Kingston XS1000 External SSD Review

Rating: 8.0.

The latest drive to join Kingston's extensive range of external devices is the XS1000. A tiny pocket-sized drive, it uses a USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface and offers transfer speeds up to 1,050MB/s. We test the 2TB model, coming in at just over £100 here in the UK.

Available at launch in 1TB and 2TB capacities, the latter of which we are reviewing today, the XS1000 uses a Silicon Motion SM2320 controller and 3D NAND. The SM2320 uses a built-in USB 3.2 Gen 2 x2 interface (running at x1 in the XS1000) which offers much better performance than a controller that has to rely on a bridge chip. Another benefit of not using a bridge chip is that drive designers don't have to find space to accommodate it, allowing for more compact drives like the XS1000.

Kingston rates the read/write performance for the drive as up to 1,050MB/s and up to 1,000MB/s respectively for both capacities.

The XS1000 doesn't come with any hardware encryption or IP protection rating. Kingston back the XS1000 with a 5-year warranty.

Physical Specifications:

• Usable Capacities: 2TB.
• NAND Components: 3D TLC NAND.
• NAND Controller: Silicon Motion SM2320.
• Interface: USB 3.2 Gen2 x1.
• Form Factor: external.
• Dimensions: 69.54 x 32.58 x 13.5mm.
• Drive Weight: 30g.

Firmware Version: 1000.

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