SanDisk - Extreme Portable SSD 500GB External USB-C Portable Solid State Drive

UNBOXING: Upon unboxing this drive I was immediately taken with the appearance and build quality. I knew it would be small, but not this small. It is very nice looking and has a corner loop so you can attach it to a key ring or a carabiner to easily find it in your bag. EXTRAS: Not much extra in the box. It comes with a small USB-A to USB-C cable and a USB-A to USB-C adapter. There is no pre-installed software. When you insert the disk into your device, you will be prompted to download the Sandisk SecureAccess software. THIS IS NOT REQUIRED TO USE THE DRIVE. It is only recommended. However, for users who have security concerns, SecureAcess will set up a password-protected vault that will automatically encrypt all your files. I'm not storing sensitive files, so I elected not to use this software, but I think it's a huge bonus to have that sort of protection available in an automated, easy access package. People who are always security conscious will have their own protections in place and they will likely be more stringent as well as multi-layered, but the average user who may just want to have added protection for their files will find SecureAccess very easy to use. PERFORMANCE: While testing this device for review, I had the average (read not tech savvy) user in mind. I plugged the drive into my MacBook Air, and without any thoughts of formatting, I just starting dragging files into the drive. The word fast is not sufficient to describe this thing. It's light speed fast. I mean seriously, really, really fast. I then plugged the drive into a Chromebook. All the files played perfectly. I then switched to a windows laptop with the same results The drive gets warm, but not hot. It is water resistant which is nice, but don't jump in the pool with it. Caught in a heavy rain or accidentally drop it in a puddle? You'll be fine. From Sandisk Site; The SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD is IP55-rated, which means it’s built to withstand water and dust. It is also certified to stand up to 2-meter drops (That's 6.5 feet for the metric impaired like me!) I am a one bag, ultralight traveler and this device has been permanently added to my packing list. I will keep it on a carabiner inside my bag. This device is so easy to use, I would have no problem giving it to a parent or grandparent, with nothing more than a simple lesson on dragging and dropping.

This drive is blazing fast. ~100MB/s on and external USB 3 drive used to be speedy to me, but this drive blows them away topping out at 442MB/s write and 453MB/s reads (on USB C). Copying a large 16GB file from an internal SD took 48s - copying topped off at 340MB/s. The internal drive tested at 550MB/s read so it shouldn't be the limiting factor. I'll test it out on my home computer to see if it performs the same as my work computer. 1.9GB of 1483 small photos took 16s and one 1.48 file took 6s. This drive is faster than any mechanical HD but you can carry it in your pocket. I comes with a puny USB C cable but I'd guess it's small for portability's sake. It also came with C to A adapter for those that don't have a Type-C port. There was no difference in benches using the adapter. The drive comes formatted in exFAT, testing it NTFS format made no difference so I'll reformat it exFAT. Of course during the reformat I deleted the Sandisk security software. No biggie since I use a popular open source program for drive encryption. Per GB this drive is pretty expensive even compared to a DIY portable SSD. But using an m.2 drive to match the size of this drive would put you more in line. However, I don't think those DIY cases would be as rugged as this one though. The rubber case should withstand a quite a few bumps and drops, plus the rubber gives a better grip than a slick plastic/metal enclosure. For me, this drive is just too fast to be delegated to just a backup or photo storage drive. This thing will be my portable steam drive to use on my laptop when away from home. I'll keep the cheaper, slower mechanical drives for backups.

Full disclosure: I received a 500 GB SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD in exchange for an honest and timely review. The device is about the same thickness as my iPhone X, but perhaps an inch narrower and about 2 inches shorter. It is very compact and light weight. It has a nice rubber edge for absorbing shock and a little eyelet for attaching it to a carabiner or something similar. It has a IP55 rating, so it can withstand some adversity without being damaged. I connected my unit to my 2017 MacBook Pro with the included USB-C cable. The “drive” also comes with a USB-C to USB-A adapter for use with systems that don’t yet have a USB-C port. My first test was to export 256MB of photos and videos from the Apple Photos app on my Mac. That took around 20 seconds using a very rough measurement with the stop watch on my my Apple Watch. That export includes processing by the Photos app, so I’m sure most of that very quick time (IMHO) was due to the Photos app rather than transfer speed. I then proceeded to look for files to transfer to the SSD and found that everything I dragged and dropped to the drive was transferred as soon as I dropped it. I couldn’t detect any delay at all. Wow. Boom and it is on the SSD. A 200 MB video transferred before I could say “one thousand two” as I counted up. Very nice! That confirms my assumption about the export from Photos. I know I’m not taxing this device in the least. It is fast! I have purchased portable storage devices since the days of 3.5” floppy disks…hard drives, iOmega Jazz drives, and more recently the many generations of USB drives and “sticks”. I have two 2TB USB drives that I use most often these days for backups. The SanDisk Extreme SSD is by far the fastest portable device I’ve used. The compact size/light weight and ruggedness make it even more attractive as a new “go to” portable storage device for my needs. I tend to take a lot of photos and video while traveling. This drive will likely be a nice repository for them when I need to offload or backup my memory cards from my cameras. So far I would definitely recommend this for people who are looking for fast, compact and rugged storage …and are willing to pay extra for those attributes.

The drive exterior size is very good when thinking about the storage size. It is indeed very fast writing and reading. Power consumption is acceptable (very important when connected to smartphone device). It connects directly to my Android smartphone (through USB-C connector). Easy to back-up phone data to the disk without using a PC. The drive would get warm to hot when used (mostly writing). According to the specifications, it is water resist, shock resist! I am not going to try the limit but looking at its structure, it is indeed sturdy and well sealed. The drive is coming with a small USB-C connection and an adapter to USB-3. Working well with Linux, Windows, Chrome OS and Android Systems. The drive is delivered with SanDisk volt software that can be used to encrypt personal files. Handy if you are using the drive for saving confidential data. Price wise, it is really acceptable (taking in count the connection to android phones. Special cable is required to connect to Apple phones).

The Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD has an interesting and solid design. The case is rubberized and has what I suspect is a place to clip a carabiner. I can’t stress enough how durable and well made this feels in the hand. The device has a single USB C connector at the bottom and includes a short (I would guess 3 inches) USB cable. A USB C to A connector is also included – definitely helpful for use on most devices that are brand spanking new. I hooked the SSD up to my Early 2015 Macbook Pro and benchmarked at 421MB/s write and 427MB/s read. That’s blazing fast – like surprisingly fast – for a single drive over USB. I know it’s over USB 3.1, but I’ve never actually had an external drive actually deliver that level of performance, consistently, and in such a small attractive form factor. Sandisk states that the device is built using a 6Gbps M.2 SATA SSD and is housed in a 2M drop resistant enclosure. The device is also rated IP55 – which protects from dust and low-pressure jets of water. Not water-proof per say, but definitely resistant from everyday splashes and sprays. Overall, I am very satisfied with the Sandisk Extreme Portable SSD. If you find yourself in need of fast durable, but portable, storage solution– look no further.

When I read the reviews they said it was small but when I opened the box...dang. It hooked up fast and I was able to back up all my photos in a matter of minutes. Worked perfect and it doesn't take up any room at all...

So extremely small and portable! 500 GB is a decent storage size. I use mine primarily for pictures and clearing up space in my phone. For size reference, see attached photo of the product beside my Samsung Galaxy + Buds. When they say small and portable, they mean it! Definitely Highly recommend this item!

Ran this little guy through an array of "standard" benchmarks. If you see my attached screenshots, you'll see it tests extremely well for an external drive. I tested with an i7 based laptop with 16GB of Ram a 1TB NVMe SSD to ensure no system bottleneck. (Oddly enough, testing with a true USB-C 3.1 port vs a USB-A 3.0 port did see better peak speeds, hit almost exactly to spec, but slower on 4k speeds) In "real world" testing, I moved a large video file to and from the SSD, with the averages hitting 385MB/s Reads and 336MB/s Writes. I then tested moving my Counter Strike Global Offensive game folder to and from the drive, with the speed hitting around 190MB/s Reads and 240MB/s Writes (I did not swap them, ran tests extra times, it was quicker writing to the external SSD than reading off of it) As far as the physical unit goes, its smaller than expected, has a nice rubbery texture. Haven't really tested out the IP55 rating, but I wouldn't try swimming with it, due to the rating being more for surviving rain or a quick dip in some water. TL:DR This is a great drive, overall super speedy (fully using a USB 3.0 port plus), and a decent value!