Crucial Unveils the X8 Portable SSD

Micron’s client storage options arm Crucial unveiled the X8 Portable SSD. The Crucial X8 is a light-weight, moveable flash-based storage system that is available in capacities of 500 GB and 1 TB, and presents sequential switch speeds of as much as 1,050 MB/s reads. It leverages USB 3.1 gen 2 (10 Gbps) and UASP, and helps USB type-C. A sort-C to type-A adapter is included within the package deal, however runs the drive at 5 Gbps. The drive requires USB 3.1 and is not suitable with USB 2.0/1.1. This is as a result of it wants 1.5 A of present, which older era USB ports usually cannot present. A single cable with USB-C connectors on each ends handles each energy and host connectivity.

Under the hood, the X8 is actually a Crucial P1 M.2 NVMe SSD wired to an ASMedia-made USB-to-PCIe bridge chip. The X8 helps TRIM command if the quantity is formatted in NTFS. Out of the field, it is available in a camera-friendly exFAT format with GPT. The drive is therefore suitable with PCs (Windows 7 or later and GPT-aware *nix), Macs, the iPad Pro, Chromebooks, and Android units which have USB 3.1. Although not licensed, The Crucial X8 additionally works with Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and Crucial supplies help on the right way to get the drive to work with these consoles, making it a formidable moveable sport drive given its sequential learn pace. The drive is roughly the dimensions of a 4-inch smartphone, and may survive drops onto carpet as much as a top of seven.5 ft (2.28 m). It’s not waterproof. Backed by a 3-year guarantee, the 1 TB variant (CT1000X8SSD9) is priced at $164.95, and the 500 GB variant (CT500X8SSD9) at $119.95.