SanDisk 500GB Extreme Portable SSD - Up to 1050MB/s, USB-C, USB 3.2 Gen 2, IP65 Water and Dust Resistance, Updated Firmware - External Solid State Drive - SDSSDE61-500G-G25

I picked up the SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable SSD as an upgrade from my older external hard drives, and it’s easily one of the best storage devices I’ve used. The speed difference alone makes it worth it—transfers that used to take minutes on my traditional hard drives now finish in seconds. Large files, videos, photos, and backups move incredibly fast with no lag or stuttering. The size is another huge win. It’s unbelievably compact—smaller than most phones and light enough to clip onto a backpack or keep in a pocket without even noticing it’s there. Despite the small size, it feels durable and solid, with a rugged rubberized exterior that helps protect it from drops and everyday wear. Compared to traditional hard drives, there’s no spinning disk, no noise, and no worrying about bumps causing damage. It stays cool during most normal use and has been extremely reliable so far. I use it for work files, media storage, and backups, and it has handled everything without a single issue. A few small caveats worth mentioning: • It can get a little warm during long or heavy file transfers (not dangerously hot, just warm to the touch). • To get the full advertised speed, you need a USB-C port that supports USB 3.1/3.2 Gen 2. On older ports, it will still work fine but will be slower. • Like most SSDs, it’s pricier than traditional external hard drives, but the speed and portability make the difference worth it. • The included cable is on the shorter side, so you might want a longer one depending on your setup. Overall, this SanDisk Extreme SSD is a huge step up from regular external drives—faster, smaller, tougher, and much more convenient. If you need a dependable portable drive with great performance, this one is absolutely worth it.

This is a good SSD. It does heat up, get a little warm, but never too hot. It’s small, and fits in my pocket. It’s about half the size of my phone, and uploads always take pretty reasonable times. It’s easy to plug in, just as long as you have a USB-C port in your laptop/phone/computer/tablet, since it works with all of those. It’s very versatile, and quick.

Fast and reliable portable SSD The SanDisk 2TB Extreme offers large capacity, excellent transfer speeds, and a durable design. Perfect for securely storing photos, videos, and files on the go. Highly recommended for its performance and durability.

Great Little SSD with lots of storage space, the device is whisper quiet and it is compatible with Tesla which is a plus for me. I was able to connect using my Mac and my Tesla. Storage is easy because it’s tiny and fits in my glovebox.

I recently purchased the SanDisk 2TB external portable SSD, and I honestly couldn’t be happier with the performance. As someone who deals with a lot of large video files, photos, and heavy documents for both personal and professional use, having a reliable, fast, and compact drive is essential and this one delivers on every level. First off, the speed is incredible. Transferring hundreds of gigabytes of data takes a fraction of the time compared to my old hard drive. Whether I’m editing videos directly from the SSD or backing up entire folders, the read/write performance is smooth and consistent. It feels like an extension of my laptop rather than an external device. I’ve used it with both Mac and Windows machines and had zero compatibility issues. The size and portability are major advantages too. It’s so small and lightweight that I can just toss it in my backpack, purse, or even my pocket. The build quality is solid it has a sleek, rubberized texture that makes it feel secure in the hand and adds an extra layer of durability. I haven’t dropped it (yet!), but it definitely feels like it could survive a few bumps along the way. Another thing I love is how quiet and cool it runs. Unlike traditional external hard drives, there’s no sound, no vibration, and it doesn’t heat up even after long usage sessions. It’s also USB-C compatible, which is perfect for my current devices, and comes with both USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to USB-A cables in the box, which is a thoughtful touch. I’ve already recommended this SSD to friends and colleagues who need a fast, reliable, and portable storage solution. It’s not the cheapest option out there, but you’re definitely paying for quality, performance, and peace of mind especially if your data is valuable or irreplaceable. I’ll likely buy another one soon just to keep separate backups. Highly recommended.

I purchased this drive to use as a local mirror/backup for a large Lightroom photo library (~2 TB and growing). While the drive works fine for short file transfers, it repeatedly disconnects during long, sustained write operations. I tested different cables, ports, and configurations on macOS, and the behavior was consistent: the drive would unmount during heavy continuous writes and cause backup jobs to abort. This may be fine for casual use or short transfers, but if you’re planning to use it for large photo/video archives, long backup jobs, or continuous mirroring, I’d recommend looking at a more conservative, thermally stable SSD designed for sustained workloads. I’m returning it and switching to a different model better suited for long-duration backups.

As a photographer, this drive is a must-have. Transfer speeds are extremely fast, which makes backing up and editing large files seamless. It is compact, lightweight, and easy to travel with, yet powerful enough to handle demanding workloads. The build feels durable and reliable, and it integrates effortlessly into my workflow. I would not hesitate to recommend this to anyone working with large photo or video files.

I have both this SanDisk 2TB SSD and a Crucial X10 2TB SSD connected to my Mac Mini M4. Both work well except this SanDisk drive unmounts itself frequently when the Mac Mini goes to sleep (despite adjusting my Mac settings). This leads to a "failed to eject properly” error message and my Time Machine backups cease until I reconnect the drive. The Crucial external drive has not had this problem a single time. The root cause is a Mac issue of cutting power to the drives, but somehow the Crucial drive isn’t affected (nor was a Lexar 1TB SSD that I had connected for a few days). Connecting this to a powered hub solved the problem but shouldn’t be needed. There is a firmware update for this issue for some SanDisk drives but mine doesn’t qualify (despite being affected). On the plus side - it's small and fast and can be formatted to work with Apple. Fine for a temporary external drive but not very functional if you wish to keep connected all the time.