Sony just announced their new top of the line SSDs – The Sony SL-E line. Coming in three sizes (240, 480 and 960GB) they offer high transfer speeds and wide connectivity through USB Type-C ports all packed in a very tiny body.


Sony SL-E Series SSD. Source: Sony


It’s nice to see the USB Type-C port making its way to more and more portable drives. Sony SL-E series are new SSDs announced by Sony and presented as a fast and compact data storage. The drives offer high speeds as they sport the new USB Type-C port (with USB3.1 gen 2 specification). Data transfer speeds reach up to 540MB/s (read) and 520MB/s (write) – depending on the device used. They come with a USB-C to USB-C cable as well as with a USB-C to a full size USB-A cable too so they offer easy connectivity with older Windows PCs, Macs and Android smartphones and tablets.

The Sony SL-E drives utilise flash memory with no moving parts inside which increases the shockproof capability and reduces the chance of mechanical breakdown of the unit and possible data loss. There is a license of ENC DataVault lite included with the drive which allows for password-protecting selected partitions using 256-bit AES encryption, leaving others ‘open’ for flexible usage. Multi-platform compatibility means users can set a password to lock from Mac then open from Windows, and vice versa.

The drives are very compact and Sony proudly claims their size to be “smaller than a credit card”. Specificaly 80mm (3.15″) x 47mm (1.85″) x 11mm (0.43″) with a weight of just 50g (1.8 oz). They come in black only and have durable brushed aluminum finish with a waved surface.

Interesting for photographers – the new SL-E drives support the tethering function which is available with many Sony α cameras (for instance the Sony a7 III).

Sony SL-E Series SSD Specs

• 3 sizes: 240GB, 480GB, 960GB
• USB Type-C Port
• Interface: USB 3.1 Gen 2 (SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps)
• Transfer speeds: Read up to 540MB/s, Write up to 520MB/s
• File System: exFAT (formatable to FAT32 too)
• Power Supply: DC 5V (USB bus powered) Max. 900mA
• Black colour only
• Size: 80mm (3.15″) x 47mm (1.85″) x 11mm (0.43″)
• Weight: 50g (1.8 oz)
• Compatible with Windows 7 or later (32bit / 64bit), OS X 10.9 or later. For the compatibility with Android devices please check this website.

The Sony SL-E Drives are available from May 2018 and the pricing will be approximately €169 /£149 for the 240GB version, approximately €289 /£249 for the 480GB version and around €499 /£429 for the biggest 960GB version.

What do you think of these new SSDs from Sony? Do you use some type of SSD for a quick backup or are you editing directly from them? Let us know in the comments below.

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