What's up everyone?! Which SSD drive would you choose? I hope this review of my favorite M1 Mac SSDs. Did I cover what you wanted to know? What else did you want to see or learn about? If you’re currently using another SSD, please share your experience with me. I am grateful in advance 🙏 (open for more) ⭐️ OWC Envoy Pro EX: geni.us/zl5Y (affiliate) ⭐️ Caldigit Tuff Nano: geni.us/P3w2oET (affiliate) ⭐️ Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD: geni.us/SVlv1 (affiliate) ⭐️ Samsung T7: geni.us/Qpa0ubJ (affiliate) ⭐️ PNY Pro Elite: geni.us/EjF2B (affiliate) ⭐️ Pioneer APS_XS03: geni.us/cFlMm (affiliate)
I know you can’t include them all, but I love my 1TB Samsung Thunderbolt X5. A little pricier because of the Thunderbolt connection, but great speeds and, hey, a Star Trek space-age look to boot! (I also like my 1TB Sandisk Extreme Pro, even though it’s not a Thunderbolt and it doesn’t have such a fancy exterior.)
This helped me out tremendously. I'm awaiting my M1 mini and did a lot of browsing trying to find the right external drive. I read a lot of material and view a lot of videos, but this one (yours) gave me clarity. I also commend you on your straight forward orator capabilities. Looking forward to your next video - thanks!
@@TechGearTalk I have purchased a Samsung T7 for my M1 MacBook Air, but the speed that I am getting on it is pathetic. If I connect the SSD using the USB-C cable that came in the box, the speed reaches upto 45 MB/s and when I use the USB-A cable via a thunderbolt usb hub the speed reaches upto 350 MB/s. Both the speeds are way less than the promised 1000+ MB/s speed. Is there something that I am doing wrong?
I feel like your content is being pushed by the TH-cam algorithm, as your two latest videos were both in my recommended, without me having been a subscriber of your channel, which I am now, so keep up the good work!
you are the only channel i watch that i feel bad if i skip the ads, so i dont. such high quality content and easy to understand way of explaining tech stuff. shout out from the Philippines :)
Thank you for showing external SSDs that are compatible with M1 Macs and M1 Mac Minis, complete with testing! It's so hard to find information on which drives will actually work! 💜
I swear your reading my mind, I was just thinking about the best SSD that I can use along side my computer or iPad Pro. Thanks for the video! I hope some of these goes on sale soon too. xD
Heads up PpL ! I own the sandisk extreme pro 2TB & Samsung T5 2TB. The sandisk gets really warm fast! No LED indicators to know it’s safe to unplug the drive. The Samsung’s got that indicator and stays super cool thru out. Not sure what the T7 run temperature is, if as cool as T5. Better safe than faster by a few MB/s. If this is helpful, pls like this comment so others can easily find it. Sagi, a solid upload as always ✊🏽
Same experience.. I don’t have the the t5 or t7 I had to replace my sandisk drive and the new one is facing the same issue with sequential transfers.. it randomly stops responding 🤦🏾♂️
I have purchased a Samsung T7 for my M1 MacBook Air, but the speed that I am getting on it is pathetic. If I connect the SSD using the USB-C cable that came in the box, the speed reaches upto 45 MB/s and when I use the USB-A cable via a thunderbolt usb hub the speed reaches upto 350 MB/s. Both the speeds are way less than the promised 1000+ MB/s speed. Is there something that I am doing wrong?
Hey I really appreciate this video! Just an extra note (take it or leave it) but possibly slap a deesser on your audio in post as these iPhone speakers are really ssssssing
Super glad it was helpful. Let me mess with my desser settings. Appreciate the feedback 🙏🏻. Can you watch today’s video and see if it’s better (I had already updated them. Thanks!)
FYI: The SanDisk Extreme is a very rugged little drive and only weighs 2oz. I attached one to my 16" M1 Pro MBP on a 4" TB4 cable, configured it as a Time Machine backup disk and just let it dangle. When, a month later I had to send my MBP to Apple for diagnosis and repair, they did a clean MacOS install. 40 minutes from the time I unboxed it on return, I had the apps and data completely restored and was back in business. I don't use it for editing, I use it only for backup 24/7. It works a treat for that.
The difference in speed is down to the fact the OWC is thunderbolt, whereas the others are just USB C. Given ConstantGeekery's work showing the less-than-stellar USB transfer speeds from M1 (including Pro & Max), there was never a contest between Thunderbolt & non-thunderbolt drives Best bet is a Thunderbolt 3 enclosure + nvme drive; upgradable/modular, and you can select drives based on your need, but the hardware/infrastructure will be faster regardless
lmao you're wrong here. there's an issue with M1 Mac's not being able to read external SSD's at their 10gb/s speed. When plugged into an M1 Mac, speeds are slow as 5gb/s. Look it up. there's hundreds of videos out there showing how slow M1 Mac usb speeds are. I'm disappointed because I just bought one and the speeds are slower than my Intel Based computer.
I’ve watched at least a dozen of your vids. Right now, if I have questions/concern about my Mac Mini / iPad, I check out your videos. Your vid’s are top notch for several reason. Hope your “fan base” continues to increase! dlm
I actually had a call with an Apple Support supervisor the other day regarding the SanDisk Extreme Pro (4TB was the one I planned on going for). They say read/write speeds of 2000mb/s, however I saw alot of users (specifically M1/M1 Pro/M1 Max users) complaining that they are only reaching 700-1000mb/s speeds. Apple stated that you'd have to use a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 cable between the computer and the drive in order to achieve these speeds, as the included USB-C cable can only reach 700-1000mb/s. So unless you wanna buy the separate Thunderbolt cable, the Extreme version (speeds of 1000mb/s) is probably your best bet.
So can I install logic and final cut on external ssd of my mac m1 and not using internal space at all? What about things like playing instruments via interface through daw with plugins? Will it affect latency compared to local m1 storage usage?
For me, the best option turned out to be an external enclosure with an NVMe disk. But only very few combos do actually deliver on performance, longeviity, price and temperature. I eventually settled on the Samsung 980 Pro and more importantly, the USB 4.0 aluminium enclosure from Chinese Acasis. The combo is both faster (on a M1 Pro) and cheaper than the OWC and does also work with older USB PCs.
Do these enclosures work good if someone is recording audio with over 70 tracks and lots of plug ins , stopping and starting. Also for someone who needs at least 2 drives one for samples and audio libraries and once for recording the audio, are these good? I'm thinking of getting a new mac studio but need advise on audio drives.
Yes, I agree with that. On M1 MacBook Pro I get 4000-5000 transfer speed with Black Magic, on internal Nvme, and some external Nvme drives can match that. Often best performance is with a particular Nvme, coupled with fast Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 compatible enclosure.
I had problems connecting a Samsung 1Tb EVO, in a UGreen USB C enclosure on M1 MacBook Pro, with any USB C cable, especially with Time Machine, where it would disconnect, and disconnect another partition. It was supplied with USB C to type A cable. However, connecting it to a Hackintosh laptop, with USB 3 works; and am able to write to both partitions from the M1, where the volumes show up on the desktop. Time Machine is a bit slow, but working now. External Nvme on Thunderbolt is better.
What I want to know is what the max possible performance is with the m1's. There's lots of conflicting information that the thunderbolt ports cannot utilize the full speed of the fast drives. I don't want to waste money on a drive that is too fast and I don't trust the reviews or influencers.
Isn't there an updated version of the OWC Envoy Pro EX that uses USB-C? What with those kind of speeds, you could literally use it with a blackmagic design pocket cinema camera 4k, and store RAW footage directly to the drive, then take the drive, and add those RAW files in FCPX, or am I being a bit of a wanker here? The speed alone justifies the usability going from source to computer, unless there's something obvious I'm missing?
Does the Envoy Pro work as external storage for iPhone when you have the adapter? I bought a Samsung T7 touch and it started getting the data corrupted after very little use.
On Amazon, all the internal M2 drives are like, $150 or less, and some of them read/write at around 3500 mbps... The externals are about 150-200 for around 1000 mbps... Isn't this completely backwards? Like there is a kingston internal M2 that does 3500 apparently for $75. What am I missing here?
Hey man, I dig the verbiage on your presentation. Voice tone and speed pleasing to the ears and dedication implied. I’ll be grasping either the T7 or SanDisk models with more terabytes depending on my wallet thickness. My Seagate one touch’s arm can’t handle traveling bumps evidently. Keep up the smooth talk. I was a little tardy, the speech was five months ago, let us know if there’s any more updates on new drives at your convenience. By the way, I pulled the trigger on the bell 🔔.
Yesterday Cody Warner posted a video where he made his own external SSD using an enclosure and a 4TB internal SSD. It sounds super fast for transferring files but would it make a difference in video editing on my 2019 MacBook Pro? After watching your video, I'm having second thoughts.
I have a M1 iMac and and a WD Black P50 4TB external SSD (USB gen2x2, 2000MB/s), but iMac seems don't support USB gen2x2, is there anyway to unleash the speed of that drive on iMac? which thunderbolt 3 dock can support USB gen2x2? thank you!
Shooting 4K, editing in proxy mode, currently using the 2T Sandisk T5, I am running out of space inspite of deleting rendered files. Any suggestions? Thank you for your clear and concise content, beautifully presented.
Very nice line up. If you get time, consider investigating the Sabrent offerings. The Sabrent Rocket XTRM-Q out performs pretty much all of these drives. It has the advantage of being usable with both Thunderbolt and USB-C 3.2.
@@purehoops22 I guess we will never know. more important is if it will still work after mac wakes from sleep. no one wants to reboot just to access the data drive
Good video. Good hedge. So basically the conclusion was: choose the expensive one if you want the best performance, choose the 2 mid-range if want the mid-range performance, and choose one of the two cheaper ones if you don't need high performance. :D
Great video! I have one question tho, i have that sandisk pro 1 tb, but it has 2000mbps speed. On my mac pro m1 16, im getting only 870...so is it the thunderbolt compatibility on the hard disc or is it something else? Cuz this one works perfectly on the PC, but on the mac is waaay slover...i can still work with 4k files fine, but like...i paid for that speed goddamn :/
So I was looking into the Sandisk…which version are you reviewing? I assume the 1st gen? Cause the 1st gen says 1050 MB/s while the newer second gen says 2000 (and is quite a bit more expensive). I was leaning toward the T7 until watching this video, but saw that the new 2nd gen Sandisk Extreme Pro is quite a bit more expensive. They are selling a Sandisk Extreme (not pro) that has a similar price point as the T7 with a rating of 1050 MB/s. I’m wondering if this is basically the “old” pro model and identical to what you reviewed…🤷♂️ lots of questions.
I've just bought mac m1 max in 2024, fast enough for me and thank you for your review. Back to the future about the past. Great review!!! Still! ANd many thanks.
I purchased the Sandisk to act as my TimeMachine. I think this was a mistake. Do you have any guidance on what is best to use as a Time Machine backup? My problem is that I keep getting a warning that the disk wasn't properly ejected. I suspect that the time machine actions of writing and stopping are incompatible with how the portable hard drive is designed. I'm speculating as I'm not a techie, just a good "imaginer." My husband uses my previous Samsung T7 and had to stop because it would run in a loop fashion and he'd have to eject it and eventually gave up. He reformatted it and stopped using it as a backup. It does get pretty hot. My Sandisk case is warm but not significant. The Sandisk does seem to be working as a time machine but it's early days with my Studio. Have I done something improperly or is there an alternative out there I've missed. Thanks for your help. Chris
At first I was confused why Apple was charging $360 to upgrade to a 1 TB SSD. Now I understand. The native SSDs are insane. That being said, I'd rather just use that Sandisk. Probably the best bang for your buck out of all the options here.
I like good design product, but does it make sense to get a drive that looks good but has higher price tag? I like yellow color, that G-Drive Armorlock SSD looks beautiful, rugged and hard encryption are good but just a nice optional addition to what I need now. It is a lot larger than other external SSD, not sure why since they have same rugged SSD that's a lot smaller, not sure it has anything to do with the hardware encryption feature. Should I get it?
Those external hard drives were amazing and fast. I have here my 32gb flash drive and it performs really slow when transferring files from mac to the flash drive. Great video man!
I bought a Samsung T5 1TB a few months ago and I'm quite satisfied with it. I also tried a DIY external drive with an ASUS STRIX Arion enclosure with a Crucial 1TB SSD, which was worth the price and the speed. In this test, as Sandisk has also a good reputation and the speed seems quite right, it could be my next choice. A question though : how to know which one will last longer without crashing/dying ? Thanks for the video !
Appreciate you sharing!!! The larger SSDs have a higher rating in terms of the number of TB that can be written to before any problems happen. I still have never had an SSD die... ever
@Tech Gear Talk, Hello there, and thank you so much for your hard work and great content. What you have been missing though in this test, is the option of putting your own drive together, using a Thunderbolt/USB-C enclosure with a SSD NVMe, we are talking here abt 100-120 USD for a 1Tb drive and abt 30-45 USD for an enclosure. Simple to put together and insane speeds on the Thunderbolt Ports.......for less than a 150 USD - give it a shot ;-)
Would be nice to know what kind of SSD each one was and what controller chip they used and what was the real interface used. Most of this can be found by running the system report (easily found from the about this mac window). Generally, there are four types of connections USB 3.0, 3.1 gen 1, 3.1 gen 2, and Thunderbolt. Would also be nice to know which is using which type of SSD it was the NVMe SSD and the others are probably cheaper slower SSDs. For example, you can buy the OWC Rugged" bits.
Hey man. I'm currently looking into buying the MacBook air m1. Found your review. Subscribed and was happy. In times of biased reviews and fake statements I highly appreciate your review style and honest opinions. Just wanted to say thank you for your content, keep it up! :)
I've a bunch of 1, 2, and 4TB versions of both the Samsung and SanDisks. I've had 2 T7s stop working after a year and a new SanDisk 4TB extreme always disconnects after going to sleep from the MBP M1Max, making it basically useless as a main drive and being impossible to use photos or other content. Perhaps the OCW will be good... but the SSDs are only good for static projects (ie doing a projects in FCPX) or storage/transfer.
Excellent video. Your analyses are very thorough. I have a WD 1T that runs well under $100 and works fine for backing up files. I'm sure it's much slower than most of the drives you reviewed but hard to beat the price point and it includes backup software. Now I need a used car review ... 😅
so would you buy the lowest ssd on the imac and use an external ssd? I am concerned if the remainder memory after installing premiere/lightroom and photoshop will be enough
Many SSD writing speeds slow down dramatically after only 25 percent full using a buffer that can’t keep up. The T7 is an example. This seems like a very important piece of info. Did you test for this?
Really good video! I have a 10 y.o. 1TB drive I use for Time Machine backs and dupes of DVDs (that are backups of work from the last 20 years). I know it's on borrowed time. My deal is I only connect it when I need to TM backup, I never work from it, SO a normal drive would make sense. I'd read about the Sandisk and leaned towards it. Seems like what makes the difference in speed is the Thunderbolt 3 cable vs USB3 that all the others have, is that roughly correct? Apple sells SSDs w/ Thunderbolt 3, and the cost is much more, but that speed, tho. (I know it's not just the cable, but the associated components).
Hi! Thanks for this video. I have one practical question though: how does it refer to viewing photos/movies stored on the external drive? Are there any lags there? And btw do you recommend any specific photo viewer for Mac? Thanks :)
Hi there. I'm a bit late to the conversation...I just got a 16" 1pro and I need an external SSD to edit videos -mostly 1080p or 4k from a Sony a6400/a7iii so nothing too heavy really...I connected the M1pro to my thunderbolt 2 Lacie 20TB and it works fine (with the adapter) but I need something reliable and on the cheap side to edit on location-short videos- Same day edit or so...I found this: SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable SSD - Up to 1050MB/s - USB-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 -will this work with my M1pro to edit with Premiere Pro? Rendering in4k H.264 will be fine? This one looks affordable...thanks!
Hey man, im using two of sandisk ssd-s for editing, u can do everything without a problem on m1. The only problem is the speed, i got the one with 2000mbps and i was able to get only 870 on mac...dunno why, but its enought speed to work with 4k files...even the hard ones like from the a7IV 10 bit 4.2.2 :D
The USB-C ports on M1 macs does not support the full 10Gbps speed. To make full advantage of the USB-C ports, a USB 4 drive is the best option. Unfortunately, one has to build such drives manually and the parts are so expensive. It is so frustrating to buy an external ssd for Apple silicone macs.
I wonder how the $79 OWC Envoy Express enclosure with an NVMe SSD would perform. OWC says the Envoy Express supports 1553MB/s throughput. You can put any size SSD you want in it. I bought this and a 2TB SSD for a little over $300.
Question: I have the Snadisk Extreme Pro, the 2018 11” iPad Pro and I’m using LumaFusion to edit 4k footage from my Mavic Air2 drone. I thought I could edit (in real-time ) from the external drive but that’s not the case. So what should I use the Sandisk for. P.S. I am now a subscriber and I really love your content. Keep up the great work.
Is it true that you need a special cable for the San Disk Extreme Pro to maximize the speed? In reading the comments on the B&H site about this drive - this appears to be the case. (BTW LOVE your stuff!!) Newbie and now follower/fan.
If I connect one of these SSDs to M1 MBA, will it see the drive as external (as a separate drive)? Or can I set it up to have the drive function as an internal drive combined to the existing SSD as a single higher-capacity drive? The reason I'm asking this is because I'm considering whether it is worth upgrading 256 gigs to 516 gigs with Apple's pricey upgrade.
Wondering what speed does Samsung S22 Ultra have compared to T5 & T7 Would be better to get a SSD, so when I transfer it would be as fast as my SSD on my Phone
Great comparison. Did you plug all of these directly into the MacBook for the test, or into a hub? The reason why I asked was I saw another reviewer plug external drives in to an external thunderbolt (powered hub-maybe the OWC model) and the external drive speed was higher than directly into the Mac.
I am new subscriber, have been enjoying your videos. After watching this SSD performance videos, my interest was sparked. I have a iPad 8th gen, can I use the Samsung T5 with it?
This was terrific and very helpful. However it looks like Owc has discontinued the one terabyte model. Any recommendation of an alternative from them? The rugged part isn’t mandatory but don’t know if the others would perform as well
Thanks for your video. Answered my question from a few days ago. I have the Samsung T7, 2 TB. Been using that on my iMac. Was easy to setup. Not certain if 10 to 20 seconds faster for what you were doing makes a big difference to the average user. I can see if you are a heavy user it could make a difference. Interesting how the highest read/write speeds only shaves off around 10 seconds. Perhaps in real life applications, speed may not be as significant as on might think.
Hey could you tell me what speeds do you get on black magic speed test? I should be able to get around 900 but i only get around 700...as shown in this video...isnt it weird ?
What's up everyone?! Which SSD drive would you choose? I hope this review of my favorite M1 Mac SSDs. Did I cover what you wanted to know? What else did you want to see or learn about?
If you’re currently using another SSD, please share your experience with me. I am grateful in advance 🙏 (open for more)
⭐️ OWC Envoy Pro EX: geni.us/zl5Y (affiliate)
⭐️ Caldigit Tuff Nano: geni.us/P3w2oET (affiliate)
⭐️ Sandisk Extreme Pro SSD: geni.us/SVlv1 (affiliate)
⭐️ Samsung T7: geni.us/Qpa0ubJ (affiliate)
⭐️ PNY Pro Elite: geni.us/EjF2B (affiliate)
⭐️ Pioneer APS_XS03: geni.us/cFlMm (affiliate)
I would choose the Samsung T7.
Owc
Wonder how the LaCie rugged SSD pro (thunderbolt 3) would have stacked up. Transfer rates up to 2800mb/s. Thoughts, Sagi?
I have the Samsung T5 and haven’t had any issues.
I know you can’t include them all, but I love my 1TB Samsung Thunderbolt X5. A little pricier because of the Thunderbolt connection, but great speeds and, hey, a Star Trek space-age look to boot! (I also like my 1TB Sandisk Extreme Pro, even though it’s not a Thunderbolt and it doesn’t have such a fancy exterior.)
Thank you David Schwimmer.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
😂
I'm dead 😁
😂😂😂
We were on a break!
I like how you included the speed of the internal drive on your speed comparison chart. That was some key information I needed to see. Thanks!
You have absolutely sold me on the Sandisk. Thank you for this extremely descriptive and visual representation. Subscribed!
This helped me out tremendously. I'm awaiting my M1 mini and did a lot of browsing trying to find the right external drive. I read a lot of material and view a lot of videos, but this one (yours) gave me clarity. I also commend you on your straight forward orator capabilities. Looking forward to your next video - thanks!
I really appreciate you taking the time to watch and for the kind words. Thank you for joining the community 🙏
@@TechGearTalk I have purchased a Samsung T7 for my M1 MacBook Air, but the speed that I am getting on it is pathetic.
If I connect the SSD using the USB-C cable that came in the box, the speed reaches upto 45 MB/s and when I use the USB-A cable via a thunderbolt usb hub the speed reaches upto 350 MB/s. Both the speeds are way less than the promised 1000+ MB/s speed.
Is there something that I am doing wrong?
You have an uncanny habit of answering the questions I'm facing. Thank you for doing the work to inform and educate us.
So glad I could help!
It's uncanny how when I go to the weather channel I always get information about the weather. It blows my mind every time.
Yes
@@craigdgriffiths6206 That's cute but that's obviously not what he meant.
Can we get an updated video? some of these are discontinued. Would love to only see Thunderbolt/USB 4 SSDs
Good idea!
@@TechGearTalk I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the Sabrent Rocket & Atom Glyph External SSDs too!
I feel like your content is being pushed by the TH-cam algorithm, as your two latest videos were both in my recommended, without me having been a subscriber of your channel, which I am now, so keep up the good work!
Super glad you found it. Thanks for being part of the channel!
you are the only channel i watch that i feel bad if i skip the ads, so i dont. such high quality content and easy to understand way of explaining tech stuff. shout out from the Philippines :)
"Speed is just a question of money - How fast can you go."
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior
Nice!
hey man, just a quick audio processing suggestions > use a de-esser, it’s a little difficult to listen to the audio for long.
Thanks! I’ve updated my audio workflow - let me know what you think about one of the recent videos.
Thank you for showing external SSDs that are compatible with M1 Macs and M1 Mac Minis, complete with testing! It's so hard to find information on which drives will actually work! 💜
So glad I could help. Thank you for being part of the channel!
Pretty much ANY external SSD will work with an M1 Mac
I swear your reading my mind, I was just thinking about the best SSD that I can use along side my computer or iPad Pro. Thanks for the video! I hope some of these goes on sale soon too. xD
Appreciate you sharing. Glad I could help.
*you're (contraction of "YOU aRE")
"Your" is for possession.
Heads up PpL !
I own the sandisk extreme pro 2TB & Samsung T5 2TB. The sandisk gets really warm fast! No LED indicators to know it’s safe to unplug the drive. The Samsung’s got that indicator and stays super cool thru out. Not sure what the T7 run temperature is, if as cool as T5. Better safe than faster by a few MB/s. If this is helpful, pls like this comment so others can easily find it. Sagi, a solid upload as always ✊🏽
good to know thx
Agreed. Thanks for sharing. Gives me something to think about.
*throughout
Same experience.. I don’t have the the t5 or t7 I had to replace my sandisk drive and the new one is facing the same issue with sequential transfers.. it randomly stops responding 🤦🏾♂️
I have purchased a Samsung T7 for my M1 MacBook Air, but the speed that I am getting on it is pathetic.
If I connect the SSD using the USB-C cable that came in the box, the speed reaches upto 45 MB/s and when I use the USB-A cable via a thunderbolt usb hub the speed reaches upto 350 MB/s. Both the speeds are way less than the promised 1000+ MB/s speed.
Is there something that I am doing wrong?
I’d pick the Sandisk out of all. Good all rounder
I'd like to hear more, just generally curious.
I agree with that
Good job that Samsungs one may get scratched.🙂
I just bought it thankyou ☺
I got the Sandisk and it doesn’t work on my Mac m1 air - even after reformatting it seems to not read/write properly! Have you found this? 😔😭
Hey I really appreciate this video!
Just an extra note (take it or leave it) but possibly slap a deesser on your audio in post as these iPhone speakers are really ssssssing
Super glad it was helpful. Let me mess with my desser settings. Appreciate the feedback 🙏🏻. Can you watch today’s video and see if it’s better (I had already updated them. Thanks!)
@@TechGearTalk definitely at least a bit better! (I've been having issues with my s's recently too hence why maybe I was just super clued in haha)
👍🏻
Bro, can you use a little bit les deesser on your channel though? Evnin Edinger channel sounds like you have a lisp.
Stumbled across your channel, and it is an instant favorite. Concise, quick, comprehensive reviews. Great stuff!
FYI: The SanDisk Extreme is a very rugged little drive and only weighs 2oz. I attached one to my 16" M1 Pro MBP on a 4" TB4 cable, configured it as a Time Machine backup disk and just let it dangle. When, a month later I had to send my MBP to Apple for diagnosis and repair, they did a clean MacOS install. 40 minutes from the time I unboxed it on return, I had the apps and data completely restored and was back in business. I don't use it for editing, I use it only for backup 24/7. It works a treat for that.
The difference in speed is down to the fact the OWC is thunderbolt, whereas the others are just USB C.
Given ConstantGeekery's work showing the less-than-stellar USB transfer speeds from M1 (including Pro & Max), there was never a contest between Thunderbolt & non-thunderbolt drives
Best bet is a Thunderbolt 3 enclosure + nvme drive; upgradable/modular, and you can select drives based on your need, but the hardware/infrastructure will be faster regardless
usb 3.2 gen 2 just support 10gbit speed roughly 1GBps you need usb 3.2 gen2x2 for 20gbit or usb4 which is more expensive then thunderbolt really
lmao you're wrong here. there's an issue with M1 Mac's not being able to read external SSD's at their 10gb/s speed. When plugged into an M1 Mac, speeds are slow as 5gb/s. Look it up. there's hundreds of videos out there showing how slow M1 Mac usb speeds are. I'm disappointed because I just bought one and the speeds are slower than my Intel Based computer.
@@BryanMiraflorTry formatting the external drive to APFS, in most cases the speed increases from the previous
I’ve watched at least a dozen of your vids. Right now, if I have questions/concern about my Mac Mini / iPad, I check out your videos. Your vid’s are top notch for several reason. Hope your “fan base” continues to increase! dlm
I actually had a call with an Apple Support supervisor the other day regarding the SanDisk Extreme Pro (4TB was the one I planned on going for). They say read/write speeds of 2000mb/s, however I saw alot of users (specifically M1/M1 Pro/M1 Max users) complaining that they are only reaching 700-1000mb/s speeds. Apple stated that you'd have to use a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 cable between the computer and the drive in order to achieve these speeds, as the included USB-C cable can only reach 700-1000mb/s. So unless you wanna buy the separate Thunderbolt cable, the Extreme version (speeds of 1000mb/s) is probably your best bet.
So can I install logic and final cut on external ssd of my mac m1 and not using internal space at all? What about things like playing instruments via interface through daw with plugins? Will it affect latency compared to local m1 storage usage?
For me, the best option turned out to be an external enclosure with an NVMe disk. But only very few combos do actually deliver on performance, longeviity, price and temperature. I eventually settled on the Samsung 980 Pro and more importantly, the USB 4.0 aluminium enclosure from Chinese Acasis. The combo is both faster (on a M1 Pro) and cheaper than the OWC and does also work with older USB PCs.
Do these enclosures work good if someone is recording audio with over 70 tracks and lots of plug ins , stopping and starting. Also for someone who needs at least 2 drives one for samples and audio libraries and once for recording the audio, are these good? I'm thinking of getting a new mac studio but need advise on audio drives.
Yes, I agree with that. On M1 MacBook Pro I get 4000-5000 transfer speed with Black Magic, on internal Nvme, and some external Nvme drives can match that. Often best performance is with a particular Nvme, coupled with fast Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 compatible enclosure.
I had problems connecting a Samsung 1Tb EVO, in a UGreen USB C enclosure on M1 MacBook Pro, with any USB C cable, especially with Time Machine, where it would disconnect, and disconnect another partition. It was supplied with USB C to type A cable. However, connecting it to a Hackintosh laptop, with USB 3 works; and am able to write to both partitions from the M1, where the volumes show up on the desktop. Time Machine is a bit slow, but working now. External Nvme on Thunderbolt is better.
@@michaelbouckley4455 You realize I talked about an Acasis USB4 enclosure, not UGreen ...
What I want to know is what the max possible performance is with the m1's. There's lots of conflicting information that the thunderbolt ports cannot utilize the full speed of the fast drives. I don't want to waste money on a drive that is too fast and I don't trust the reviews or influencers.
Isn't there an updated version of the OWC Envoy Pro EX that uses USB-C? What with those kind of speeds, you could literally use it with a blackmagic design pocket cinema camera 4k, and store RAW footage directly to the drive, then take the drive, and add those RAW files in FCPX, or am I being a bit of a wanker here? The speed alone justifies the usability going from source to computer, unless there's something obvious I'm missing?
Does the Envoy Pro work as external storage for iPhone when you have the adapter? I bought a Samsung T7 touch and it started getting the data corrupted after very little use.
On Amazon, all the internal M2 drives are like, $150 or less, and some of them read/write at around 3500 mbps... The externals are about 150-200 for around 1000 mbps... Isn't this completely backwards? Like there is a kingston internal M2 that does 3500 apparently for $75. What am I missing here?
Hey man, I dig the verbiage on your presentation. Voice tone and speed pleasing to the ears and dedication implied. I’ll be grasping either the T7 or SanDisk models with more terabytes depending on my wallet thickness. My Seagate one touch’s arm can’t handle traveling bumps evidently. Keep up the smooth talk. I was a little tardy, the speech was five months ago, let us know if there’s any more updates on new drives at your convenience. By the way, I pulled the trigger on the bell 🔔.
Love to see an updated version of this, with larger drive sizes.
I have the Samsung drive. I love it! Another fantastic video Sagi! 😎🔥🔥🔥
It's such a good value! Thanks brother!
I do have a question might be crazy . I’m new the MacBook world . I have a MacBook Air with m1 all of these will fit right
What cable was used?
The sandisc extreme pro should have been alot faster than the samsung T7 with 2000 read/ write speed.
I think this video just convinced me to buy more internal storage... that Mac SSD is fast!
Hi Rob - the Mac SSD is incredibly fast!
Saw this video after purchase air with 256gb.
Yesterday Cody Warner posted a video where he made his own external SSD using an enclosure and a 4TB internal SSD. It sounds super fast for transferring files but would it make a difference in video editing on my 2019 MacBook Pro? After watching your video, I'm having second thoughts.
I have a M1 iMac and and a WD Black P50 4TB external SSD (USB gen2x2, 2000MB/s), but iMac seems don't support USB gen2x2, is there anyway to unleash the speed of that drive on iMac? which thunderbolt 3 dock can support USB gen2x2? thank you!
I have an ipad pro 2021 and no other mac computer - Do I need to format the sandisk or samsung SSD before using on my ipad?
Shooting 4K, editing in proxy mode, currently using the 2T Sandisk T5, I am running out of space inspite of deleting rendered files. Any suggestions? Thank you for your clear and concise content, beautifully presented.
Really enjoy the format you use! Goes straight to the information that I'm looking for. Will definitely subscribe. Keep doing what you're doing 👍
Very nice line up. If you get time, consider investigating the Sabrent offerings. The Sabrent Rocket XTRM-Q out performs pretty much all of these drives. It has the advantage of being usable with both Thunderbolt and USB-C 3.2.
Thanks Michael - appreciate the suggestion!
Hey Michael, what is the transfer speed like on those?
Specifically with video editing.
@@purehoops22 I guess we will never know. more important is if it will still work after mac wakes from sleep.
no one wants to reboot just to access the data drive
Good video. Good hedge. So basically the conclusion was: choose the expensive one if you want the best performance, choose the 2 mid-range if want the mid-range performance, and choose one of the two cheaper ones if you don't need high performance. :D
What is the best ssd ?
Crucial X8 4TB Portable SSD or the SanDisk 4TB
Extreme Portable SSD , a ssd with out any
heat & broken issues for the future .
Great video! I have one question tho, i have that sandisk pro 1 tb, but it has 2000mbps speed. On my mac pro m1 16, im getting only 870...so is it the thunderbolt compatibility on the hard disc or is it something else? Cuz this one works perfectly on the PC, but on the mac is waaay slover...i can still work with 4k files fine, but like...i paid for that speed goddamn :/
Great video & test. Sandisk user here and been happy with them.
Appreciate the kind words and you sharing with the community
How are you recording your audio? What's your mic set up look like, would be curious to see that.
So I was looking into the Sandisk…which version are you reviewing? I assume the 1st gen? Cause the 1st gen says 1050 MB/s while the newer second gen says 2000 (and is quite a bit more expensive).
I was leaning toward the T7 until watching this video, but saw that the new 2nd gen Sandisk Extreme Pro is quite a bit more expensive. They are selling a Sandisk Extreme (not pro) that has a similar price point as the T7 with a rating of 1050 MB/s. I’m wondering if this is basically the “old” pro model and identical to what you reviewed…🤷♂️ lots of questions.
I've just bought mac m1 max in 2024, fast enough for me and thank you for your review. Back to the future about the past. Great review!!! Still! ANd many thanks.
I purchased the Sandisk to act as my TimeMachine. I think this was a mistake. Do you have any guidance on what is best to use as a Time Machine backup? My problem is that I keep getting a warning that the disk wasn't properly ejected. I suspect that the time machine actions of writing and stopping are incompatible with how the portable hard drive is designed. I'm speculating as I'm not a techie, just a good "imaginer." My husband uses my previous Samsung T7 and had to stop because it would run in a loop fashion and he'd have to eject it and eventually gave up. He reformatted it and stopped using it as a backup. It does get pretty hot. My Sandisk case is warm but not significant. The Sandisk does seem to be working as a time machine but it's early days with my Studio. Have I done something improperly or is there an alternative out there I've missed. Thanks for your help. Chris
At first I was confused why Apple was charging $360 to upgrade to a 1 TB SSD. Now I understand. The native SSDs are insane.
That being said, I'd rather just use that Sandisk. Probably the best bang for your buck out of all the options here.
mm that's not the case, the external ssd's are as fast or more than the internal, it's just that their performance is being limited by the m1 chip.
I like good design product, but does it make sense to get a drive that looks good but has higher price tag? I like yellow color, that G-Drive Armorlock SSD looks beautiful, rugged and hard encryption are good but just a nice optional addition to what I need now. It is a lot larger than other external SSD, not sure why since they have same rugged SSD that's a lot smaller, not sure it has anything to do with the hardware encryption feature. Should I get it?
Those external hard drives were amazing and fast. I have here my 32gb flash drive and it performs really slow when transferring files from mac to the flash drive. Great video man!
Hey man I can’t find a 1tb available. I just found the envoy pro fx is it any better or worse than the one you recommended??
I bought a Samsung T5 1TB a few months ago and I'm quite satisfied with it. I also tried a DIY external drive with an ASUS STRIX Arion enclosure with a Crucial 1TB SSD, which was worth the price and the speed. In this test, as Sandisk has also a good reputation and the speed seems quite right, it could be my next choice. A question though : how to know which one will last longer without crashing/dying ?
Thanks for the video !
Appreciate you sharing!!! The larger SSDs have a higher rating in terms of the number of TB that can be written to before any problems happen. I still have never had an SSD die... ever
On all of the test where does gaming place in those? Im planning on buying an external ssd and place my steam games there
What about upgrading the 8 GB to 16 GB of RAM, when purchasing an M1 Mac Mini? Thank you. I mainly work with docs.
8gb will be plenty especially with the new M1 chip. 16gb only if you’re doing heavy video editing and even then not necessary
@Tech Gear Talk, Hello there, and thank you so much for your hard work and great content. What you have been missing though in this test, is the option of putting your own drive together, using a Thunderbolt/USB-C enclosure with a SSD NVMe, we are talking here abt 100-120 USD for a 1Tb drive and abt 30-45 USD for an enclosure. Simple to put together and insane speeds on the Thunderbolt Ports.......for less than a 150 USD - give it a shot ;-)
Hey, do you know about any changes with SanDisk? It's seems like it went up a lot in price, but there is a new Extreme without "pro"
They came out with one that’s twice as fast. See if you’re looking at one that says V2
@@TechGearTalk I got that one, just left a comment here...on m1 chips im getting only 870 from 2000! Its like double slower...on pc works fine.
What about now? Which is the best in 2023? Thanks, greetings. 😊
Hey Sagi, its an amazing video... The way presentation in charts are absolutely insane 🔥... Keep creating like this charts for upcoming videos also 👍
Thanks so much! Appreciate you sharing the feedback!
Would be nice to know what kind of SSD each one was and what controller chip they used and what was the real interface used. Most of this can be found by running the system report (easily found from the about this mac window). Generally, there are four types of connections USB 3.0, 3.1 gen 1, 3.1 gen 2, and Thunderbolt. Would also be nice to know which is using which type of SSD it was the NVMe SSD and the others are probably cheaper slower SSDs. For example, you can buy the OWC Rugged" bits.
this is my 1st video ever watched, and i subbed.
Hey man.
I'm currently looking into buying the MacBook air m1. Found your review. Subscribed and was happy.
In times of biased reviews and fake statements I highly appreciate your review style and honest opinions.
Just wanted to say thank you for your content, keep it up! :)
I'm so grateful that you took the time to leave feedback - means a lot to me. Appreciate you being part of the community!
I'm surprised you didn't show a Lacie drive?
And, you never showed us the interface that comes with each drive...are they user friendly?
Why no test of the Sabrent Rocket XTRM-Q 1TB? It's smaller, lighter and considerably cheaper than the OWC but still with Thunderbolt 3 speeds.
Got the studio on order - is there one that runs with a thunderbolt 4 connection please
Hi. "SamsungPortableSSD Software 1.7.4" is released. Did you update? What is your ssd speed? (Samsung T7 + M1)
I've a bunch of 1, 2, and 4TB versions of both the Samsung and SanDisks.
I've had 2 T7s stop working after a year and a new SanDisk 4TB extreme always disconnects after going to sleep from the MBP M1Max, making it basically useless as a main drive and being impossible to use photos or other content. Perhaps the OCW will be good... but the SSDs are only good for static projects (ie doing a projects in FCPX) or storage/transfer.
Excellent video. Your analyses are very thorough. I have a WD 1T that runs well under $100 and works fine for backing up files. I'm sure it's much slower than most of the drives you reviewed but hard to beat the price point and it includes backup software.
Now I need a used car review ... 😅
Great work! What speed do you need if you are editing ProRes or Braw off it in FCP or DaVinci?
so would you buy the lowest ssd on the imac and use an external ssd?
I am concerned if the remainder memory after installing premiere/lightroom and photoshop will be enough
Great comparison test. Would you consider testing some external nVme SSDs as well? Thanks.
The OWC is an external NVMe (same as the drive inside the M1) which is why it's so much faster than the other SATA based drives.
Many SSD writing speeds slow down dramatically after only 25 percent full using a buffer that can’t keep up. The T7 is an example. This seems like a very important piece of info. Did you test for this?
great video!!! really clear and thanks for just going to the results rather than showing the program test 😄 Subscribed ✅
Really good video! I have a 10 y.o. 1TB drive I use for Time Machine backs and dupes of DVDs (that are backups of work from the last 20 years). I know it's on borrowed time. My deal is I only connect it when I need to TM backup, I never work from it, SO a normal drive would make sense. I'd read about the Sandisk and leaned towards it. Seems like what makes the difference in speed is the Thunderbolt 3 cable vs USB3 that all the others have, is that roughly correct? Apple sells SSDs w/ Thunderbolt 3, and the cost is much more, but that speed, tho. (I know it's not just the cable, but the associated components).
Hi! Thanks for this video. I have one practical question though: how does it refer to viewing photos/movies stored on the external drive? Are there any lags there? And btw do you recommend any specific photo viewer for Mac? Thanks :)
@TechGearTalk Can you tell me please what song is playing on the intro?
Hi there. I'm a bit late to the conversation...I just got a 16" 1pro and I need an external SSD to edit videos -mostly 1080p or 4k from a Sony a6400/a7iii so nothing too heavy
really...I connected the M1pro to my thunderbolt 2 Lacie 20TB and it works fine (with the adapter) but I need something reliable and on the cheap side to edit on location-short videos- Same day edit or so...I found this: SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable SSD - Up to 1050MB/s - USB-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2 -will this work with my M1pro to edit with Premiere Pro?
Rendering in4k H.264 will be fine? This one looks affordable...thanks!
Hey man, im using two of sandisk ssd-s for editing, u can do everything without a problem on m1. The only problem is the speed, i got the one with 2000mbps and i was able to get only 870 on mac...dunno why, but its enought speed to work with 4k files...even the hard ones like from the a7IV 10 bit 4.2.2 :D
Binge watching your channel, great heads up for hardware and software. Love the content. subbed!!!
I really appreciate you taking the time to watch and for the kind words. Thank you for joining the community 🙏
The USB-C ports on M1 macs does not support the full 10Gbps speed. To make full advantage of the USB-C ports, a USB 4 drive is the best option. Unfortunately, one has to build such drives manually and the parts are so expensive. It is so frustrating to buy an external ssd for Apple silicone macs.
So what’s best the T7 portable or touch one?
And should i wait for a newer one or go with one T7?
I wonder how the $79 OWC Envoy Express enclosure with an NVMe SSD would perform. OWC says the Envoy Express supports 1553MB/s throughput. You can put any size SSD you want in it. I bought this and a 2TB SSD for a little over $300.
Question: I have the Snadisk Extreme Pro, the 2018 11” iPad Pro and I’m using LumaFusion to edit 4k footage from my Mavic Air2 drone. I thought I could edit (in real-time ) from the external drive but that’s not the case. So what should I use the Sandisk for.
P.S. I am now a subscriber and I really love your content. Keep up the great work.
Hello sir, can I use the external SSD for performing App development in case my internal storage gets full?
Is it true that you need a special cable for the San Disk Extreme Pro to maximize the speed? In reading the comments on the B&H site about this drive - this appears to be the case. (BTW LOVE your stuff!!) Newbie and now follower/fan.
If I connect one of these SSDs to M1 MBA, will it see the drive as external (as a separate drive)? Or can I set it up to have the drive function as an internal drive combined to the existing SSD as a single higher-capacity drive?
The reason I'm asking this is because I'm considering whether it is worth upgrading 256 gigs to 516 gigs with Apple's pricey upgrade.
It’s an external drive (separate)
Do you ended up upgrading?
For the m2 MacBook Air what would you suggest?
Literally the video I was looking for thanks!
Glad I could help!
Pardon my asking, but did you have your comparison charts animated or did you use a software for that?
i wish you included the speed of the mac mini stand/hub ssd or nvme connected by (usbc?)
With M1 MBA I got 600R/W on T7 with ExFat format and 700R/W with AFSP.
How can I improve performance?
my 2019 Mac has an intel processor not m1, will the Samsung or sandisk still work for me? :(
I subscribed a few days back and man I am loving this channel. Excellent content and love the way you handle the dilemma most of us consumers have.
I'm so glad my approach is being helpful. Appreciate you being part of the channel!
Wondering what speed does Samsung S22 Ultra have compared to T5 & T7
Would be better to get a SSD, so when I transfer it would be as fast as my SSD on my Phone
Great comparison. Did you plug all of these directly into the MacBook for the test, or into a hub? The reason why I asked was I saw another reviewer plug external drives in to an external thunderbolt (powered hub-maybe the OWC model) and the external drive speed was higher than directly into the Mac.
Hi Eric. I went directly into the Mac as this would be the way I expect the majority of users would use them.
@@TechGearTalk Thanks. I might get the Sandisk Extreme Pro or the new Sabrent External drive
Please do a video on whether its better to use a mac plugged in or on battery (in relation to issue of battery cycle counts)
I am new subscriber, have been enjoying your videos. After watching this SSD performance videos, my interest was sparked. I have a iPad 8th gen, can I use the Samsung T5 with it?
I like how you presented the data in the figure. What application did you use to produce such excellent bar graph?
What would you recommend for an iMac 2015? Thanks
This was terrific and very helpful. However it looks like Owc has discontinued the one terabyte model. Any recommendation of an alternative from them? The rugged part isn’t mandatory but don’t know if the others would perform as well
What if my ssd on my macbook died can I use this external drive to still use my mac.?
This video is so helpful and professionally put together. Thank you!
Thank you so much for the kind words 🙏 Appreciate you being part of the channel!
Thanks for your video. Answered my question from a few days ago.
I have the Samsung T7, 2 TB. Been using that on my iMac. Was easy to setup. Not certain if 10 to 20 seconds faster for what you were doing makes a big difference to the average user. I can see if you are a heavy user it could make a difference. Interesting how the highest read/write speeds only shaves off around 10 seconds. Perhaps in real life applications, speed may not be as significant as on might think.
Hey could you tell me what speeds do you get on black magic speed test?
I should be able to get around 900 but i only get around 700...as shown in this video...isnt it weird ?