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Damian83

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 20, 2011
512
287
Hi! I use a thunderbolt SSD as primary drive (OSX on it) with my imac, and when i want, i can attach it to my mb air, having all same configurations, files, and everything else, like on imac. problem is that i cant use this solution easily in all situations. attaching an external hd while in plane, or in the car its not the best. im thinking to get an usb 3.0 pen drive ssd. my question if usb is stable and reliable like tb. speed isnt a problem, 5gbps is enough anyway. please dont tell me to find other solutions like cloud or apps for synchronizing files. this is best solution for me and maybe the main reason osx its better than other os's!
 
Hi! I use a thunderbolt SSD as primary drive (OSX on it) with my imac, and when i want, i can attach it to my mb air, having all same configurations, files, and everything else, like on imac. problem is that i cant use this solution easily in all situations. attaching an external hd while in plane, or in the car its not the best. im thinking to get an usb 3.0 pen drive ssd. my question if usb is stable and reliable like tb. speed isnt a problem, 5gbps is enough anyway. please dont tell me to find other solutions like cloud or apps for synchronizing files. this is best solution for me and maybe the main reason osx its better than other os's!

USB 3.0 is nowhere near as stable and reliable as TB... in my experience.

The flash memory used in USB 3.0 pen drives is also nowhere near as reliable as your SSD...
 
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Perhaps an mSata from Crucial (M500) or Samsung (840EVO series)
Price/GB is close to 2.5 SSD and the enclosures are 3 X 1.5 X .5, so very small.
Still using a cable, but it's a big step up from a common flash drive.

The Mushkin AT-ENCKIT and ZTC enclosures get the best reviews. I'd stay away from Mydigital.
 
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Perhaps an mSata from Crucial (M500) or Samsung (840EVO series)
Price/GB is close to 2.5 SSD and the enclosures are 3 X 1.5 X .5, so very small.
Still using a cable, but it's a big step up from a common flash drive.

The Mushkin AT-ENCKIT and ZTC enclosures get the best reviews. I'd stay away from Mydigital.

never talked of "common flash drives"....
 
USB 3.0 is nowhere near as stable and reliable as TB... in my experience.

The flash memory used in USB 3.0 pen drives is also nowhere near as your SSD...

In my experience, its worse than that. Its nowhere near as stable as USB 2. I would not rely on USB 3 for any I/O I depend on.
 
Many IT guys use pen drives for a boot device but for emergencies or short time use only. None as far as I know would rely on them for more than occasional use. Many carry two pen drives just in case.

Perhaps over the recent six months or so their durability has improved. Just set up a couple and see how it goes. You may get lucky.
 
Don't run your OS from a USB drive, the USB bus is not reliable enough. I ran my OS from a Thunderbolt SSD for over a year and never once had a disconnect or glitch. My USB drives are nowhere near as reliable, too many other things on the USB bus that can throw a spanner in the works and cause them to unmount.
 
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