By One of the fastest and smallest USB SSDs I’ve ever tested was Crucial’s X10 Pro. The new X10, which I examine here, is more affordable, nearly as quick, and has a maximum capacity of up to twice that of the Pro’s 4TB. Indeed, 8TB in the same small size factor. Color me doubly impressed.
What features does the Crucial X10 have?
The Crucial X10 is a 20Gbps, bluish gray, USB 3.2×2 SSD that is small enough to fit in your hand. It is only 2.5 inches long, 2 inches wide, and half an inch thick. One end has a Type-C connector, and the other has a lanyard hole. Crucial sent me a 2TB X10, and it weighs only 1.4 ounces. I wouldn’t anticipate the larger capacity to weigh much more. NAND doesn’t weigh much.
The drive’s IP65 rating belies its feather-light feel. With that grade, the X10 can withstand light rain or sprinkler spray and is dust-proof. You may learn more about the ingress protection rating system here if you’re unfamiliar with it. Crucial was secretive about the controller that was inside. However, the NAND is QLC based on the performance after the drive runs out of secondary cache. It is also clear that it is layered/stacked/3-D NAND because it comes in capacities up to 8TB.
I have two small complaints regarding the X10. To begin with, it is USB 3.2×2 rather than the far more compatible USB4. To put it another way, it will typically operate at half speed (10Gbps) on Thunderbolt and USB4 ports and 20Gbps only on the less common USB3.2×2 interface. After that, there’s something I don’t typically gripe about… But, Louise, the drive arrives in a plastic tray, sealed in a plastic bag, and covered with a plastic protective sheet that sticks to it? I understand that technology is an ecological nightmare in the first place, but is it necessary to waste money and fill the earth with pointless plastic to appease extremely finicky consumers?
What is the price of the Crucial X10?
Crucial charges $140, $250, $396, $559, and $780 for the 1TB, 2TB, 4TB, 6TB, and 8TB capacities of the X10. As of this writing, that is, at least, what we saw for retail pricing on Amazon. Compared to comparable 20Gbps external SSDs, those prices are around the same, if not somewhat less expensive.
But as you can see above, the 8TB model was only $440, while the 1TB disk was only $100. Because of this, the 8TB model is a great value, whereas the 6TB model is a terrible bargain.
What is the Crucial X10’s speed?
The new X10 would have probably placed almost as highly as the older X10 Pro if it weren’t for a relatively poor performance in our 450GB write. As of right now, it ranks eighth out of 18 20Gbps SSDs that I have tested and twenty-fourth out of 58 external SSDs of all kinds.
Under CrystalDiskMark 8, the new X10 and the older X10 Pro performed identically in terms of sequential performance. The older drive took two victories, while the newer drive took two.
There is a disclaimer on it. Until the 85 percent level, when it plummeted to its native write rate of about 200 MBps (often varying up to nearly 500 MBps), the X10 was performing fairly well, as you can see below. This is unquestionably a QLC NAND SSD.
Due to their larger secondary cache, the X10’s 4TB, 6TB, or 8TB models would have aced this test. The majority of users will never write this much continuous data; therefore, keep in mind that this is a stress test.
The Crucial X10: Should you purchase it?
I answer “yes” to this question. (Yes, as opposed to no.) The X10 is the best SSD available if you’re searching for one that is small, quick, durable, waterproof, capacious, and reasonably priced. Unless, of course, you write enormous volumes of data regularly. Next, choose the X10 Pro.
