Samsung SSD P9 review: fast USB 4 drive at a steep €599

Real-world tests confirm it. An 18 GB file took about 16 seconds to copy from the SSD to the Mac and roughly 9 seconds the other way. A 52 GB video folder needed 31 seconds in one direction and 50 in the other. With 10,000 files of about 100 KB, copying to the SSD took just under 48 seconds, while the reverse took 7.57 seconds. The drive clearly prefers a few large files to many small ones.

Strengths and weaknesses

The metal case replaces the plastic of the predecessor, looks premium and helps with heat: after more than 30 minutes of continuous copying the drive did not get too hot. It is about the size of a credit card, 8.3 mm thick and 96 grams. Samsung says it survives drops of up to two metres, one metre less than the T9. The metal finish may be prone to scratches.

Samsung Magician handles diagnostics, optimisation, 256-bit AES hardware encryption and password protection. However, the last two options are only available on Windows, not macOS, at the time of the review.

Who it is for

The P9 suits people who handle heavy video or RAW photography and have a USB 4 machine. On computers without USB 4 it still works, but at lower speeds. For documents, photos or backups, a cheaper drive is the better choice.

The P9 comes in 1, 2, 4 and 8 TB versions. The 2 TB model costs 599 euros, which is hard to justify at a time when memory and SSD prices are already high.