The wait for a fully Mac compatible USB-4 Thunderbolt 4 certified external SSD drive enclosure for the latest M1 Macintosh systems is over. Check out this cutting-edge Apple ready TB4 SSD enclosure for the NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD blade of your choosing and start living your Mac life in the fastest fast lane possible.

Click For The Latest Pricing
Yottamaster Certified Thunderbolt 4/USB4 NVMMe SSD Enclosure

Up To 2800MBps : Includes Type-C Thunderbolt4 & USB Cables

Future ready and compatible with Thunderbolt 3 era Mac's and MacBooks - This DIY Thunderbolt 4 SSD case's universal drive controller chipset delivers comprehensive compatibility. Supports Thunderbolt 3/4 Macs, is backwards compatible with USB3.2X2, USB3.1, USB3.0 (at slower speeds). Note To Luddites: It doesn't support USB2.0 connectivity with long obsolete Macintosh computers. Check it out!

If you've been researching the absolutely fastest Mac compatible flash drive ever made, read further. In 2022 we finally have a thumb/keychain drive that offers full, maxed-out USB-C solid state drive performance. A blisteringly fast SSD on a stick that leaves any other USB 3.x flash drive for Mac in the dust. It's ideal for direct connection to modern Macs with Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports.

Benchmarked Fastest USB-C Mac Flash Drive Ever Shipped

Full 1000MBps Read Speeds Rivaling Portable SSD Drives

This retractable Type-C USB 3.2 Gen2 keychain drive from Kingston blew away other benchmarks at sever tech testing sites. A sophisticated SSD caliber controller in the Kingston DataTraveler Max nearly approaches the edge of becoming the 1st almost Thunderbolt 3 flash drive level of performance. Need speed on the cheap? The 256GB version is less than 50 bucks, 512GB and 1TB versions are also available

This year's Best Thunderbolt 3 SSD drives for Mac nominations was an easy task. As powerful as Thunderbolt technology is, the vast majority of Apple computer users are simply opting for incredibly fast but far cheaper 10GBps USB 3.2 USB-C SSD backup drives. Most don't have the need for, nor are willing to pay for the extra speed and ooomph! a 40GBps Thunderbolt 3 solid-state drive can provide.

I've tracked the Mac compatible Thunderbolt 3 solid-state drive market, it struggles and fails to take dominance. I've seen major brands enter with a product, then discontinue their Thunderbolt 3 drive a year later. It seems that next-generation USB 4 is going to eventually crush Thunderbolt slowly, much like what happened with Apple's FireWire a decade ago. Below are the only 8 TBolt 3 external SSD's I could find listed on Amazon after hours of searching and scouring their listings.

What that leaves us is only the most known and entrenched players like LaCie, OWC and GTech are holding turf while lesser brands slug it out. What's surprising is Sabrent delivering the cheapest 1TB Thunderbolt 3 SDD drive and does it using the latest chipset. It supports both 40 GBps Thunderbolt 3 or 10GBps USB 3.2 Type-C connectivity for assured cross-platform compatibility now, and into the Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 future.

The Sabrent Rocket XTRM-Q 1TB SSD with Thunderbolt 3 or USB 3.2 chipset $219 USD. Speeds up to 2700 MB/s in Thunderbolt 3 Mode or up to 900 MB/s in USB 3.2 Mode,

Sabrent Rocket 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

Best Bang For The Buck

Major Brand, Highest Price: LaCie's Rugged Pro Thunderbolt 3 / USB-C drive that supports either TBolt3 or USB 3.2 protocols. Wins the least bang for the buck award at $349.

Lacie 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

Thank gawd it isn't wrapped in that ugly ORANGE silicone shock protector

OWC Envoy Pro FX 1TB Thunderbolt 3 USB and 3.2 SSD $299

OWC 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

Super-Cooling Heatsink Fin Enclosure For Reliability

Fantom Extreme 1TB Thunderbolt 3 and USB 3.2 Support $299

Fantom Extreme 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

5-Year Warranty.

TEKQ Lowest-price matching Sabrent, but chipset is Thunderbolt 3-Only $219

TEKQ 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

Cheap but has TBolt 3-only chipset

G-Drive (Sandisk Pro) is holding out with their stylish but Thunderbolt 3-Only chipset. $319

G-Drive 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

Needs newer chipset, but the case design is the most stylish

Archgon 1TB Thunderbolt 3-Only SSD $299

Archgon 1 Terabyte TBolt 3 SSD

Good heat dissipating aluminum enclosure

Plugable 1TB Thunderbolt-3 Only SSD $349

Plugable 1TB TBolt 3 SSD

Not price competitive at ll as a Thunderbolt 3-Only drive

Tags: cheap mac external ssd, thunderbolt 3 ssd for mac, apple compatible thunderbolt 3 drive, mac thunderbolt 3 ssd, cheapest ssd, cheap thunderbolt 3 drive

Shopping for the cheapest 1TB external Thunderbolt 3 solid-state drive for your PC or Mac computer? Unlike the USB-C storage market, the players in the Thunderbolt space are few, so hunting down the lowest price among the vendors is fairly easy to do The lowest-cost per Terabyte price leader also turns out to use the latest Intel Thunderbolt Titan Ridge chipset that auto-detects and supports either Thunderbolt 3 or USB 3.2 Type-C ports. That doesn't matter much to Mac users, but it is important for people who also need to use their backup drives using USB-C USB 3.2 on Windows PC's where Thunderbolt 3 ports are less common.

Sabrent Rocket XTRM-Q 1TB with TB3/USB-CAuto-Detect Chipset

Use On Thunderbolt 3 *or* USB 3.2 USB-C Ports

The majority of drives introduced since Thunderbolt 3's debut have been Thunderbolt 3-ONLY drives that didn't function at all on USB-C ports. But that's changed now with Intel's new chipset. Yes the drives run slower under USB 3.2 at 10GBps, but they're more versatile when you need to use them on modern computers with or without Thunderbolt.

THE BOTTOM LINE: The Sabrent Rocket 1TB Thunderbolt 3 SSD is the BEST DEAL so far this year: Lowest Cost. High Performance, Maximum Versatility. Period.

We're finally seeing a truly affordable DIY Thunderbolt 3 enclosure for building your own Mac or PC Thunderbolt 3 backup drive using nearly any NVMe PCIe SSD module of your choosing. With solid-state flash prices plummeting in 2022, for about $125 you can cobble together the cheapest 512GB portable Thunderbolt 3 backup drive in minutes.

OWC's Cheap Thunderbolt 3 Chipset SSD Enclosure

Heat Dissipating Aluminum Case w/Integrated Cable

Pair OWC's cheap Thunderbolt 3 enclosure with a compatible M.2 NVMe SSD blade from Silicon Power. They're a major name in the solid-state drive business known for extremely competitive pricing. For well under $50 you can buy a half a Terabyte of insanely fast storage to put in OWC's affordable Thunderbolt 3 enclosure.

Silicon Power 512GB NVMe SSD Module

High Performance Read Writes _ 3 Year Warranty

cheapest thunderbolt ssd, cheap thunderbolt 3 enclosure, cheap diy thunderbolt 3 drive, lowest cost thunderbolt 3 enclosure

Shopping for the cheapest solid-state Thunderbolt 3 external SSD backup drive for Mac or PC use? Archigon recently threw down the low-price gauntlet with it's Silver, Titanium and Platinum line of Mac compatible external 512GB and 1TB Thunderbolt 3 SSD storage devices. Price competition is heating up as more computer storage companies enter the emerging market for Thunderbolt 3 peripherals. As flash memory prices continue their downward slide, it's making SSD storage with a Thunderbolt 3 interface in general downright cheap.

CLICK FOR PRICING
Archigon Silver SSD With Thunderbolt 3

PCIe Gen3x2 Solid-State Module

Offering Read speeds up to 1600Mbps and 1100Mbps Writes, the Archigon Silver Thunderbolt 3 SSD isn't quite as fast as some competitor's PCIe SSD blade products that cost significantly more. So there's the tradeoff: A cheap Thunderbolt 3 SSD that's more than 'fast enough', or far more expensive ones that deliver proportionately higher speeds at higher prices.

Licensing Intel's Thunderbolt 3 chipset inflates the cost of computer peripherals significantly more than a dirt-cheap USB 3.0 / 3.1 chipset does. But Thunderbolt 3 is taking hold far beyond the Mac into the Windows PC world with unprecedented adoption and deployment. The economies of scale with make cheap Thunderbolt 3 storage and devices a reality sooner than you think.

A new category of Apple peripheral is appearing in new multi-port USB-C mini docks and hubs that also incorporate solid state storage. In addition to providing additional video or data ports, some USB-C SSD hubs like the 120, 240 or 480GB Minix NEO also contain an M.2 flash memory module inside. That may make having to own a separate data or Time Machine backup drive with your MacBook unnecessary. It also incorporates 2 Type-A USB 3.0 ports, 1 USB-C with Power Delivery and a HDMI port for charging, other peripherals, and an external display.

Multi-Port USB-C SSD Dock For MacBook

Uo To 400MBps Read/Write Speeds

With the Mini Neo, a SATA III based M.2 SSD module is used for reasonably speedy transfers, but expect other products incorporating PCIe NVMe flash modules to deliver even higher data transfer speeds approaching 1000MBps to reach the market soon.

Tags: USB-C storage hub, USB-C-SSD dock, USB-C hub with SSD

Apple users looking for a cheap Thunderbolt 3 SSD drive enclosure will find it challenging. Unlike the USB 3.1 product scene where choices abound and costs are low, current external Thunderbolt 3 drive case options are limited and costlier.

Thunderbolt3 PCIe NVMe SSD Enclosure

Single M.2 PCIe SSD Solid-State Drive Case

There's a handful of widely available NVMe PCIe SSD Thunderbolt 3 enclosures available. With portable 40Gbps Thunderbolt enclosure prices hovering in the $110-$130 range, a DIY Thunderbolt 3 enclosure w/SSD costs more than complete off-the-shelf half-terabyte external TB3 backup drives like the 512GB Patriot Evlvr or the 512GB VisionTek do!

By the time you add a DIY M.2 PCIe SSD module - even one of the cheapest NVMe SSD's out there -- to an enclosure, your total cost inches closer to the $200 range. Just doesn't make much economic sense to cobble your own solid-state Mac backup drive until Thunderbolt 3 enclosure prices drop further.

Looking a lot like a conventional flash drive, Orico's USB-C SSD enclosure features an integrated, retractable Type-C connector for plugging into a modern Macintosh computer's Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) port.

Thunderbolt3 Compatible Flash Drive Case

Gen 2 USB 3 : For NVMe SSD Modules

The Thunderbolt 3 port friendly USB3.1 Gen2 10Gbps external case for Mac accepts 2230 2242 2260 2280 millimeter length NVMe PCIe SSD of your choosing. It supports capacities up to 2TB solid-state flash memory modules.

We still haven't seen a true Thunderbolt 3 flash memory drive enclosure like this one with a native TB3 chipset. In the meantime, USB-C will be fast enough. Using USB-C protocol on an Apple Mac, this drive is capable of Read/Writes up into the 1000MBps range, fully maxing out the 10Gbps bandwidth of its USB 3.1 Gen 2 connection.

LaCie is one of the first companies to release an Apple compatible external SSD drive that supports both USB 3.X and Thunderbolt 3 protocols for wide compatibility with any recent Mac (or PC) with Type-C data ports. Many top performing SSD backup drives 'speak' Thunderbolt 3 ONLY, OR USB ONLY. However, LaCie's SSD Pro can be connected to either kind of Type-C port and be optimally recognized thanks to it's use of Intel's Titan Ridge 7x40 chipset.

Dual Support SSD USB-C OR Thunderbolt 3

Ultra-Fast NVMe Solid-State Flash Memory

Based on NVMe solid-state flash memory modules, the drive is capable of speeds up to 2800MBps connected via Thunderbolt 3, or up to 950MBps on a Gen 2 USB 3.1 USB-C port leveraging the full potential of either type of connection. For modern Mac users, the drive's single port will connect at Thunderbolt 3 speeds when directly connected to a newer MacBook, iMac, Mac mini or Mac Pro. But it will also work at various USB speeds if connected to, say, a slower USB-C hub. With proper cable or adapter on older Macs, it can even connect to rectangular USB 2.0/3.0 Type-A ports and still work.

Unike 'combo' drives with multiple interfaces on the back, a SINGLE port on the SSD Pro detects the optimal protocol when plugged into a Type-C computer port. As such the SSD Pro from LaCie is the most versatile external SSD drive currently available thanks to it's advanced Titan Ridge Thunderbolt controller circuitry.