iPad External storage compatibility

[streza lenys]

Can anyone tell me if there is a foolproof way to tell wether or not an external ssd will be recognised by a 10th Gen ipad? I believe there is an issue with the power that the drive draws from the iPad. I’m not tech minded at all and was hoping there was a way to ascertain compatibility before purchas. Thanks for any input.

 

[Shirasaki]

You will probably need a hub with external power to power the drive as I doubt USB-C port on 10th Gen iPad outputs enough power for drive to use.
As for filesytem being recognised, FAT32, HFS+ and APFS should be able to recognise and read/write to. NTFS I dunno.
As for the drive... HDD in theory should work, given you have external power. SSD should also work, and I still recommend you to have external power.

 

[streza lenys]

You will probably need a hub with external power to power the drive as I doubt USB-C port on 10th Gen iPad outputs enough power for drive to use.
As for filesytem being recognised, FAT32, HFS+ and APFS should be able to recognise and read/write to. NTFS I dunno.
As for the drive... HDD in theory should work, given you have external power. SSD should also work, and I still recommend you to have external power.

Thanks for the reply. Though the 10th gen ipad has lightning connectivity.

 

[Slartibart]

You will probably need a hub with external power to power the drive as I doubt USB-C port on 10th Gen iPad outputs enough power for drive to use.
As for filesytem being recognised, FAT32, HFS+ and APFS should be able to recognise and read/write to. NTFS I dunno.
As for the drive... HDD in theory should work, given you have external power. SSD should also work, and I still recommend you to have external power.

Fat32, ExFAT, HFS+ and APFS will be read- and writeable. NTFS will be readable. Otherwise @Shirasaki gave solid advice IMHO: get a powered hub with power pass through.

 

[streza lenys]

Thanks for the reply. Though the 10th gen ipad has lightning connectivity.

Sorry my mistake, iPad 10th Gen = USB-C 🫢

 

[sparksd]

Sorry my mistake, iPad 10th Gen = USB-C 🫢

I'd give the external storage a try before investing in a hub. Not clear what the power availability from your iPad model is, but my 2021 M1 12.9 Pro handles 4TB HDDs and another user here has used 5TB HDDs. I have a hub but only use it if I want to connect multiple drives simultaneously.