Review Samsung T5 EVO 8 TB portable SSD: gigantic storage capacity

Aad Munsterman and Rob Coenraads

Samsung regularly launches a new one portable SSD and this time it is the T5 EVO with 2, 4 or 8 TB of storage capacity. The 8TB version is a breakthrough in storage capacity in this compact size. 4K+ video files in particular require quite a bit of storage space and can therefore be used optimally. As an alternative to a NAS, you can also place all your music, photos and videos on it, connect the SSD to your router or media player and play your multimedia.

The T5 EVO comes in a sturdy metal casing with a rubber finish and is equipped with a metal ring for a better grip or to attach to something. It is relatively small at 95 x 40 x 17 mm with a weight of 102 grams. Samsung promises that the T5 EVO can be dropped two meters without data damage.

Connection and speeds
The T5 EVO has a USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 connection for a maximum transfer of 5 Gbps. A 45 cm USB-C to USB-C cable is included, a USB-C to USB-A adapter is missing. The maximum transfer speed is 460 MB/sec according to the specifications. On a standard Windows 11 laptop, we measured maximum sequential transfer speeds of up to approximately 420 MB/sec for reading and approximately 435 MB/sec for writing. The average transfer of large video files, via Windows Explorer, is approximately 325 MB/sec. The achieved speed is therefore slightly below the speed of a SATA SSD that can still be found in many computers. These are also slower speeds than we are used to from the latest versions of portable SSDs from Samsung that work with USB 3.2 / 10 Gbps and the T9 even with USB3.2 / 20 Gbps. Thanks to advanced temperature control, overheating is prevented during long-term file transfers, optimizing the lifespan.

Management and data security
The Samsung Magician software (Windows, macOS and Android) can be downloaded for management. This allows the status to be displayed, tested, performance measured and possible firmware upgrades can be provided. In addition, 256bit hardware encryption can be activated, so that access to the data is only gained after entering a password. Installation files of a stripped management application are present on the SSD; the functions are limited to setting access security and firmware upgrades. The T5 EVO comes with a three-year warranty or until the total number of bytes (TBW) is written.

Conclusion
The T5 EVO is a sturdy, compact and portable SSD with very high storage capacity. The throughput speed is somewhat limited due to the 5GBps USB3.2 Gen1 connection. It is also noticeable that the rubber protection attracts dust quite quickly.

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Product: Samsung T5 EVO 8TB portable ssd