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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> Portable SSD drives
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09/18/2021 08:51:58 AM · #1
1Tb and 2Tb portable SSD drives are cheaper than I expected. The last "portable" drive I purchased was huge and wasn't an SSD. These would be so much better for travel!

(I know that regular hard drives are much cheaper, but last time I travelled, I tried to download my cards onto an external (non-SSD) drive. It took so ridiculously long I didn't bother downloading (I just wanted to sleep!). I just didn't reuse those cards. I had enough of them that it was fine. But it won't work this time. I need to download each night. So I think SSD would make it much more painless.

Has anyone used any of these?

SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable SSD - Up to 1050MB/s
SanDisk 2TB Extreme PRO Portable SSD - Up to 2000MB/s - USB-C,
SAMSUNG T7 Touch Portable SSD 2TB - Up to 1050MB/s - USB 3.2 External Solid State Drive, Silver
LaCie Portable SSD 2TB External Solid State Drive - USB-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2, speeds up to 1050MB/s,

Thanks!

09/18/2021 09:16:23 AM · #2
I've used the predecessor to the Samsung T7, and it has served me well for years. Don't think you could go wrong there. The SanDisk is also a top name, and unless you find something off-putting in user reviews, you should be good there as well.
If your computer supports USB-C, go that way, it will be faster.
09/18/2021 07:51:23 PM · #3
I bought a 1TB Western Digital SSD intended to mount directly to a motherboard and put it into a third party USB case. Working fine for a couple of years now and really small. I use a fabric case from reading glasses to keep it in. I use it for my photos on every work trip so they don't take up space on the company laptop. Bought a Sandisk for my wife, for her Genealogy stuff, but I don't think she's used it much.
09/18/2021 09:56:39 PM · #4
i use Lacie and Western Digital portable harddrives ..
right now 5tb .. altho i have worked up from smaller harddrives ..

here's a link to the the Lacie site
like i say i have the 5tb and it works really well .. came with two leads .. one for usb-c and one for usb-a ..
also i have found Western Digital to be really good over the years .. i have never had one fail on me ..
i now use the western digital passport harddrives ..

i always format any harddrives i get to exFat because i use them on the macbook pro and a windows 10 laptop .. if anyone has any other suggestions regarding formating for mac and windows i'd be interested to hear ..

btw .. the 5tb lacie measures 5" x 3" .. which includes the spongy protective case which makes it a tiny bit bigger than the actual harddrive itself ..
and the 5tb western digital 4" x 3" ..
09/18/2021 10:07:01 PM · #5
Originally posted by roz:

i use Lacie and Western Digital portable harddrives ..
right now 5tb .. altho i have worked up from smaller harddrives ..

here's a link to the the Lacie site
like i say i have the 5tb and it works really well .. came with two leads .. one for usb-c and one for usb-a ..
also i have found Western Digital to be really good over the years .. i have never had one fail on me ..
i now use the western digital passport harddrives ..

i always format any harddrives i get to exFat because i use them on the macbook pro and a windows 10 laptop .. if anyone has any other suggestions regarding formating for mac and windows i'd be interested to hear ..

btw .. the 5tb lacie measures 5" x 3" .. which includes the spongy protective case which makes it a tiny bit bigger than the actual harddrive itself ..
and the 5tb western digital 4" x 3" ..


I saw the spongy ones, but those were regular hard drives. I was looking at the SSD's. I'm thinking that I really want the speed. I don't want to stay up all night just downloading my cards. :)

It really does take a long time to download around 500gb of cards. I don't mind the slower drives at home -- that's actually what I work on. But on a photography trip, I'm so tired at night. I really would like to just go to sleep.

Lacie does have a 2TB SSD that I'm considering. It's a bit hard, because that's one of the few harddrives that I've had problems with. But that was about 20 years ago, so I should probably forget about that. :)
09/18/2021 10:08:58 PM · #6
Originally posted by Yo_Spiff:

I bought a 1TB Western Digital SSD intended to mount directly to a motherboard and put it into a third party USB case. Working fine for a couple of years now and really small. I use a fabric case from reading glasses to keep it in. I use it for my photos on every work trip so they don't take up space on the company laptop. Bought a Sandisk for my wife, for her Genealogy stuff, but I don't think she's used it much.


People have mentioned that before (internal in 3rd party case). Is that the way to go? If so, why aren't they more mainstream? Do you worry about heat? I notice that my cfexpress type A card gets really warm in it's card reader.
09/18/2021 10:11:15 PM · #7
Originally posted by kirbic:

I've used the predecessor to the Samsung T7, and it has served me well for years. Don't think you could go wrong there. The SanDisk is also a top name, and unless you find something off-putting in user reviews, you should be good there as well.
If your computer supports USB-C, go that way, it will be faster.


Thanks. That's what I was thinking -- I like my sandisk cards.

It's hard to know what to do. It seems silly to pay more for the SSD, but the speed is really useful when traveling. Plus, with it being SSD, it seems like it would be much safer since it will hold my only copy of the photos I took on the trip. I need to wipe my cards and reuse them since the fast cards are so expensive.
09/18/2021 11:53:09 PM · #8
Originally posted by vawendy:

People have mentioned that before (internal in 3rd party case). Is that the way to go? If so, why aren't they more mainstream? Do you worry about heat? I notice that my cfexpress type A card gets really warm in it's card reader.


It has a pretty hefty heatsink on it, with thermal tape between the heatsink and chipset to transfer heat. It may get a little warm during large transfers, but that's perfectly normal. They generate heat when inside a computer, too. I have one that my PC boots off of, so it is under almost constant usage. I use 32GB cards, so not usually moving too much at one time.
09/19/2021 03:29:51 PM · #9
Thanks all -- I ordered the sandisk 2TB SSD -- B&H and Amazon had it on sale through today. Hopefully it works well for what I need.

Thanks!
09/20/2021 07:58:22 AM · #10
Amazing where prices are at these days. I paid about that for a half-terabyte version, about 6 or 7 years ago.
09/20/2021 08:51:25 AM · #11
Originally posted by kirbic:

Amazing where prices are at these days. I paid about that for a half-terabyte version, about 6 or 7 years ago.


Same here. I just assumed that SSDs were out of the price range. They were SO much more expensive than regular. (well, they still are, but they've come down to what I used to buy smaller, non-ssd drives at awhile ago)
09/20/2021 08:52:50 AM · #12
Originally posted by vawendy:

Originally posted by kirbic:

Amazing where prices are at these days. I paid about that for a half-terabyte version, about 6 or 7 years ago.


Same here. I just assumed that SSDs were out of the price range. They were SO much more expensive than regular. (well, they still are, but they've come down to what I used to buy smaller, non-ssd drives at awhile ago)


I'm definitely going to test it out and make sure it's as fast as I think it should be. But it's also a third of the size of my current non-ssd portable. (physical size, not harddisk space. )
09/20/2021 11:55:26 AM · #13
It will be difficult to achieve the full rated speed. The speed you get will be determined by the speed of the "weakest link." Often that is the card reader. Another speed bump can be the PC itself; there may be internal hardware/software implementation decisions that impact speeds. When you test, use a moderately large set of the actual RAW files. Speed can vary depending on file size.
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