External SSD options

Postby **Duane 3NE 2NR** » January 10th, 2023, 11:56 am

Looking to replace my SanDisk Extreme 510 SSD with something with higher capacity.
What recommendations for a 2TB or 4TB external USB-C SSD.
USB powered is a plus

VexXx Dogg · Postby **VexXx Dogg** » January 10th, 2023, 12:43 pm

SanDisk has reliable stuff, if you already happy with them, I'd say stick with the devil you know.

A little pricey, but this is their pro line
https://www.westerndigital.com/products ... 002T-GBCND

Postby **Duane 3NE 2NR** » January 10th, 2023, 12:47 pm

^ thanks!
Was looking at this one
https://amzn.to/3X1hopu
1050mb/s is ok enough for what I need

these actually cheaper than buying an enclosure and an internal drive - SanDisk is pretty reliable but was looking for other suggestions

Slartibartfast · Postby **Slartibartfast** » January 10th, 2023, 9:07 pm

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:^ thanks!
Was looking at this one
https://amzn.to/3X1hopu
1050mb/s is ok enough for what I need

these actually cheaper than buying an enclosure and an internal drive - SanDisk is pretty reliable but was looking for other suggestions

TL:DR That looks like a solid choice to be honest. If you just want different options for different option sake then read on.

It depends on what you are using it for. If you are looking for long term storage and/or max capacity to cost ratio then just go with a Sandisk external HDD. Anecdotal but I got a 1TB back in 2011 that's still running strong. If you want max speed then I would still rather go with an internal NVME SSD and external enclosure (Sabrent is the brand I use, their enclosures are top notch and decently priced).

Few things to consider. USB-C max speed is 10Gb/s or 1.25 GB/s. A gen 3 SSD is more than double that. Don't go wasting money on a Gen 4 SSD (speaking from experience). Also, max speed it normally for sequential writes and only available when transferring large files. Average speeds would be a lot slower and in real world tests NVME barely outperforms SATA SSD drives. The biggest factor is the memory controller. LTT did a deep dive into memory controllers and how SSD companies use a "bait and switch" where they change the memory controller for a cheaper one after tech review channels benchmark their stuff leaving the end user with a worse product. The only company that didn't do this was Samsung because they are vertically integrated and are the only SSD company that manufacture their own memory controllers. With that said, I still regret getting the 980 Evo Pro... waste of money since my computer cannot take full advantage of it.

Postby **Duane 3NE 2NR** » January 10th, 2023, 9:27 pm

^ thanks
It's to store working files, videos, photos etc while editing.
And well I guess i can put my scratch disks there too.
I have a NAS for big storage and archive

maj. tom · Postby **maj. tom** » January 24th, 2023, 11:47 am

I don't know if you would be interested in this. Came across OWC brand and they're supposed to be specialized for Mac upgrades.
https://eshop.macsales.com/item/OWC/S3D7P6GS2.0/ $249 USD

Don't ask me how this local place came up with price here $4470 TTD:
https://thewizzcomputers.com/product/owc-other-world-computing-2tb-mercury-extreme-pro-6g-sata-iii-2-5-internal-ssd/

Postby **Duane 3NE 2NR** » January 24th, 2023, 11:52 am

Ended up getting the SanDisk Extreme 2TB

https://amzn.to/3DedUbo

still fast enough for what I need

solarkh · Postby **solarkh** » January 24th, 2023, 1:50 pm

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:Ended up getting the SanDisk Extreme 2TB

https://amzn.to/3DedUbo

IMG_1036.JPG

still fast enough for what I need

Have the 2tb in this also for about a year. No issues.

Postby **Duane 3NE 2NR** » January 24th, 2023, 5:15 pm

solarkh wrote:
Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:Ended up getting the SanDisk Extreme 2TB

https://amzn.to/3DedUbo

IMG_1036.JPG

still fast enough for what I need

Have the 2tb in this also for about a year. No issues.

Nice! Was wondering how long they last.
I have a 480gb in an older model SanDisk going on 8 years now

paid_influencer · Postby **paid_influencer** » January 24th, 2023, 5:28 pm

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:Ended up getting the SanDisk Extreme 2TB

https://amzn.to/3DedUbo

IMG_1036.JPG

still fast enough for what I need

i does have that same ssd. it does work good

DMan7 · Postby **DMan7** » January 24th, 2023, 5:41 pm

Whatever you do don't buy a M.2 drive and an enclosure. That sheit will over heat on your like it did on me. Those M.2 enclosures has a long way to go for heat dissipation on M.2 drives.

paid_influencer · Postby **paid_influencer** » January 24th, 2023, 6:24 pm

i have heard ssd work better with more heat.there is a limit obviously but the heat u and i find uncomfortable the ssd will like it

sMASH · Postby **sMASH** » January 24th, 2023, 6:36 pm

They work faster but die faster too.

ruffneck_12 · Postby **ruffneck_12** » January 26th, 2023, 9:36 am

DMan7 wrote:Whatever you do don't buy a M.2 drive and an enclosure. That sheit will over heat on your like it did on me. Those M.2 enclosures has a long way to go for heat dissipation on M.2 drives.

Mix some zinc oxide and a little bit of vaseline and paste it on some foil, then crumple it up and smash it into the shape you need

Use this to act as a thermal pad between the chips and the enclosure. Or just jam a fan in ee skunt and call that a day.

paid_influencer wrote:i have heard ssd work better with more heat.there is a limit obviously but the heat u and i find uncomfortable the ssd will like it

There's a point of diminishing returns, might have to research this. Because to my knowledge, chips love cooling, they aint vacuum tubes

Les Bain · Postby **Les Bain** » January 26th, 2023, 10:28 am

I have an externally powered hard drive that holds power for a few seconds then gives up. It is backed up online but there are some incidental files aren't that important that weren't backed up.
I also have access to an enclosure.
Can I remove the hard drive and put it into the enclosure, at least to facilitate transfer of those files into a replacement external drive?

Postby **Duane 3NE 2NR** » January 26th, 2023, 11:03 am

DMan7 wrote:Whatever you do don't buy a M.2 drive and an enclosure. That sheit will over heat on your like it did on me. Those M.2 enclosures has a long way to go for heat dissipation on M.2 drives.

Seems this SanDisk Extreme is a NVMe M.2 1050mb/s (read) drive?
I didn't notice any heat issues from it and it has no fan like some M.2 enclosures I saw

adnj · Postby **adnj** » January 26th, 2023, 1:58 pm

Les Bain wrote:I have an externally powered hard drive that holds power for a few seconds then gives up. It is backed up online but there are some incidental files aren't that important that weren't backed up.
I also have access to an enclosure.
Can I remove the hard drive and put it into the enclosure, at least to facilitate transfer of those files into a replacement external drive?

So long as your the problem hard drive has an interface that is compatible with the external enclosure, you can use it.

If the problem is the power supply circuit of the original enclosure, you're in luck.

Duane 3NE 2NR wrote:Seems this SanDisk Extreme is a NVMe M.2 1050mb/s (read) drive?
I didn't notice any heat issues from it and it has no fan like some M.2 enclosures I saw

Counterintuitively, Google's reported server SSD/HDD failures were higher at temps below 27°C(?) than those below 50°C.

Les Bain · Postby **Les Bain** » January 26th, 2023, 2:05 pm

adnj wrote:
Les Bain wrote:I have an externally powered hard drive that holds power for a few seconds then gives up. It is backed up online but there are some incidental files aren't that important that weren't backed up.
I also have access to an enclosure.
Can I remove the hard drive and put it into the enclosure, at least to facilitate transfer of those files into a replacement external drive?

So long as your the problem hard drive has an interface that is compatible with the external enclosure, you can use it.

If the problem is the power supply circuit of the original enclosure, you're in luck.

Great, man. Thanks!