You would think using a portable solid-state drive would be as simple as plug it into your laptop, gaming console, or digital camera, and then let it do its thing. And while that’s true with many SSDs, there are tons of exceptions hiding out there, leaving you with the annoyance of having to reformat the drive yourself.
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You and your persnickety devices can both be satisfied by the Crucial X9 Pro SSD, one of the fastest and most broadly compatible drives we’ve found, which is just $120 (2TB) right now at Amazon. There’s also a Mac-specific version of the X9 Pro on sale at Amazon for $138 — 21% off — but the regular version also works seamlessly with Macs and the rest of the Apple ecosystem.
Universal Champion
The Crucial X9 Pro has so many selling points based on its performance, size, and durability, and we’ll get to those. But the best part is the fact that it’s as close to universally compatible as any drive we’ve seen. The X9 Pro works with both Macs and PCs, which isn’t all that uncommon. But then you add in the fact it also works with Linux, and game consoles, and iPhones, and Android devices, and suddenly the X9 Pro gets a lot more sexy.
Then there’s the speed factor, and speed is always a factor when you’re shopping for a good SSD. The Crucial X9 Pro has a super-fast 1,050MB/s read/write speed, which places it in that upper echelon of SSDs that are fast enough for digital photographers and videographers to shoot directly to the drive and also be able to edit it without compromising quality. That speed comes in very handy when you’re using the Crucial X9 Pro as a game console backup, and also when you’re transferring huge files like 8K photos and videos via the USB-C 3.2 connection.
Tough Little Drive
The Crucial X9 Pro is amazingly compact — just 2.56 x 1.97 inches and a scant 0.39 inches thick — and weighs a feathery 1.3 ounces. That’s ideal for a photographer or videographer’s go bag, or a briefcase if you’re bringing one along on a work trip. The anodized aluminum and rubber construction is not only durable, but also IP55 water- and dust-resistant.
The 2TB model of the Crucial X9 Pro has the quality, speed, and versatility to far outkick its $120 Amazon price point, and the Mac-specific model is a solid buy at just $120 while it’s 21% off for anyone who needs the speed and size of the Crucial X9 Pro but not that near-universal compatibility.
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