SK hynix SK hynix Beetle X31 1TB Portable SSD

Great device for backing up. Works really well with time machine. Had it for a few months so far. No problems at all.

I haven’t been using it long but I was immediately impressed by how small and lightweight the drive is. It is even more compact than I was expecting and in addition to the case which prevents slipping it also has rubber runners on the bottom that keep it secure as well. It’s so lightweight and the cords that come with it are so sturdy that initially the cord was enough to lift it off of the desk! Additionally, the speed is excellent and despite using it for hosting videos I am editing it only heated up very slightly. I’m sure with heavier use it will be more noticeable but I spent a solid hour editing and it was barely warm. Overall the drive seems to be quite well made and the cords that come with it definitely are. I also like that it comes with a double usbc and a usb to usbc cord. A great product!

Takes about 30 seconds to load onto my M3 macbook and its slow at loading huge folders, but the transfer speed is pretty good for the price. Will overheat if used extensively

In this review I will leave it to others, many others, to argue things like speed. I don’t see the point – everyone’s going to get completely different real life speeds compared to those who glower over bench tests which seem to never exactly agree with each other anyway. My rule when considering any memory is to buy it, install it, try it and if it works for you keep it, if not try something else. In today’s world most memory devices are capable of near real-time speeds and the average user doesn’t need the maximum theoretical on-paper speeds for their everyday home computing, or even business needs. My focus is based more on two things – does the company who makes the memory device know what they are doing and is what they make reliable. Let’s start with the first, if you were to walk down any average street and ask a thousand people to name a brand of computer memory the chances that even one of them would name SK Hynix, yet this company is the second largest maker of memory in the world. Many of the most famous brands of electronic devices use this brand exclusively and have for many years. It is only recently that they have come out of their cocoon and started to sell under their own, albeit awkward, name.

IS IT RELIABLE

If someone answers yes or no to that question, move on, they are giving you the wrong answer. No computer memory manufacturer sets out to make a memory device that purposely fails. Buying any brand, repeat that, any brand is a gamble. Sooner or later you will run into a product that messes up. Some will immediately suggest that the entire brand name is a bad choice. Again, move on. If I am playing the law of averages my choice would be to choose the biggest or second biggest manufacturer of memory devices in the world – I’m guessing they know what they are doing. Related to reliability is connectivity – many drives I own have loose ports which can result in lost data. The two included cables with this one are very substantial and lock in place with a satisfying click. I should say that this company’s entire presentation is first rate, with the minor exception of what I mention below.

MAKING A DECISION

Choosing which one to buy, assuming we are talking about portable SSD’s now, really comes down to which one is on sale, which one looks prettiest and which one has the longest warranty. One the first score I chose this one on a whim, fully knowing who SSK Hynix is, because it was on a Black Friday sale and I bought it with my own money, and I liked the soft rounded corners because I actually did plan on using it as a mobile storage media and it feels good in my jeans pocket. The gold color was a plus to immediately make it identifiable in a drawer full of other devices. And I liked their choice of connectivity, which fit into every one of my devices without having to carry an adapter. And the 3 year warranty is definitely a big plus.

SURPRISES

Much of the product page is written in Chinese, I’m surprised that they have never translated it for our domestic market. Although they mention it I was surprised that they include a thick silicone case which is clear so it doesn’t hide the beauty of the design. Unfortunately that beautiful design is only on one side of the product itself, the other side is bland silver and totally filled with written text. Another surprise is that although they say that they provide customized SK Hynix edition Macrium cloning software for data transfers and OS migration. Along with our Easy Kit software, so you can check the performance and status of your SSD at a glance. Neither of those apps is on the drive, in the box nor referred to in the brief instruction sheet. That is a disappointment and dropped them down a notch.

YES NO MAYBE

Based on my own criteria this was an easy decision and I like that it arrived without being loaded with bloatware. It seems rugged and it does not get unreasonably warm in use. And yes it is fast but everything I own is new generation. The everyday price is a bit high so if that were my only criterion I might have thought twice but I bet it goes on sale fairly often. Overall I am happy.

I like it. It is small and compact size. Fast enough. It shows 890 MB/s for writing on my test so it is as advertised. Totally satisfied.

Es haben sich in den letzten Jahren durch meine Arbeit auf meinem Rechner unzählige Aufzeichnungen und Dokumente angesammelt. Das Schlimmste was da passieren kann, ist wenn aus irgendeinem Grund die Platte den Geist aufgibt. Sicherheitshalber habe ich daher nach einem externen Speicher gesucht. Also ins WWW, nach den handelsüblichen Test- und Vergleichsplattformen gesucht und meinen Fokus auf Geschwindigkeit gelegt, da ich keine Lust habe jedes mal Stunden zu warten, bis der Kopiervorgang beendet ist. Nach einigem Suchen bin ich auf die Beetle X31 von SK Hynix gestoßen.
Als das Paket ankam erst mal die Fotos gemacht. Das Ergebnis sieht man hier. Im Lieferumfang befindet sich der Speicher, zwei Kabel (ein Mal USB A zu USB C und ein Mal USB C zu USB C), außerdem so eine durchsichtige, kleine Schutzhülle, die die Seiten abdeckt.
Was kann man jetzt direkt dazu sagen?
Der Speicher hat die Maße von ca 5×7.5×1.5 (mit Schutzhülle drumherum) und ist von daher gerade mal ca 1cm länger als mein Zippo.
Die Verbindungskabel haben eine Länge von ca 27cm jeweils außen an den Anschlüssen gemessen.
Als ich dann über Mittag etwas Zeit hatte, wollte ich testweise etwas rauf kopieren und war wirklich positiv überrascht, dass die knapp 40GB Daten nach wenigen Minuten schon drauf waren.

Bislang kann ich nur sagen, dass der Speicher nicht nur klein und leicht, sondern auch sehr schnell ist.