External SSD

[Po Dameron]

hi, I am thinking of either getting a Samsung T5 USB C SSD or a Samsung evo 850 in a satechi USB C enclosure.

The T5 is sleeker but the evo is much cheaper per gb. Any downside? The enclosure supports UASP which is a real plus.

 

[Fishrrman]

The T5 -might- measure a little faster -- this depends on what type of Mac you're connecting it to.

I've used enough USB3 enclosures/docks/dongles to know what to expect from them.
EVO in a USB3 enclosure which supports UASP will yield reads of 430mbps and writes probably between 300-350mbps.

Can't give real numbers regarding the T5, as I don't own one.
If you have a Mac with USB-c, I think you will see modestly faster performance using that port. Nothing dramatic.

 

[ZapNZs]

Are you using this on a retina MacBook, a 2016-2017 MacBook Pro, or something else?

The EVO has a five year warranty where as IIRC the T5 only has three. With the Evo, a good 10gbps USB 3.1 gen 2 enclosure/cable, and a 2016-2017 MBP, sustained read speeds around 500-550 MB/s and write speeds around 450-500 MB/s in a benchmark should be doable (obviously real-world working speeds will be much slower given how poor of an approximation a sustained benchmark is for this.) IIRC, the T5 will have similar performance (when connected to a MBP that supports 3.1 gen 2, of course.) Obviously, if the MBP (or rMB/iMac/Mac Mini) only supports 5Gbps 3.1 gen 1, speeds will be a good bit slower.)

The Satechi is a gen 2 enclosure. StarTech and Mediasonic also have gen 2 offerings. The Oyen Digital USB-C enclosure might also be worth checking out. It is also a 3.1 gen 2 enclosure. To date, their MiniPro is the best enclosure line I have used anywhere remotely near its price range. (Mediasonic and Oyen also have 3.1 gen 2 + RAID 0 enclosures for those needing the absolute max out of 3.1 gen 2 who are willing to accept the risks associated with striping.)

 

[Po Dameron]

Are you using this on a retina MacBook, a 2016-2017 MacBook Pro, or something else?

The EVO has a five year warranty where as IIRC the T5 only has three. With the Evo, a good 10gbps USB 3.1 gen 2 enclosure/cable, and a 2016-2017 MBP, sustained read speeds around 500-550 MB/s and write speeds around 450-500 MB/s in a benchmark should be doable (obviously real-world working speeds will be much slower given how poor of an approximation a sustained benchmark is for this.) IIRC, the T5 will have similar performance (when connected to a MBP that supports 3.1 gen 2, of course.) Obviously, if the MBP (or rMB/iMac/Mac Mini) only supports 5Gbps 3.1 gen 1, speeds will be a good bit slower.)

The Satechi is a gen 2 enclosure. StarTech and Mediasonic also have gen 2 offerings. The Oyen Digital USB-C enclosure might also be worth checking out. It is also a 3.1 gen 2 enclosure. To date, their MiniPro is the best enclosure line I have used anywhere remotely near its price range. (Mediasonic and Oyen also have 3.1 gen 2 + RAID 0 enclosures for those needing the absolute max out of 3.1 gen 2 who are willing to accept the risks associated with striping.)

I will be using it with prob a 2017 iMac. Thanks for mentioning the other models, will look into them. Cheers.

 

[Moonjumper]

The advantage of the T5 is size. The advantage of the Evo is cost. Are you going to be carrying it around? It sounds like you won't, which makes the choice easier.

 

[ZapNZs]

I will be using it with prob a 2017 iMac. Thanks for mentioning the other models, will look into them. Cheers.

You have 10 Gbps 3.1 gen 2 over type-C. While USB-A 3.1 gen 2 does exist, IIRC, the type-A ports on the iMac are still 5 Gbps 3.1 gen 1. So provided you are using a gen 2 enclosure over type-C, you should get excellent speeds from the EVO.