SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD – 4TB Performance
For this, we are going to use a number of popular tools to benchmark the drives. You can use the same free tools to evaluate the performance of your drives for comparison.
CrystalDiskMark Benchmark
CrystalDiskMark is used as a basic starting point for benchmarks as it is something commonly run by end-users as a sanity check. We use both 1GB and 8GB test sizes.
Here is the test with 8GB sizes:
Something worth noting here is that this drive performs relatively similarly on the 1GB and 8GB sizes.
For an external USB SSD, these are good results.
ATTO Disk Benchmark
The ATTO Disk Benchmark has been a staple of drive sequential performance testing for years.
Here is the test with 8GB sizes:
Here is the side-by-side comparison:
We see a fairly flat result on both the read and write side here which is what we want.
Anvil’s Storage Utilities
Anvil’s Storage Utilities is a comprehensive benchmark that gives us a very in-depth look at the performance of the drives tested. This benchmark was run with both a 1GB and 8GB test size. Here is the 1GB result:
Here is the test with 8GB sizes:
Usually Anvil will give us slightly lower numbers, and this seems to be the case here, but not to a great extent.
AS SSD Benchmark
AS SSD Benchmark is another good benchmark for testing SSDs. We run all three tests for our series.
Here is the test with 10GB sizes:
Here is the side-by-side:
Again, these are results that were in the domain of some internal NVMe SSDs years ago, now we can get these from a portable USB drive.
BlackMagic Disk Speed Test
BlackMagic Disk Speed Test is focused on testing storage for use in video workflows.
For most 8K workflows, this is going to be fast enough. That may seem silly at first, but the camera we use on the 2nd set in 8K ProRes 422 HQ uses just under 2TB an hour of storage so a 4TB drive can be useful in 8K settings.
Final Words
Far for us, it has worked extremely well. We did not get the chance to test this drive for many months so longer-term retention is always a question. It tests slightly better than both the Samsung T9 and Crucial X10 Pro in most benchmarks. That larger physical size may not seem significant, but it will end up being important when we need more bag space. There is a notable gap between the 10Gbps class and 20Gbps class drives when it comes to performance and this drive is on the right side of that gap.
Overall, this is a drive that seems worth buying if the price is right. If it is significantly more than the Crucial X10 Pro or Samsung T9.
Where to Buy
We purchased our unit on Amazon. If you want to get the drive, here is the Amazon Affiliate Link.
I don’t think this is what you actually meant to say?
“Overall, this is a drive that seems worth buying if the price is right. If it is significantly more than the Crucial X10 Pro or Samsung T9.”
Would that be if it is significantly LESS than?
Nooooo. How much did ya’ll get paid? SanDisk is permanently stained in this model because of how badly they screwed up handling their hardware flawed but ‘we’ll fix it with a firmware update’ unit that destroyed itself and people’s data with no warning.
Unfortunately, interest (and purchasing) is tied to reputation.
The fiasco of inherent data-loss over the past few years presses Pause on many a buyer’s screen (myself, included).
My data confirms continued confidence in SKH products; unfortunately, SKH does not offer >2T solutions.
Why would someone buy one of these? Are we really ignoring SanDisk’s disastrous history in this market? Samsung T7 or death.
Would love you guys to include a photo showing the size of portable items reviewed relative to a known object like a deck of cards (or a banana). I can get out my ruler, but a photo would make this easier.