That stated, figuring out the very best exterior SSD for you isn’t so simple as selecting the one which’s priced the bottom or packs essentially the most area. (At the least, it shouldn’t be.) Should you’re wanting so as to add some moveable storage to your desktop or on a regular basis carry, we’ve spent months weeding via the exterior solid-state drive market, testing a number of contenders and finding out which of them ship essentially the most worth. Yow will discover our favorites, plus a fast rundown of what to know earlier than shopping for one among this stuff, under.
Desk of contents
Greatest exterior SSDs for 2024
Capacities: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB | Measurement: 2.56 x 1.97 x 0.39 inches | Weight: 1.34 ounces | USB interface: USB 3.2 Gen 2 | Controller/bridge chip: Silicon Movement SM2320 | NAND sort: TLC | Rated most sequential speeds: 1,050 MB/s learn, 1,050 MB/s write | Guarantee: 5 years
The Essential X9 Professional completed at or simply beneath the highest in every of our benchmarks relative to its pace class, and it stayed noticeably cooler than a lot of the different drives we examined after prolonged use. It’s a USB 3.2 Gen 2 mannequin, so it’s slower than alternate options based mostly on Thunderbolt, USB4 or USB 3.2 Gen 2×2, however it prices much less, and it’s nonetheless fast sufficient for the non-professional duties most individuals do with a conveyable SSD. Ports that may truly make the most of USB 3.2 Gen 2 speeds are typically extra ubiquitous on mainstream computer systems, too. This isn’t the most cost effective 10 Gbps drive round, however it’s in the identical ballpark as its friends and isn’t too costly. As of this writing, a 1TB mannequin is offered for $105, although it usually goes for much less. (We’ve seen it fall as little as $60 up to now.) 2TB and 4TB variations are additionally obtainable.
Apart from its comparatively speedy efficiency, the X9 Professional stands out for being so tiny. Its aluminum case is shorter than a bank card and straightforward to slot in a pocket, weighing in at simply 1.34 ounces. The entire thing is IP55-rated, so it’ll survive mud and water splashes, and it’s backed with a five-year guarantee, which is a pair years longer than some alternate options.
Our solely actual complaints are that the included USB-C cable is small and there’s no adapter for USB-A ports within the field. And although the X9 Professional can make the most of 256-bit hardware-based encryption, Micron (Essential’s mum or dad firm) has been late to launch its personal password safety instrument to take full benefit of it. We’ll additionally observe that there’s a less expensive non-”Professional” X9, however that one makes use of QLC flash, so it’s not as sturdy or quick (particularly with sustained writes). The X9 Professional is the higher purchase.
- Nice efficiency for its pace class
- Rugged and tremendous compact kind issue
- Stays comparatively cool with prolonged use
- 5-year guarantee
- There are cheaper 10 Gbps drives
- Included USB-C cable is brief, and there isn’t any USB-A cable within the field
Picture by Jeff Dunn / Engadget
Capacities: 1TB, 2TB | Measurement: 2.74 x 1.28 x 0.53 inches | Weight: 1.01 ounces | USB interface: USB 3.2 Gen 2 | Controller/bridge chip: Silicon Movement SM2320 | NAND sort: TLC | Rated most sequential speeds: 1,050 MB/s learn, 1,000 MB/s write | Guarantee: 5 years
The Kingston XS1000 performs equally to the Essential X9 Professional however has offered for much less during the last a number of months, so it’s a great different if you wish to avoid wasting money. A 1TB mannequin is offered for $75 as of this writing, which is $30 lower than the X9 Professional, whereas the 2TB model is right down to $120, which is a roughly $50 drop. There’s no 4TB possibility, although.
At these costs, the XS1000 is an efficient worth for on a regular basis backups and transfers. It saved up with or barely edged the X9 Professional throughout our benchmarks: In our customized file switch take a look at, for instance, its reads had been a second quicker, whereas its writes had been solely six seconds slower. (The 2 drives seem to have comparable internals and are based mostly on an analogous controller — the Silicon Energy SM2320G — so this will not be an enormous shock.) It topped each USB 3.2 Gen 2 drive we examined in 3DMark’s gaming storage benchmark as effectively. It’s barely thicker than the X9 Professional however nonetheless splendidly moveable, with its stubby rectangular design weighing simply over an oz. Just like the Essential drive, it’s backed by a five-year guarantee.
The place Kingston’s mannequin falls behind Essential’s X9 Professional is within the extras. There’s no formal IP or drop scores, so we wouldn’t really feel as comfy chucking it round on the go. It lacks hardware-based encryption, and it solely comes with a USB-C to A cable, so that you’ll want to produce your personal adapter in case your laptop computer solely has USB-C ports. It doesn’t keep fairly as cool because the X9 Professional with steady use, and its sustained write efficiency isn’t as quick both, so it’s value paying up in the event you plan to often copy tons of of gigabytes to the SSD (and may’t simply get a higher-class mannequin). For the cash, although, all of this can be simpler to miss.
- Sooner than most 10 Gbps drives we examined
- Aggressively priced
- Extremely moveable
- 5-year guarantee
- No formal water-resistance or drop safety
- No USB-C to C cable within the field
- Solely obtainable in 1TB or 2TB
- Slower sustained write efficiency than X9 Professional with very giant recordsdata
Picture by Jeff Dunn / Engadget
Capacities: 1TB, 2TB, 4TB | Measurement: 4.13 x 2.52 x 0.62 inches (with fan off), 4.82 x 2.52 x 0.62 inches (with fan on) | Weight: 6.4 ounces | USB interface: USB4 (40 Gbps) | Controller/bridge chip: Asmedia ASM2464PD | NAND sort: TLC | Rated most sequential speeds: 3,800 MB/s learn, 3,700 MB/s write | Guarantee: 5 years
Should you’re a media editor, IT skilled or simply an fanatic prepared to pay for the quickest moveable SSD potential, get the ADATA SE920. It makes use of the newer USB4 interface, and it blew away each non-40 Gbps drive we examined throughout our benchmark exams. In AmorphousDiskMark, for instance, the Essential X9 Professional delivered sequential reads and writes round 1,015 MB/s and 950 MB/s, respectively; right here, these had been about 3,350 MB/s and three,125 MB/s. In our customized blended file switch take a look at, we had been capable of transfer our 70GB folder to our MacBook in 32 seconds; with the X9 Professional, that course of took about 81 seconds on common. Writing the folder to the drive, in the meantime, was about 30 seconds quicker. Should you’re shopping for an exterior SSD to maneuver round giant chunks of knowledge, this type of leap provides up.
The drive itself is considerably larger and thicker than both of our picks above, however it’s not so giant that we’d name it unwieldy. It’s concerning the measurement of a deck of playing cards, so it’ll match higher in a bag than a pants pocket. Past that, the brushed steel exterior feels crisp to the contact, and ADATA helps the machine with a five-year guarantee.
That stated, this factor can get severely sizzling. The design features a built-in micro fan to assist dissipate warmth, which you activate simply by clicking the case down; that’s intelligent, however it’s not sufficient to maintain the drive cool by itself. All of this comes at a value premium, too, with a 1TB mannequin presently obtainable for $180. But when efficiency is the one factor that issues to you, it’s arduous to do higher.
- Blazingly quick 40 Gbps efficiency
- Slick steel enclosure
- Smaller than different Thunderbolt SSDs we examined
- Intelligent built-in fan
- 5-year guarantee
- Will get sizzling even with fan activated
- Pricier and nonetheless bigger than different picks
- Requires USB4 port to succeed in most speeds
Different exterior SSDs we examined
The pre-built OWC Categorical 1M2 is a premium-feeling USB4 SSD that’s roughly as quick because the ADATA SE920, however it’s bigger and considerably costlier as of this writing.
Should you’re within the comparatively small group with a PC that helps USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 however not Thunderbolt or USB4, the Essential X10 Professional is actually 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 the event you see them on low cost. As a reminder, although, drives like these are aimed primarily at content material creators and different professionals, and you must be sure to received’t improve to a tool with a quicker USB interface anytime quickly.
The Samsung T7 Protect has a conveniently rugged design with a rubberized, IP65-rated shell. It additionally comes with each USB-C and USB-A cables. But it surely was persistently slower than the X9 Professional and XS1000 in our benchmark exams, plus it has a shorter three-year guarantee.
The Silicon Energy 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 get distractingly sizzling 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 Essential 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 Professional FX is well-built and helps Thunderbolt 3 and USB 3.2 Gen 2, however it’s a smidge slower than the SE920 and Categorical 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 cupboard space you want. A lot of the drives we thought of 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 measurement is “best” — that’ll finally rely in your price range and what precisely you’re seeking to stash. However on the whole, it’s higher to overcompensate than underdo it. No person needs to be pressured into shopping for a second drive as a result of they crammed the primary one up too shortly. Should you’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 least one full backup whereas additionally having room for added information. If you wish to retailer a bunch of PlayStation or Xbox video games with large set up sizes, chances are you’ll want extra space. Should you simply need to again up a small assortment of recordsdata, chances are you’ll be higher off saving your money and simply getting a smaller USB flash drive as an alternative, which aren’t fairly the identical because the exterior SSDs we examined for this information.
Value
Generally, 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 $135, or $0.14 per gigabyte (GB), whereas the 4TB model is offered for $350, or $0.09 per GB. That technically makes the bigger mannequin a greater “value,” however not everybody must pay that rather more upfront.
SSDs in the identical pace class are likely to not differ too wildly by way of efficiency, so a part of our decision-making for this information got here right down to which of them are sometimes the most cost effective. However costs can fluctuate over time; in the event you see that one among our prime picks is priced method larger than a comparable honorable point out, be happy to get the latter. At this cut-off date, prices are broadly trending upwards.
Pace and USB interface
Nearly all exterior SSDs are considerably quicker than mechanical arduous disk drives (HDDs), so that you’ll save time ready for recordsdata to switch and video games to load it doesn’t matter what. Inside the market, nonetheless, there are distinct efficiency tiers. These are outlined largely by the USB interface a drive helps. Whereas all the SSDs we thought of for this information can join over USB-C, some USB-C connections can provide quicker switch speeds than others. Sorting via this could get actual complicated actual quick, so we’ll attempt to put it in easy phrases.
Basically, you possibly can divide right this moment’s crop of moveable SSDs into 5 segments. On the prime are drives that make the most of Thunderbolt 3 or 4 or the newer USB4 spec, which have a theoretical most switch fee of 40 gigabits per second (Gbps). Be aware that USB4 is available in two completely different variants, although, one among which is restricted to twenty Gbps. Beneath that’s USB 3.2 Gen 2×2, which additionally tops out at 20 Gbps. (Getting confused but?) Then you’ve gotten USB 3.2 Gen 2, which maxes at 10 Gbps. Subsequent is 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.
For on a regular basis people, a great USB 3.2 Gen 2 drive is the candy spot between quick sufficient efficiency and an inexpensive sufficient value, so these make up our chief suggestions under. Should you work in a artistic subject or don’t thoughts paying further to shave seconds off your giant file transfers, although, a “higher-tier” mannequin would make sense. Nonetheless, observe that programs that make the most of USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 aren’t tremendous frequent — no Mac helps it, for one — and the interface is successfully being changed by USB4.
Generally, your chain is barely as sturdy as its weakest hyperlink: In case your laptop solely has USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports, for instance, you possibly can 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 possibly can break these metrics into sequential and random efficiency. Sequential speeds are likely to matter extra with moveable SSDs, since most individuals use them to save lots of or entry lengthy, fixed streams of knowledge resembling a bunch of high-res pictures. Random speeds can be essential 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 important.
Different efficiency components and enclosures
A contemporary moveable SSD’s speeds aren’t nearly its USB interface, although. Its efficiency may also 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 below are some fast suggestions: Drives with triple-level cell (TLC) reminiscence aren’t as low cost as quad-level cell (QLC) SSDs, however they’re usually extra dependable and so they provide higher write efficiency. Having a devoted DRAM cache helps in the event you plan to hit your drive with extra intense, sustained workloads, however will not be value the additional price for most individuals. Some fashions with native flash controllers could not carry out in addition to these with a bridging chip, relying on the SSD inside, however they sometimes 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 which you can flip an inner SSD into a conveyable answer with a great enclosure. You probably have a spare drive and don’t thoughts going the DIY route, this could be a cheaper and extra versatile answer, although we’ve caught to pre-built fashions for this information for the sake of simplicity.
Measurement, sturdiness, endurance and guarantee
Most moveable SSDs are impressively small and light-weight, so that they received’t be tough to tuck in a bag (or perhaps a pocket) and tackle the go. We observe under if any drive is bulkier than typical.
Nothing we’re speaking about issues in case your drive can’t final in the long run. It’s arduous to definitively say which exterior SSDs are essentially the most dependable, however we scoured via consumer opinions 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, for example, after studies from Ars Technica and The Verge famous a difficulty that led to information loss (and lawsuits) in 2023.
That stated, one of many huge causes you’d purchase an SSD on the whole is its superior sturdiness. As a result of it has no transferring mechanical components inside, an SSD has far fewer avenues to failure than an exterior arduous drive. You continue to don’t need to be careless with them, however an unintentional drop shouldn’t be the tip of the world.
Some moveable SSDs construct on this inherent ruggedness with plastic or rubberized casings and extra sturdy waterproofing. These aren’t vital for everybody, however in the event you’re a frequent traveler or somebody who usually works open air, there are alternatives for you.
Nonetheless, all drives can fail. You probably have any form of information you’d be distraught to lose, it is best to again it up often, then make a second backup, ideally with a cloud service. Alongside these protecting traces, we additionally took observe of the guarantee coverage for every drive we examined. Nearly all of them are backed for both three or 5 years; after all, longer is best.
Encryption and software program
It’s not unusual to retailer delicate information on a conveyable SSD, so some fashions provide further 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 towards 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 very best of these may 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 4/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 operating Home windows 11. Due to this, we primarily in contrast the moveable SSDs inside every “class” towards 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 via a spread of artificial and “real-world” benchmark exams. On Home windows, these included CrystalDiskMark, PCMark 10’s Knowledge Drive Benchmark and 3DMark’s gaming-focused Storage Benchmark. On macOS, we used AmorphousDiskMark (successfully a Mac model of CrystalDiskMark), BlackMagic Disk Pace Take a look at 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 pictures, movies, music recordsdata, PDFs and different giant and small information sorts 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 observe of every SSD’s warmth ranges over the course of the entire suite. Our course of wasn’t an ideal science, however it gave us a normal sense of how every drive compares to different fashions in its value and efficiency vary.
Current updates
October 2024: We’ve taken a sweep via this information to make sure all pricing and availability data continues to be right. Our suggestions are unchanged.
