Portable SSDs tend to offer very little storage. But Samsung’s newT5 EVO SSD, which is just 3.7 inches long and 0.6 inches thick, can accommodate up to 8TB of documents, media, and other files. It’s an interesting product, but its unique storage capacity comes with a high price tag and compromised transfer rates.
Samsung’s T5 EVO SDD is available in three storage capacities. The cheapest configuration has 2TB of storage and costs $190. You’ll pay $350 for the 4TB configuration, and the 8TB option is a whopping $650. Obviously, these prices are pretty extreme, even when compared toother Samsung SSDs. But the T5 EVO is theonly8TB external SSD from a trusted brand, so perhaps the pricing is justified. And, in any case, it’ll probably fall to a more reasonable price by the end of 2024.
As for the drive’s transfer rate—well, it’s faster than an external HDD. The T5 EVO SSD uses USB 3.2 Gen 1 connectivity for continuous 460 MB/s read/write speeds. Cheaper Samsung SSDs, such as theT7 Shield, are twice as fast. Some customers may see the relatively slow transfer rate as an acceptable trade-off. Again, this is the only 8TB external SSD from a good brand. But if you’re shopping for a 2TB or 4TB SSD, the T5 EVO is probably a skip. You could also get abudget 2TB NVMe drive(or any other capacity) and aUSB 3.2 Gen2 enclosurefor around $100, which will max out at around 1.25 GB/s, but that’s also physically bigger than the T5 EVO.
Like other Samsung SSDs, the T5 EVO includes a three-year limited warranty and offers AES 256-bit hardware encryption. It has a shock- and vibration-proof design, and its silicone exterior is built to withstand falls from heights up to 2 meters (or 6.5 feet). That said, the lack of an IP dust and water resistance rating is a bit odd, as this SSD is pretty expensive and has a large ring for attaching to backpacks. For reference, the aforementionedT7 Shieldhas an IP65 rating.
If youneedan 8TB portable SSD, theSamsung T5 EVOis your best and only option. But it doesn’t have an amazing transfer rate, and the $650 price tag is very extreme. If possible, I suggest that you wait until other brands launch 8TH portable SSDs, as the increased competition will lead to much more reasonable pricing.
