VisionTek XT 500 Gigabyte (GB) USB 3.0 Pocket SSD (901240) | Up to 450MB/s Read & 401MB/s Write Speeds | Bootable Drive | TLC NAND, SMI Controller | Compatible with PS3/PS4 & Xbox One S/X

I was looking for a very fast flash drive. Lots of research led me to this product. Never really heard of VisionTek before. Saw the Linus Tech Tips' video on this specific flash drive and well it is no ordinary flash drive like the description states it is more of a pocket SSD. This is because it is actually using a SATA SSD controller inside! I ordered the 250 GB version for $70.Speed:The device comes blank, all nulls in the flash. I initialized the disk as MBR partition layout and formatted the whole thing as NTFS using default parameters. I also observed starting with Windows 10 1809 Quick Removal is the new default for external storage devices. So that is what the attached speeds test show. I downloaded the latest version foo Crystal Disk Mark (7.0.0) and ran the x64 executable as Admin. The first image is with the default profile and the second is using the "real world" profile. The VisionTek website advertisesUp to 449 MBs ReadUp to 399 MBs WriteWhen with multiple synthetic benchmarks I can get455 MB/s Read414 MB/s Writeboth of which exceeded! the advertised speeds. I also included AS SSD benchmark and ATTO Disk Benchmark since other reviews used those too. I don't know if I could find another pocket size drive with better speeds. Or a smaller drive with similar speeds.Physical:The device is very rugged. The aluminum housing is solid enough that I would feel comfortable throwing it around or dropping it quite a distance. The USB port is protected by a removable rubber cap that is as thick as the device. There is a green status LED that is not terribly bright to let you know the device is being accessed.Dimensions: 3 and 5/8 in long by 7/8 in wide by 3/4 in deep.Because of the high speeds the device does get warm to the touch.Overall, I give this product a 5/5 stars because it fits in my pockets, has a large capacity, and is blazing fast. Wish they would come out with a USB C version and maybe upgrade the spec to USB 3.2

Prices have come down! I purchased one of these many years ago and it finally burnt out (their previous version, like 6 years ago). i was really happy with the speed and reliability. Most importantly the size and ease of use, as i share files on the fly all the time at work...4k video, editing, design etc. Only had this for a day but nothing has changed, love it. Super durable and the cap stays on tight to prevent any dust, etc. Visiontek actually sells the product via marketplace now too, bonus!! Their tech support has always been helpful. I would recommend, they now even have a 1TB version but i didn't need that much storage:)

I purchased this for my work as this type of drive was a requirement. I have several techs when working on software issues tell me this is the Cadillac and the very best. It is small, extremely well built, metal and heavy, and very very fast.BUY THIS MODEL - IT IS YOUR BEST CHOICE and you will have no regrets

The high performance of SSD is a must if you're booting from an OS. While a high capacity 'thumb' drive is inexpensive and may technically work, your performance will be horrible compared to the real thing.I've installed Windows 10 on this external drive and am using it to boot to Windows when there are must-have apps that are Windows-only. I don't love the situation, but I LOVE the solution. If you're looking at this item for a similar purpose, this is amazing.

The unit works exactly how I believed it would, with one exception. The unit does get warm while writing to the drive causing it to slow down when performing tasks lasting longer than a few minutes. The unit, in my case, is being used as a persistent linux build that I can use as a back-up and travel OS. During the initial formatting and installation process the unit did become incredibly hot to the touch, slowing the process, but quickly returned to normal afterward. Normal use of the drive, however, is quite efficient and does not reproduce the temperature spike. Built to last, as it were, with strong solid components and zero moving parts. I can see this being a usable tool for me long into the future... Hopefully.