That’s why computers with solid-state drive systems are often pricier than units built with hard drive components. In terms of dollar per GB (gigabyte), portable SSDs are more expensive. They’re great for when you’re moving very large files or lots of media files from one computer to another.
Because they don’t have moving parts unlike external HDDs, portable SSDs can take more punishment at the bottom of your travel bag. Transferring or saving files, videos, and photos on external SSDs is noticeably faster than doing so in portable hard drives or flash drives. Accessing files on this portable drive is fast as it uses non-volatile flash memory. They’re faster, more rugged than the latter, and they fit easily into your pocket-what’s not to like? Portable SSDsĪs prices of solid-state drives (SSDs) continue to dip, it’s safe to say that external SSDs are becoming viable alternatives to portable hard drives. It’s pricier than your average flash drive, though. Not only is the Lexar JumpDrive P20 one of the fastest USB 3.0 flash drives around, but it also offers an impressive 128 GB of space. It significantly weighs heavier than most memory sticks you’ve owned and perhaps the reason is that it packs some serious power. It even offers a decent 32GB of storage space. This speedy thumb drive manages to get read speeds of up to 245 MBps as well as write speeds of up to 100 MBps despite sitting comfortably within the budget range.
Having earned the reputation as a blazing fast piece of hardware, you’d think the SanDisk Extreme CZ80 falls under the high-end range. It’s not only fast, but this model also comes with a whopping 128 GB of storage space! Move large files and high-resolution photos in a jiffy with one of the fastest flash drives we’ve ever seen: the Patriot Supersonic Rage 2. Using a USB memory stick on your next business trip? Here are a few that can give you a run for your money: And if you lose one that contains personal info and data, the loss could be a problem. Because of their size, thumb drives often get misplaced. Not great for transferring write-intensive applications, such as client-based antivirus programs and disk management utilities.Įasy to lose. Most operating systems read and recognize this storage device as soon as you plug it in.
Best portable hard drive for photographers 2017 install#
You don’t need to install device drivers to use a memory stick. A USB stick is a relatively lower cost compared to other storage media.Įasy to use.
In a way, they’re fairly immune to accidental drops.Įconomical. For the most part, flash drives don’t have any sensitive, moving parts. Simply tuck one in your pocket and off you go!ĭurable. They’re lightweight and small so you can bring a thumb drive anywhere you go. While they’re great for moving files from time to time, they often have limited space-especially frustrating when you’re planning to store and transfer more than just pictures and videos. Incredibly versatile and cheap, the thumb drive (aka flash drive, USB stick, memory stick, etc.) easily qualifies as the perfect mobile storage solution. After the jump, we’ll look into travel-friendly external drives and list some of the best options for each category. If you can’t decide which one to use, we’ll help you narrow down your choices. Would a flash drive suit you? How about bringing portable hard drives instead? Have you thought about saving your data in the cloud? When you don’t want to weigh down your notebook with too much data and you’re going out of town, storage devices may be your best bet.