Product Comparison: Samsung T5 vs Samsung T3 Portable

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Best Pick

Samsung T5 External SSD — USB 3.1 Type-C

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Samsung T3 Portable External SSD

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General Specifications

Brand

Samsung

Model

T3 Portable (MU-PT500B/AM)

Origin

China

Korea

About the Product

Take everything, all your work and entertainment, with you. The Portable SSD T5 gives you simple and efficient access to your massive data so you can complete tasks quickly and on the move. Take along your documents, large-sized photos or videos, and get things done wherever you go.

Designed specifically for today's mobile lifestyles, the Samsung Portable SSD T3 offers a storage capacity of up to 500GB in a palm-sized design, making it easy to take all your important files with you.

Key Specs

Type

Portable

Available Capacities

250 GB, 500 GB, 1 TB, 2 TB

Max. Transfer Speed

540 MB/sec

450 MB/sec

Max. Transfer Speed

What customers say about "Key Specs"

Samsung T5 External SSD — USB 3.1 Type-C

The transfer speed is also faster than I expected. I will by upgrading to 1TB (or higher) strictly for video soon.
While I'm not seeing the quoted average "up to" speeds of 500+ MB/s, they are still impressive.
I really love this portable speed demon. It's built very well and is the perfect size for putting in your pocket or laptop bag.
The transfer speeds between the internal SSD and the T5 are just quick.
Extremely slow on USB 3.0. Writing a 20GB file only does so at 24MB per second.

Samsung T3 Portable External SSD

This is a great portable storage device that's fast enough for just about any use that might be thrown its way. Great for general video editing (even multicamera 4k edits) and certainly more than adequate for gaming.
This storage device is amazing in every respect. It's reasonably priced, has amazing transfer rates, and has plenty of storage.
Super fast, super compact... just super. I loved the first one so much I bought two more of the 1TB drives and one of the 2TB drives. I can now store everything I need and carry it with me wherever I go and never have to regret leaving a file at home.
Just to let you know that the 500 GB designation is not accurate. The hard drive I received did not accept the 470 GB's that I needed from it for a backup. I had to buy a bigger hard drive.
It gets hot! I copied about 24,000 files for a total 220 Gig (GB) of data to migrate from my old drive to new. When it got hot, the drive slowed down substantially!

Size & Weight

Color

Black

Black / Silver

Height

2.26 in.

0.4 in.

Width

2.91 in.

2.9 in.

Depth

0.41 in.

2.3 in.

Weight

1.8 oz.

1.76 oz.

Features

OS Compatibility

Windows, Mac OS X

Windows, Mac OS X, Android

Interfaces

USB 3.0, USB 3.1 Gen 2

USB 3.1

Password Setting

Optional

Data Protection

AES 256-bit encryption, Shock-resistant

Shock-resistant, AES 256-bit encryption

Extras

Ready anytime, anywhere, Metal minimalism, Compact and light

Durable Design and AES Encryption Keep Your Data Safe, V-NAND Technology for Enhanced Performance, Compatible with Multiple Operating Systems and Devices

What customers say about "Features"

Samsung T5 External SSD — USB 3.1 Type-C

Rugged metal case means I don't have to worry about dropping it.
It is encrypted which is another very valuable feature. It is a great failsafe!
The samsung software for Mac, providing password encryption and other features, does NOT work with Mac Sierra or Mojave OS.
I should also mention, it has a password function to allow the user to put in a password. The is a nice feature.
Adding a slot that would ingest SD cards dynamically like the Gnar box would be a cool feature. Get the biggest size you will use it.

Samsung T3 Portable External SSD

The software didn't require any genius set up and has been reliable. I supplement my storage with this device, primarily using a Drobo however if one has storage needs that fit the capacity this device would manage the entire library quite well.
Plugged it into Windows 10 PC and it was detected and picked up instantly.
It has a Type-C interface (USB SATA III out), but it now the T5's are out, so prices are going to start dropping, but if you are looking for a Solid State storage device, you will not go wrong with this product.
Encryption password is limited to around 16 characters. What kind of terrible security is that?!
If you encrypt the drive, you can't use it on Linux-based systems. That includes external media servers or NAS such as Synology DiskStation.
The drive itself seems cool, but the software (security enabler for T3) that comes with it is BUGGY AF.. I do not recommend installing it. I'm on day3 not being able to use my drive because I installed it and waiting on Samsung customer service which is also SLOW AF

Included

Software

Samsumg Portable SSD Software

Additional Accessories

Quick Start Guide, USB Type-C to Type-A cable

Power

Power Supply

5V/0.5A

Warranty / Certifications

Manufacturer Warranty

3 year(s)

Certifications