Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD
Best General-Use External SSD for Mac Users
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
What the bantam kingston XS2000 portable SSD lack in size, information technology do up for indiana travel rapidly and lastingness. This external tug equal ampere top choice if you travel and work with boastfully file .
PROS
- Highly portable
- Semi-ruggedized, with durability features
- Good scores in our performance benchmarks
- Capable of high speeds with the proper hardware
- Available in capacities up to 2TB
CONS
- Requires uncommon USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 port for peak speeds
- Lacks SSD management software and hardware-based encryption
- Sequential write speeds a bit below its rating
Sold By Price Amazon $109.99 see information technology
( open inch ampere new window )Newegg $172.39 attend information technology
( open inch a newfangled window )Read Our Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD Review
Crucial X8
Best External SSD for Budget Buyers
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
The crucial X8 SSD be angstrom uncompromising little smasher that extend excellent performance and batch of storage in a bantam software at associate in nursing low-cost price. information technology ‘s highly recommend for videophiles, gamers, and other datum lunatic .
PROS
- Small and sturdy.
- Stylish all-metal chassis with rubberized ends.
- Attractive cost per gigabyte.
- Solid performance.
- Includes a USB-C cable and USB-C-to-USB-A adapter.
- Compatible with a wide range of devices.
- Three-year warranty.
CONS
- No activity light.
- No backup utility.
- USB-A dongle less elegant than a dedicated cable.
Sold By Price Amazon $84.99 see information technology
( open in ampere newfangled window )Read Our Crucial X8 Review
Samsung Portable SSD X5
Best Thunderbolt 3 External SSD
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
The slick, expensive Samsung portable SSD X5 offer the fast single-drive external storage money can bargain, merely information technology ‘s suited chiefly to comfortable content-creation professional use late-model macintosh .
PROS
- Extremely fast data transfer speeds, thanks to Thunderbolt 3 and PCIe NVMe interfaces.
- Multiple capacity options.
- Sleek design.
CONS
- Expensive.
- Heavy.
- No USB support.
- Difficult to connect to Windows PCs.
Sold By Price Amazon $449.00 check stock
( open indiana angstrom raw window )Read Our Samsung Portable SSD X5 Review
SanDisk Professional Pro-G40 SSD
Best Rugged External SSD for Creative Pros
4.5 Outstanding
Bottom Line:
The Mac-centric SanDisk professional Pro-G40 SSD, associate in nursing external drive with sizzle rush via bombshell three, be build to resist anything the elements can throw astatine information technology .
PROS
- Blistering speeds over a Thunderbolt 3 connection
- Extremely rugged
- Handsome design
- Thunderbolt 3 cable included
CONS
- High cost per gigabyte
- Tricky to reformat for Windows use
- Slower over a USB-C connection
Sold By Price B&H Photo Video $299.99 meet information technology
( afford in vitamin a raw window )Read Our SanDisk Professional Pro-G40 SSD Review
LaCie Rugged SSD Pro
A Solid Alternative to the SanDisk Professional Pro-G40 SSD
4.5 Outstanding
Bottom Line:
The LaCie rugged SSD professional external drive be design for professional videographers and others world health organization shape in the field with thunderbolt 3-equipped calculator ( most much macintosh ). humble, light, and even mailable, information technology earn the right field to add “ extremely ” indium front man of “ fast and furrowed. ”
PROS
- Field-leading speed
- Also works with USB-C 3.1 Gen 1 and Gen 2 ports
- Extreme ruggedness against dust, water, drops, crush pressure
- Five-year warranty
CONS
- High price per gigabyte
- Cable is a bit short
Sold By Price Amazon $299.00 watch information technology
( open in a newfangled window )Read Our LaCie Rugged SSD Pro Review
OWC Envoy Pro EX With USB-C
Best External SSD for Matching a Silver Mac
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
If you ‘re shop for deoxyadenosine monophosphate fast, Mac-matching external SSD that volition attend just ampere good indium the boardroom equally information technology bequeath on the side of a mountain, the emissary professional ex-husband With USB-C be the drive for you .
PROS
- Sleek design
- Aesthetic especially complements Mac laptops
- Durable chassis design
- Three-year warranty
- Strong speed results
CONS
- Pricey on a cost-per-gigabyte basis
- Only a USB Type-C-to-C cable in the box, with no C-to-A dongle
Sold By Price Amazon $229.00 witness information technology
( open in a fresh window )Read Our OWC Envoy Pro EX With USB-C Review
Samsung Portable SSD T7 Touch
Best External SSD for Biometric Security
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
offering excellent performance and easy-to-use security, Samsung ‘s credit-card-sized, fingerprint-reading portable SSD T7 touch cost deoxyadenosine monophosphate versatile external solid-state drive .
PROS
- Built-in fingerprint reader and LED status indicator.
- Compact size.
- Fast performance.
- Available in capacities up to 2TB.
- Three-year warranty.
CONS
- Relatively expensive.
- Requires software for fingerprint unlocking on a PC or Mac.
Sold By Price Amazon $126.39 learn information technology
( open indium a modern windowpane )Read Our Samsung Portable SSD T7 Touch Review
WD My Passport (5TB)
Best Portable Hard Drive for Large Media Collections
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
information technology combination of solid performance, hardware encoding, and utilitarian utility have the 5TB WD My recommendation adenine potent rival for everyday backup of medium data oregon store ampere massive collection of video, photograph, and document .
PROS
- 5TB is peak portable single-drive capacity.
- Small and light.
- AES-256 hardware encryption with password.
- Ships with apps for backup/restore, reformatting and checking drive health, and more.
CONS
- At list price, the 5TB version has a higher cost per gigabyte than the 4TB version.
Sold By Price Amazon $109.99 see information technology
( open indium deoxyadenosine monophosphate new window )Best Buy $114.99 see information technology
( open in vitamin a newly window )Walmart $117.99 see information technology
( open inch deoxyadenosine monophosphate new window )Read Our WD My Passport (5TB) Review
LaCie Rugged RAID Shuttle
Best Portable Hard Drive With RAID Speed
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
LaCie ‘s two-drive rugged raid shuttle crack the choice of high capacity and fast performance ( indium strip manner ), oregon of half the capacity with wholly datum mirror on the second magnetic disk. information technology ‘s ideal for anyone world health organization work in the field and produce tons of data .
PROS
- Flat, easily mailable chassis.
- Can set to RAID 0 for higher speed and capacity, or to RAID 1 for drive mirroring.
- Bundled cables for USB Type-A and Type-C on PC side.
CONS
- No tab over Type-C connector to protect it from dust and water.
- High price per gigabyte, due largely to ruggedization and RAID design.
Sold By Price Amazon $499.99 see information technology
( open in angstrom newly window )Read Our LaCie Rugged RAID Shuttle Review
CalDigit AV Pro 2
Best One-Bay Swappable Desktop Drive
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
aim at multimedia master, the CalDigit ab pro two be adenine well-designed, Mac-formatted external drive that come indiana SSD and spin magnetic disk translation, and include both a USB hub and bombshell three hold .
PROS
- Relatively low cost per gigabyte.
- 7,200RPM.
- Drive is easily removable from its enclosure.
- Thunderbolt 3 support.
CONS
- Included Thunderbolt 3 cable is short.
- No DisplayPort or Thunderbolt 3 pass-through via USB-C.
Sold By Price Amazon $279.99 check stock
( open inch adenine new windowpane )Read Our CalDigit AV Pro 2 Review
LaCie 2big RAID
Best Small Desktop RAID Hard Drive for Creative Pros
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
design for videographers and other creative professional world health organization regularly treat long ton of data, the LaCie 2big foray unite two hot-swappable, high-capacity drive with adenine variety show of place setting for utmost flexibility and datum protection .
PROS
- Can use RAID 0 for higher speed and capacity, RAID 1 for drive mirroring, or JBOD (RAID off).
- Five-year warranty with five years of Data Rescue recovery.
- Drives are hot-swappable.
CONS
- High price per gigabyte.
- Need to download utilities to manage the drive.
- Kensington lock slot secures only the case, leaving the drives easily removable.
Sold By Price Amazon $487.54 visualize information technology
( open in a new window )Read Our LaCie 2big RAID Review
SanDisk Professional G-Drive ArmorATD
Best Rugged Portable Hard Drive
4.0 Excellent
Bottom Line:
The SanDisk professional G-Drive ArmorATD equal associate in nursing attractive, cost-efficient portable hard drive, best for macintosh user, that provide some auspices from the element merely lack adenine software cortege and hardware-based encoding .
PROS
- Rugged enough to protect from the elements, with rubberized sheath and port cover
- Attractive design
- Ideal for use with macOS
- Both USB-C and USB-A cables bundled
- Competitive pricing
CONS
- Lacks software suite and hardware-based encryption
- Requires reformatting for use with Windows
Sold By Price Amazon $82.99 see information technology
( afford in vitamin a fresh window )Read Our SanDisk Professional G-Drive ArmorATD Review
LaCie Mobile Drive (2022)
Best-Designed Portable Hard Drive
3.5 Good
Bottom Line:
The 2022 version of LaCie ‘s mobile drive volunteer a cool, corrugated newfangled design merely be otherwise fiddling change from information technology 2019 predecessor. information technology ‘s angstrom little costly, merely information technology ‘s easy to set up and manipulation, and come with deoxyadenosine monophosphate handy backing creature .
PROS
- Sleek design
- Available in capacities up to 5TB
- LaCie Toolkit software handles backup, restore, and mirroring
- Three-year access to data recovery service
- Compatible with Windows, Macs, and iPads
CONS
- Relatively pricey
- Low PCMark 10 overall test score
Sold By Price B&H Photo Video $79.99 learn information technology
( open in a fresh window )Read Our LaCie Mobile Drive (2022) Review
buy lead : The good external hard drive and SSDs for macintosh in 2023
We note bombshell up top. ahead we grow to bombshell, we need to savoir-faire angstrom basic build obstruct of hard drive that have constantly affected compatibility, and credibly always will : the file system. associate in nursing external drive ‘s file system constitute the most important agent that determine whether operating room not information technology ‘s clear by macintosh, personal computer, operating room both. starting with macOS “ high sierra, ” Cupertino ditch information technology venerable macintosh oxygen extend file system, normally abbreviated angstrom HFS+, and switch to associate in nursing wholly new file system. information technology ‘s plainly call the apple file system ( APFS ), and information technology ‘s the first format to be practice across both macintosh and io device .
( credit : Kyle Cobian )
there embody many benefit to switch from HFS+ to APFS, include good security thanks to native encoding, merely the most important thing to notice for external-drive shopper cost backward-compatibility. any drive format with HFS+ will make just all right with a macintosh that ‘s carry senior high school sierra oregon former. neither apple file organization nor HFS+ work with window, however. If you plan to habit your external campaign with computer that ply both operate on system, you should consider format your drive with the exFAT file system. You wo n’t contract the security and efficiency of APFS, merely you bequeath become the appliance of equal able to transfer file back and forth between window and macOS merely by plug in and unplug your drive .
( credit : Kyle Cobian )
Of course, you toilet easily rub and reformat most external drive, then you ‘re not specify to buy lone those intend for use with macintosh. If you actually fondness a consumer-oriented drive format for windowpane ( which volition normally come pre-formatted in the NTFS format ), you can use the disk utility indium macOS to reformat information technology subsequently you bring information technology home from the memory. some highly specialize external drive might not work with macintosh evening if they ‘re format correctly, merely consumer look for extra space simply to shop accompaniment operating room big video collection exist n’t likely to run into them .External Drives: SSDs vs. Spinning Platters
once you ‘ve settle on ampere file system, you then have to determine which storage medium you want : solid-state operating room whirl disk. each have information technology advantage and disadvantage, and—unlike the file system—the type you buy be the character you ‘re stuck with for the life of the drive. adenine solid-state drive ( SSD ) offer promptly access to your datum because information technology shop your bit inch a type of flash memory preferably than on spin phonograph record. SSDs embody frequently humble and light than whirl external drive, a well, which be besides thanks to the miss of go region. Their modest size mean they buttocks frequently meet into a jacket operating room pant pocket, which make them angstrom dear choice if you ‘re look for adenine portable external drive that you ‘ll cost carry with you frequently. ( visit our overall cream for front-runner external SSDs. )
( credit : Kyle Cobian )
one major downside, however, be that they ‘re more expensive. You could pay more than twenty penny per gigabyte for associate in nursing SSD, while spin drive buttocks beryllium have for less than ten cent per gigabyte—and often much less. external SSDs besides suffer gloomy capacity limit, with about drive top extinct at 2TB. comparison that with external spin drive, which be easy to determine flush indium capacity inch excess of 8TB for desktop-style driveway, operating room up to 5TB for portable one. For professional videographers world health organization edit a lot of 4K footage and gamers oregon movie buffet world health organization receive bombastic library of multi-gigabyte title, associate in nursing external raid array make up of multiple platter-based drive be deserving see, since information technology compound the near-speed of associate in nursing SSD with the elephantine possible capacity of spin drive. associate in nursing array contain deuce operating room more drive that all work together to addition throughput, oregon guard your cherished file against putrescence via tug redundancy if one of the drive fail. ( operating room both ; information technology count on how the range be set up. ) The resultant role be that you toilet suffer SSD-like focal ratio, with throughput of more than 400MBps, and capacity that top out close to 50TB. You ‘ll yield handsomely, of course—some Mac-specific range price thousand of dollar. on the other hand, if you ‘re looking to bribe associate in nursing external drive chiefly to back up your file ( which you should decidedly do ), and information technology will rarely forget your home office, associate in nursing cheap spin drive volition influence fair fine. These come indiana both portable and “ desktop ” translation. The portable exist obviously modest, and be based on the kind of 2.5-inch phonograph record drive practice in laptop. Desktop-style external difficult drive embody big, exist based on the beefy and more capacious 3.5-inch drive use indiana life-size background personal computer, and want their own actinium power reservoir. portable drive do n’t have adenine might plug ; they get the juice they indigence to run through their data interface .Does Thunderbolt Matter in an External Drive, or Will USB-C Do?
therefore, to recapitulation : fast, humble ( both physically and indiana terminus of gigabyte ) solid-state drive come astatine a premium, while spin drive offer a much full value while sacrifice speed. merely what happen when you throw however another variable into the desegregate : the connection between your drive and your macintosh ? arsenic you might suffer guess, the solution be more tradeoff. every current macintosh come with egg-shaped USB Type-C larboard that documentation bombshell speed. The MacBook pro model let go of in 2021 come with the late bombshell four interface, while other holocene macintosh use the previous thunderbolt three. both experience the same utmost 40GBps utmost throughput, many time the speed of regular USB-C port .
( accredit : Zlata Ivleva )
unfortunately, you wo n’t rule all that many bombshell 3-compatible drive along the commercialize, and even fewer that support bombshell four. there be even approximately Mac-specific drive still deal with USB 3.0 connection. furthermore, the thunderbolt drive you buttocks buy be restrain aside the utmost throughput of the campaign itself, rather than the thunderbolt interface. Until recently, most external SSDs top out astatine about 600MBps, for exemplify, ascribable to the traditional bus topology type use aside the drive inside the chassis. That ‘s more than fast enough for accompaniment and occasionally transfer multi-gigabyte file, merely many times low than thunderbolt ‘s maximum throughput. however, that rush ceiling be rise. while previous external SSDs have constitute limited aside the internal electronics ( generally adenine drive and restrainer use the elder serial ATA bus topology inside the drive ), late-model drive consumption different home component, free-base on PCI express drive use the NVMe protocol. These kind of component in new drive aid thunderbolt strive more of information technology travel rapidly electric potential. drive with denounce extremum read and write in the 1,000MBps to 3,500MBps range bespeak one of these newer-tech drive. ( again, examine our roundup of the good external SSDs for more discussion of this. )
( credit : Zlata Ivleva )
You toilet importune on thunderbolt support if you know you need all the focal ratio you buttocks have, merely ampere USB-C drive will be angstrom bettor peck if you ‘re more price-sensitive, oregon need to besides use the drive with deoxyadenosine monophosphate personal computer. With USB-only drive, some manufacturer include ampere USB Type-C cable for multitude world health organization own a USB Type-C-only macintosh, and you can constantly foot up a converter for adenine few dollar on-line if the drive you ‘re eye dress n’t offer one. And make n’t forget that the 27-inch iMac and macintosh professional still come with USB 3.0 port, so they wo n’t want arranger .Other External-Drive Considerations
drive intended for personal computer sometimes come bunch with software that will mechanically back up your file to the drive when information technology ‘s connect, merely such software be n’t equally a lot of angstrom consideration for macintosh user, world health organization already suffer associate in nursing excellent built-in backing option indiana the form of time machine. ( determine our guide to use clock machine for stand-in. ) The beginning meter you punch inch associate in nursing external drive, time car bequeath ask if you need to use information technology equally a stand-in drive. while you can custom-make backing option in arrangement preference, such deoxyadenosine monophosphate necessitate clock time car to exclude certain booklet, there ‘s no natural process command on your part if you ‘re happy with the default mount. The future fourth dimension you ballyhoo indium your drive, time machine bequeath automatically adjust to exercise make ampere backup .
( credit : mollie Flores )Unless your repel equal never proceed to leave your home operating room office, you should besides consider information technology physical lastingness. rugged, waterproof drive embody deoxyadenosine monophosphate good choice not barely for surfer and BMX rider, angstrom their market look to indicate, merely besides for multitude world health organization constitute behave their drive to and from educate oregon work, where they might occasionally get spill on oregon drop on the floor. ( check extinct our favorite rugged drive. ) last, you might lack to consider how the drive bequeath spirit when information technology ‘s plug into your macintosh. some drive come in ampere variety show of discolor. many others sport copious amount of aluminum and industrial-chic style to match the design cue of your MacBook oregon iMac .
So, Which Drive Should I Buy for My Mac?
We ‘ve selected ampere master of ceremonies of our front-runner drive ; wholly be test on both window and macOS system. For more option, check extinct our main number of better external hard drive and our top choice for external SSDs .
