Best SSDs with Hardware Data Encryption

Silicon Power PC60 is an inexpensive portable SSD with basic technical characteristics, a wide choice of available memory volumes, an interesting design, and a convenient carabiner mount. The device is made in classic black tones, the body is decorated with a symmetric pattern that resembles ripples on water, and weighs only 45 grams (with dimensions of 80x80x11 mm) - in fact, it is one of the lightest portable 1 TB SSDs.

In terms of speed, this is a classic solid-state drive with a simple SATA controller, which dominated the market 5 - 6 years ago before the mass popularity of NVMe SSD. The corresponding speed is up to 500 MB/s for writing and up to 540 MB/s for reading. When the SLC cache is filled, speeds predictably drop several times, and the inexpensive dual-channel SM2259XT controller does not help much here. Therefore, it is important not to fully load up the memory, but to allocate some free space for the role of a buffer, and caching will work much more efficiently.

Considering all of the above, the PC60 is best suited as a modern equivalent of a flash drive for storing, transferring, and not too frequent re-recording of home video archives, game distributions, work files, and similar cases when you don't want to store files in the cloud. Or for reliability, you want to duplicate them. Whereas, for professional work and regular rewriting of large files, a more modern external SSD with a DRAM buffer and working speeds around 2000 MB/s and above would be more suitable. Fortunately, there are plenty of candidates for that nowadays.

At the end of the last decade, Western Digital announced an addition to the My Passport family by releasing the company’s first portable SSD named My Passport Go. Since then, the American giant has been sporadically updating the range, improving the technical characteristics of new models with an eye on current trends. The most relevant variant in the series is the My Passport model released in 2020.

In terms of price and characteristics by today's standards, this is a true workhorse with a USB C 3.2 gen2 interface, NVMe protocol support, hardware encryption, and linear speeds around 1000 MB/s. It is faster than its predecessors with SATA 3 controllers but slower than modern professional solid-state drives with working speeds of 2000 MB/s and above. However, it is more important that WD has improved the managing controller which leads to a stable and predictable bandwidth, and the speed in stress tests does not fluctuate as wildly as its predecessors from the My Passport series.

The design of My Passport 2020 is minimalist yet not boring and sterile. Five color options should interest people for whom this is not just a useful item in everyday life but also a stylish accessory. The body is quite compact and extremely thin (only 9 mm) - slightly larger than a bank card. And two USB cables with different types of connectors are included in the package. Overall, there is nothing much to criticize here. It’s a pity that the front side is made of plastic and not aluminum, which would have been +5 to prestige. And a carabiner mount would not have been superfluous. However, these are more personal wishes of the author than an objective downside.

Despite Samsung losing its exclusive leadership in the SSD sector, its portable models in the Portable series are doing much better. One of the most popular options in the family is the T9 — a compact, neat, and minimalist business-class SSD with an emphasis on increased reliability. The casing is covered in practical, scratch-resistant material, and the shockproof design withstands a fall from a height of three meters, while the built-in Dynamic Thermal Guard system prevents overheating and maintains stable data transfer speeds.

Technically, T9 is a modern SSD, unconditionally vying for the role of a professional tool. Thanks to its USB C 3.2 Gen 2x2 interface and high rated speeds (write 1950 MB/s, read 2000 MB/s), it is suitable for working with 4K and 8K cameras, ProRes video recording at 4K+120 Hz, and processing media content directly on the device. Add to this list 2 included USB cables, proprietary Magician software, support for all the most popular operating systems, and you get an excellent option for field video shooting and similar demanding tasks.

In light of all mentioned, only the rubberized coating can be complained about: it actively collects dust, dirt, and crumbs, causing it to lose its initial appeal after just a couple of months of use in a backpack. And the additional "armor" affected the weight — T9 weighs 121 grams. However, the difference with competitors is only 30-40 grams, and frankly, these dozen grams hardly complicate life.

Crucial X10 Pro is one of the few portable SSDs that maximizes the potential of the USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 interface, offering speeds up to 2100 MB/s in a compact and protected body. With advertised reading and writing speeds of up to 2 GB/s, this drive significantly outpaces most external SSDs limited by the USB 3.2 Gen 2 standard (up to 1050 MB/s). Built-in hardware encryption support, IP55 protection, and a durable aluminum body allow using the X10 Pro in any condition, be it a closed pavilion or an outdoor shoot in bad weather.

This solution is targeted at professionals working with photo and video content, who value not just mobility but also the ability to work without worrying about drive limitations: editing multitasking 4K/6K video, handling large RAW folders, or backing up hundreds of gigabytes of project files, etc. In these cases, the time gains compared to regular external SSDs become apparent. By the way, during the filming of the "Something Different" clip for the band Godsmack, American photographer and director Paris Visone used the X10 Pro — as she mentioned in the context of Crucial's advertising campaign.

Apart from the 1 TB model, more capacious variants are available in the lineup — up to 4 TB, which by portable SSD standards is still considered a substantial volume. The drive connects via USB C, and compatibility with Windows, macOS, Android, and iPadOS, allows using the X10 Pro in any scenario without unnecessary adjustments — from shooting and editing to backup and data processing on the go.

The SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD V2 represents an improved version of the extremely popular portable SSD, where the manufacturer has refined all the details and maximized the potential of the USB C 3.2 gen2x2 interface. Thanks to the shockproof casing, high bandwidth (up to 2 GB/s), hardware encryption support, and a large memory reserve (from 1 to 4 TB), the model has been ranking among the top sellers for several years running, competing with popular models from Kingston XS, Samsung T, and Transcend ESD lines.

Starting from protection. The casing of Extreme PRO V2 looks good and is mostly made of rubberized plastic with a pleasing texture. It’s colored in the signature black and orange tones of the Extreme PRO line, with no other color options available. To simplify transportation, a massive carabiner port is provided in the top right corner. The casing is made of aluminum, does not fear water, dust, and falls from a three-meter height. However, it’s important to note that it refers to IP55 class protection, which means Extreme PRO V2 will not fear direct water exposure but will not survive full submersion underwater.

Now let's take a look under the hood. Thanks to the updated controller and USB C 3.2 gen2x2 interface, the drive squeezes up to 2000 MB/s for reading and writing files, performs stably, and doesn’t act unreasonably when working with especially large archives. Until recently (before the USB4 models hit the market), numbers around 2000 MB/s were the ceiling for external SSDs, so SanDisk Extreme PRO can confidently be categorized as a "professional" model for 4K/8K video recording and similar tasks with a star designation.