2024-03-09 05:38:21
SSDs are the ideal solution if you need more storage space or want to back up your most important data. Stiftung Warentest examined which hard drives offer a lot of storage space and high speeds and found three test winners.
The most important things at a glance
SSD hard drives are fast, robust and consume little power. This makes them ideal as external storage media for laptops, tablets, etc. when storage space is limited. Depending on the storage size, the drives offer space for thousands of photos, videos, documents or games.
For the “test” issue 02/2024, Stiftung Warentest examined SSDs from manufacturers such as SanDisk, Western Digital (WD), Samsung and Co. with at least one terabyte of memory. Fortunately, the majority of the drives perform well. We present the results and test winners in more detail.
External SSD hard drives in the test: This is how Stiftung Warentest tests them
Stiftung Warentest examined a total of 40 external SSD hard drives, especially models with a terabyte of storage capacity. But there are also six models with two terabytes of memory. The test products come from well-known brands such as SanDisk, Western Digital (WD), Seagate or Samsung and cost between 70 and 280 euros.
The examiners pay particular attention to the performance of the SSDs, i.e. the speed of reading and writing. The handling of the compact storage media and their power consumption are also important to them.
The results of the SSD hard drive test at a glance
The test results are encouraging: of the 34 SSD hard drives examined with one TB of storage, 23 are “good”. Even among the six SSDs with twice as much storage space, two thirds achieved “good” grades. The other devices are at least “satisfactory”. And: no model fails.
When it comes to drives with two terabytes of memory, the brands SanDisk and Transcend are also at the forefront with the larger sister models of the test winners. Since the devices only differ in the storage size, we only show the 1 TB versions here.
You can read all the results of Stiftung Warentest’s SSD hard drive test in the “test” issue 02/2024.
Technical data: The best SSD hard drives in comparison
Good to know: All four SSD hard drives are also available with other storage capacities. This means you can buy the devices with more or less memory depending on your needs. The SSDs from SeaGate and Transcend are also at the forefront of devices with two terabytes of storage space in Stiftung Warentest. Both brands are double test winners.
Test winner with the best performance: SSD hard drive from SanDisk
The test result: With the “test” quality rating “good (2.0)”, the external SSD hard drive from SanDisk is one of the three test winners. It offers the best performance of all the drives examined and is also impressive with its easy handling. There are only slight deductions for the slightly higher power consumption.
We mean: The NVMe SSD from SanDisk offers a well-rounded overall package with a good combination of performance, features and price. A plus point compared to other devices is the protection against dust and water. The high reading and writing speeds of up to 2,000 megabytes per second are particularly positive. The two terabyte drive is just as fast as its little sister and offers space for even larger amounts of data.
Test winner with the lowest power consumption: SSD hard drive from Seagate
The test result: The Seagate model also received an overall grade of “good (2.0)” from the examiners, thus taking first place. The testers particularly noticed the “very good” power consumption. Stiftung Warentest is also impressed by their performance and handling.
We mean: The SSD hard drive from the manufacturer Seagate is particularly interesting for gamers. The drive impresses with its high speed of up to two gigabytes per second when transferring data. The NVME memory, with its configurable LED lighting and fairly heavy weight, is primarily designed for use at home. Accordingly, no protection against dust or water is provided. Its dimensions also allow it to be transported.
Test winner with the lowest weight: SSD hard drive from Transcend
The test result: Transcend’s SSD hard drive shares the test victory with the models from SanDisk and Seagate. With consistently good partial grades, she achieved the overall rating of “good (2.0)”. Compared to the other first-place winners, the more compact dimensions and lower weight are noticeable.
We mean: The read and write speed of the NVMe drive from the manufacturer Transcend is also impressive. Like the competition from SanDisk and Seagate, up to two gigabytes per second are achieved. The anti-shock design with a robust housing to protect against impacts is particularly advantageous when on the go. You can also use the associated app to encrypt and restore data. The SSD offers a particularly high level of security.
The price tip: SSD hard drive from Corsair
The test result: With an overall grade of “good (2.3),” the Corsair device comes in tied for fourth place. It is the cheapest SSD hard drive with good test results and is therefore the price tip from Stiftung Warentest. The model consistently achieves good ratings, its power consumption is even “very good” and lower than the test winners.
We mean: The particularly compact and light PCIe SSD from Corsair is perfect for on the go: According to the manufacturer, it is smaller than a credit card. The performance of the drive is slightly lower than that of the other models shown here. Reading and writing speeds of 1,600 and 1,500 megabytes per second, respectively, are quite impressive, especially given the comparatively low price. Even large amounts of data can be transferred quickly via the USB interface.
Our conclusion on the SSD hard drive test
Stiftung Warentest draws a positive conclusion: Most SSD hard drives are convincing in the test and achieve good results. The three test winners from SanDisk, Seagate and Transcend (1 TB) are at the forefront. We like the drive from because of the convincing overall package SanDisk best, which is also one of the best SSDs with two terabytes of memory. If you want to invest less, you can confidently go to the handy one Price tip from Corsair grab.
Things to know about external SSD hard drives
What should you pay attention to when choosing an SSD hard drive?
As with other storage media, the main thing with SSD hard drives is the Storage space at. The more mega, giga or terabytes available, the larger amounts of data can be backed up on the drive.
Good to know: mega, giga and terabytes
The unit byte indicates how large a memory is. A kilobyte is equal to 1,024 bytes, a megabyte is equal to 1,024 kilobytes. Accordingly, 1,024 megabytes are a gigabyte and 1,024 gigabytes are a terabyte.
It is also particularly important Transfer rate: The higher the Reading and writing speed, the faster data is transmitted via the interface between the SSD and the end device. This usually happens via USB ports.
If you want to use the SSD on the go, for example when working mobile or with a tablet while traveling, you should also use it Dimensions and that Weight regard. A comparison is definitely worthwhile here, because the differences are sometimes very clear. It is also an advantage if the storage device is protected against shocks, dust and water if it is to be used outside.
What does SSD mean?
SSD is the abbreviation for Solid State Drive. Strictly speaking, according to Stiftung Warentest, these are not hard drives, but drives. In everyday life, the term SSD hard drive has become established for storage media.
Alternatively, the models are often called flash memory. In principle, they are small memory chips, like those found in cell phones, tablets or a USB stick. The advantage: They have no moving parts, are robust and significantly faster than HDDs.
Good to know: This is an HDD
HDD stands for Hard Disk Drive. These hard drives have a magnetic disk that rotates and is read by a read head. If shaken, the head and the plate can be damaged. In addition, HDDs do not achieve the high read and write speeds of SSDs. But they are cheaper.
What types of SSD hard drives are there?
More technically savvy users differentiate between SATA and NVMe hard drives. The name refers to the interface or the protocol used: SATA uses AHCI, PCIe uses the newer NVMe protocol. This is relevant for the performance of the external drives. With the newer standard, more data is transferred per second, so the speed is higher. Since most manufacturers specify the speed of their SSDs anyway, you usually don’t need to worry about the technical background.