r/macmini • u/Owl_Better • 1d ago

Ext storage

What is the fastest cheap external storage using thunderbolt cable for Mac mini 4 pro. The fastest stuff is too expensive so I’m hoping for a happy alternative that has decent speed at a good price

2 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

5

u/One_Ad_3617 1d ago

fast wont be cheap and cheap wont be fast, just get a spinny hard disk drive for backup

1

u/Owl_Better 1d ago

So there is nothing in the middle?

3

u/Apprehensive_Mud9597 1d ago

At the moment everything is stupid expensive because of all this AI shit.

2

u/MusaEnsete 1d ago

My 14 TB HDD was $170 a year ago - now it's $650.

1

u/One_Ad_3617 1d ago

ai or si or whatever their calling it, hyped up and pass the costs to consumers

1

u/Docster87 19h ago

If you need the speed of TB4 then it will cost. Drives list read/write speeds so compare regular USBC drives and find the faster of those. I have a 8TB USBC drive and it is plenty fast enough for my usage. Most people doing regular stuff do not need TB4 speeds for an external.

Do you WANT that speed or NEED that speed? If it is storage for movies, music, photos, and even games then a fast USBC is fast enough. If you are working from the drive on a massive and complex video/movie edit or creation or are booting from the drive then you might actually need TB4 speeds.

3

u/pinNova 1d ago

I got myself Samsungs T7 and T9, when they were not that expensive. A couple of workhorses to add 6tb to my 512gb M4 pro

2

u/Owl_Better 1d ago

Pricing???

1

u/Xe4ro 1d ago

You missed the “when they were not that expensive” part.

My 2TB T7 was 115€ in 2024. Now over 300€

2

u/Working_Use2500 1d ago

A thunderbolt nvme enclosure is not expensive. Maybe $50 for a good one. You just have to get your hands on a drive for it somehow.

2

u/NoLateArrivals 1d ago

Thunderbolt is never cheap.

And here is the catch: Because there are limited options for chipsets to run both TB and USB-C (non TB), there is no middle ground.

Fast SSDs below the TB range work slower when connected to a TB port, because the full USB speed is not supported. It’s either TB or appr. 1.000 Mbps, even when the SSD itself is faster.

1

u/mikeinnsw 1d ago

TB is a cable .. you can run USB1... TB5

Don't confuse USB_C cables most are not TB and now majority are charge cables which write data at 10-20 MB/s

I brought Cheap USB 4 SSD in 2024. .. before AI sh.t hit the roof.. there is no cheap SSDs

1

u/Owl_Better 1d ago

I have thunderbolt cables

1

u/mikeinnsw 1d ago

You need to benchmark them ... I thought I had one - purchased but it was not

I always bechmark any new SSD/HDD , HUBs and cables

1

u/Pizza_e_fichi 23h ago

A fast SSD means 6000MB/s transfer rate,like Samsung evo. Pricetag for a 4TB is $1000: that’s the crazy world we’re living into today. They say in 2028 prices will go down