OWC Directly Managed USB4 (USB-C) 40Gbps Express 1M2 External SSD Case Only Maximum Effective Speed 3151MB/s Mac Windows Compatible

I recently purchased the OWC Express 1M2 NVMe Thunderbolt External Drive, and I am beyond impressed! This drive is a game-changer for anyone who needs fast, reliable external storage. The speed is mind-blowing — I'm consistently getting read and write speeds that far surpass anything I’ve experienced with other external drives. The Thunderbolt connectivity ensures lightning-fast data transfer, whether I'm editing large video files or working with heavy datasets. It's perfect for video editors, photographers, or anyone who needs high-performance storage for demanding tasks. The compact design is sleek and portable, making it easy to take with me on the go. I also appreciate the sturdy build quality, which gives me confidence that it's built to last. Setting it up was a breeze, and I had no issues with compatibility on my MacBook Pro and Mac Mini M4. It also stays cool even during extended use, with no noticeable slowdowns or overheating. Overall, this external drive is a fantastic investment. If you're looking for fast, reliable storage with excellent performance, I highly recommend the OWC Express 1M2!

If you already have an NVME SSD to hand, this is a cheap(ish) way to turn it into a high performing Thunderbolt external drive. With a WD Black SN770 2TB SSD (pulled out of my desktop PC) inside and connected to my M4 MacBook Air, I can get over 3GBps read and write on this drive - probably difficult to get faster reads and writes than that with an external drive I'd reckon. Mounts fine every time and seems stable - doesn't disconnect when laptop goes to sleep. It was pretty easy to install the drive and it's even supplied with rubber feet for you to install over the screws once you've got the drive installed. The enclosure looks good and keeps the drive relatively cool - it gets warm, but never hot to the touch (even after hours of use). UPDATE: using with a Thunderbolt dock. I tried using this enclosure with several Wavlink Thunderbolt docks, and with each of them the drive only performed in USB 3.2 mode, achieving reads/writes of around 1GBps - much slower than if connected to the Mac directly. After some research, it transpires people using this enclosure with other docks (CalDigit TS4, mainly) were having the same issues. Talking to OWC's tech support over email (they responded quickly), I asked if their docks would enable the enclosure/drive to perform at USB 4 speeds. They said yes, so I bought the OWC 11-port Thunderbolt 4 dock and it worked. You won't get quite full performance when using a dock, but I am getting over 2GBps reads and writes (almost 3GBps reads) via the OWC dock and am happy with that. So if you are intending to use this drive with a dock, or wondering why it doesn't perform optimally with the one you're using, my recommendation is to (unfortunately) shell out for an OWC one.

Not sure you can do better than this enclosure at this price. It’s fanless, so it’s entirely silent during operation and you don’t have to worry about the fan failing, which is huge double bonus. This should literally last as long as the components inside it do, with no other point of failure. Built with maximum efficiency so it stays at safe temps even during prolonged use. It’s rock solid, build like a brick, feels premium and high quality and has never gotten too hot to touch, only very warm when in use. It is a heat sink so it gets warm even when idle but that’s expected. It fell off my shelf (about 8 inch drop onto hardwood floor) with ssd installed and no affect on performance, not even a scuff! Every other enclosure I researched either had a fan (noise, point of failure) or had sketchy prolonged temps. This is the only one I found that does everything you could want an enclosure to do. It’s rare to find a product that has no discernible con or trade off, but this might just be it! Paired with a 990 Pro on MBP for gaming and works like a charm. It’s half the speed of the 990 Pro so will look at getting a faster enclosure in the future to unlock max SSD speeds. Until then this does everything it needs to.

I was going to buy an M4 Mac Mini dock but I have all the plugs I need so went for just an SSD enclosure. Fitted with a Samsung 990 Pro that is faster than the OWC supports but the SSD was on offer so went for it as it was less costly than a slower alternative. The enclosure is a doddle to set up and use and I now have all my key programmes - MS Office and Photoshop, Acrobat and Lightroom plus Chrome and Firefox running from it. Fast? Seems to be. Stable? Yes. Fast file transfers? Extremely quick. Does it run hot? Gets warm under load, hence sitting on heavy alloy billet which really helps reduce the running temperatures. Not a problem without but in hot weather is could be. Older and slower SSDs run cool. Fast ones are clearly using a lot more power and do run warm. If the Mac is left to sleep the external drive is warm to the touch in the morning. This is normal I am told. Would I run this with a 'laptop'? If the laptop is plugged into the mains, yes. But I think these powerful SSDs and enclosures eat power so be aware if you want to use battery power for an extended period. Would a cheaper alternative be as good? No idea. I buy something that has a good warranty from a trusted supplier. Do I trust my data to an SSD? No. I have multiple back-ups and always save pictures from my SD card to at least three external drives. Two Samsung SSDs have died on me but they were lower capacity and worked really hard. Can I plug in the drive and use it with another computer? If it is a Mac with an M1 to M4 chip and fitted with USB 3/4 or Thunderbolt yes. Works seamlessly. Would I recommend? If you rely on an external drive, yes. Would I fit a slower SSD? Yes, a Gen 3 will be just as fast as the Gen 4 SSD I bought. Do I need my 'home made' heat sink? No but have used this system for a long time and it works.

Good price but sent back because not TB4. It is USB4 The description is misleading

Easy install with 2TB Crucial P510 2280 M.2 SSD. M3 Macbook Pro Thunderbird port - Sequoia Black Magic Disk Speed Test: Write 3127 MB/s Read 3074 MB/s. Good speed results with SupeDuper! backup of Mac HD and SD card imaging. Heat sink runs warm to the touch - doing its's job, that's what it's for! Easy to setup APFS volumes in macOS Disk Utility with min & max size limits. Eay to add as second backup drive for TimeMachine - will see how that goes ...

Other enclosures have failed me but this one is working great so far after 3 days use. It gets hot but not too hot maybe 50C to touch at a guess, the fins seem to do their job and I’ve not had it overheat. I’m running Mac OS from the external drive and it’s working fine for me.

Great build quality, great performance. No fans. A little on the large side compared to smaller enclosures, but those smaller enclosures are best reserved for DRAM-less SSDs drives that don't get as hot, IMO. I have a WD_BLACK in this one and the temps are around 40-44C. This enclosure doesn't disconnect on me the way Acasis 501Pro did.