If you’re on the hunt for a portable hard drive that boasts fast write speeds and a secure hardware encryption, look no further than the Samsung T5 SSD. The Samsung T5 is among the best storage devices on the market today. And it’s built absolutely solid too, which is always a plus.
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Why We Like It – Samsung T5 SSD Review
The Samsung T5 portable SSD is a quick, lightweight, intuitive, and sturdy hard drive that catapults Samsung to the top of the external SSD world. Changing gears from internal storage devices to portable SSD’s, Samsung’s showing in this new realm is a powerful one.
- 540 MB/sec transfer speed
- Solid Metal Body
- Lightweight and easily transported
- No Backup Utility
- May not support older versions of Mac & PC
- Steep Price Tag
Related: Discover more hard drives in our HGST Travelstar 2 5 Inch 1TB 7200RPM 32MB Cache Hard Drive review
Performance
Despite the small size of the Samsung T5 Portable SSD, it packs quite a punch. The 540 MB/sec data transfer speed, with a 90 MB/sec write speed, is matched only by the SanDisk Extreme, and the Samsung T5 is 4.9x faster than external hard drives. Its AES 256-bit hardware encryption and optional password protection keeps your personal data under tight lock and key. The Samsung T5 Portable SSD still works magnificently if you mainly use your portable SSD’s with your gaming consoles. However, the Silicon Power A55 can step in and take that role as well, especially if you’re using a PS4.
Related: Our readers also checked the Seagate Barracuda 3TB 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive review
Design
The Samsung T5 Portable SSD features a top to bottom solid metal body that fits into the palm of your hand. No bigger than a small stack of credit cards and weighing in at a miniscule 51 grams, portable SSD’s are rarely this compact. It can easily fit into your coat pocket or in the front pocket of your pants. Its solid metal casing and no internal moving parts means it can survive a drop of up to 2 metres. If you’re looking for a portable SSD of similar build quality, but you’re on a budget, the ADATA SU800 is a great alternative.
Value
It’s easy to say the Samsung T5 SSD holds a great amount of value. It has a 3-year warranty, so you know Samsung has made a product they believe in. It also includes USB type c to c and USB type c to a cables for pairing with older and newer models of PC’s, Mac’s, and Smartphone’s. Each have a Velcro strap for ease of transportation. It does have a steep price tag, but not higher than the competition, so you aren’t paying for a name. The Samsung 860 EVO 1TB is Samsung’s budget-friendly alternative that still boasts impressive specs.
Samsung T5 SSD Review Wrap Up
The Samsung T5 SSD’s quality build, quick data transfer and write speeds, and small size make it an absolute workhorse in the external SSD world. It is on the pricey side of external SSD’s, but most external SSD’s are on the pricey side anyway, especially those of similar quality. Despite the usb-cC and usb-a cables, it may not be pairable with extremely older versions of Mac’s, PC’s, and Smartphone’s, specifically ones with USB-c ports or USB-a ports, but its plethora of other features more than make up for this.
