Files from our cameras get bigger and bigger and we expect our workflow to get better and faster. This is not possible without using new technology for transferring our work to a backup storage device. The trend today is the portable SSD. This year several brands released their first portable SSD devices, which might make you update your on-location backup arsenal after you see the crazy speeds they can transfer data at.
One of the exciting news on this year's CES exhibit is the greater variety of portable SSDs we are going to have on the market in 2018. They combine the portability of the good ol' USB sticks, the storage capacity of the bulky and slow external HDDs, and the transfer speeds given by the SSD technology combined with Thunderbolt 3. Oh, and for those MacBook Pro users who are tired of dongles, most of the upcoming backup devices support USB-C.
SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD
It is designed as a rugged and a portable backup device that can go through some moderate torture including dust, water, and dropping. It is so small that fits in your pocket. The SSD comes with a USB-C port and has read speeds up to 550 MB/s. It will be available in March 2018 as 250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB versions.
Seagate Fast SSD
If you search for an affordable, shock resistant, yet fast SSD, Seagate has got something for you. Their Fast SSD transfers data over USB-C at speeds up to 540 MB/s. The devices will be available in spring 2018 as 250 GB, 500 GB, and 1 TB versions, priced at $99, $169, and $349 respectively.
Dell Performance Portable SSD
According to Dell, that's "the world's most compact Thunderbolt 3 storage device." They claim its transfer speed reaches 2.6 GB/s. As you may have guessed, that's possible thanks to the USB-C connectivity. Dell will hit the markets with 500 GB and 1 TB versions of the SSD at prices of $439 and $799 respectively.
Pluggable Thunderbolt 3 SSD
If you are looking for extraordinary transfer speeds, like up to 2.4 GB/s, you might get interested in these. They have a 480 GB storage capacity, support USB-C connectivity, and will be available in spring 2018. Pricing is yet to be released.
Patriot EVLVR Thunderbolt 3 SSD
The SSD is claimed to reach speeds up to 1.5 GB/s thanks to its built-in Phison E8 PCIe controller and the Thunderbolt 3 connectivity. You can purchase a 256 GB, 512 GB, and 1 TB SSDs from March 2018 at price tags of $199.99, $289.99, and $489.99 respectively.
[via No Film School]
Speed is always nice BUT if I have transferred a couple of weeks of shootings onto a portable disk while on the road then it is still a single point of failure. What would reallt get me to open my wallet bigtime would be a RAID0/1 device so something like a dual m2 SSD RAID in a small sized case in 1TB... micro/pico NAS... same with a USB stick containing 2 mem sticks mirroring one another.
Make that product. It will sell well.
Another great idea that the memory/disk companies will pickup on once someone else has sunk time and effort into it... return for me would be too little.
Would be great if the memory/disk companies had better market attuned product managers...
I think most of them are holding new ideas in order to have something new next year.
Samsung T5 is stupid fast. https://fstoppers.com/gear/samsung-releases-t5-portable-ssd-192176
Also it's usb 3.1 not usb c or the connector type that is "fast".
It is fast indeed. But some of the entries in the article claim speeds greater than 1 GB/s, even 2 GB/s.
That is correct. I depends on the files, the workflow, the budget, and the level of patience.
What about 4K videography?
Depends on if it's a compressed or a non-compressed format, depends on your budget, and what you'd expect from a 4K video file transfer. I'm sure there will be people today who would complain about the slow transfer of 8K files over a 2.5 GB/s Thunderbolt cable.
It wouldn't really bother me if I'm downloading with a 1 or a 2 GB/s as long as
— there aren't N people on set waiting for that card to be emptied and loaded back into the camera;
— a huge part of my workflow depends on that speed;
At the end, the transfer is just a small part of the process. What grabs me most is the size of those hard drives combined with their capacity. That's the most important thing to me personally and I'd love to have some of those in my gear bags.
And now, let's start lowering the price...
But not until CES 2019.
What is the other drive with the "G" on it that is shown in the initial image?
It is G-Drive by G-Technology:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1365963-REG/g_technology_0g06053_...
As one who spent $500 for a 180 Gb external drive in the 1990s, this is great news.