Looking for some new portable SSDs that are super familiar? Sandisk has something that might pique your interest.
The newly independent flash storage maker today announced its next-generation flagship portable SSDs, including the SANDISK, the SANDISK Extreme, and the SANDISK Extreme PRO.
If the names ring a bell, that’s because it’s been available for almost a decade. In fact, considering the names, it might be hard to know which model year you run into. If you pay close attention, though, there’s a slight change in the monikers: the brand is now all capitalized. Previously, they were SanDisk Portable SSDs.
New SANDISK Portable SSDs: Fast, tough, and familiar
Sandisk says its new SANDISK portable SSD portfolio “delivers meaningful performance updates with each product designed to support the ever-increasing volume of AI-generated content, different workloads and use cases, including day-to-day backups, creative projects, and professional workflows.”
Specifically, here is what you can expect from the new drives:
- SANDISK Extreme Portable SSD: This is the original member of the portfolio. Designed for creative, photo, and video enthusiasts, and professionals working with larger files, the new SANDISK Extreme Portable SSD delivers high-performance portable storage to support active workflows with copy speeds up to 2,000MB/s, making it well-suited for managing creative projects and moving content efficiently across devices. This drive will be available in various capacities ranging from 500GB to 4TB.
- SANDISK Extreme PRO Portable SSD: Designed for professional photographers, filmmakers, and designers, this drive, slated to be available in capacities up to 8TB, is built to support demanding creative and multi-stream workflows, including real-time editing and working with high-resolution media, with up to 4,000MB/s performance.
- SANDISK Portable SSD: This is the mainstream drive designed for students, office workers, and family archivists who need reliable, portable storage for everyday digital content. It has copy speeds of up to 1,000 MB/s and up to 2 TB of storage, housed in a compact, easy-to-carry design.
Sandisk says all three drives feature a durable chassis, though their ruggedness varies slightly. The SANDISK Portable SSD is projected to have drop protection up to 2 meters, while the SANDISK Extreme and SANDISK Extreme PRO SSDs also feature IP65 ratings to withstand water spills and splashes. Additionally, the latter two features 256-bit AES hardware encryption with password protection to keep the data safe.
Overall, these new drives look to function similarly to previous models. They are all portable SSDs that are bus-powered via USB-C and support various USB connection standards. The table below shows the hardware specs of the three.
Hardware specifications
| SANDISK Portable SSD | SANDISK Extreme Portable SSD | SANDISK Extreme PRO Portable SSD | |
| Capacity and Models | 500GB: SDSSDE31-500G-G25 1TB: SDSSDE31-1T00-G25 2TB: SDSSDE31-2T00-G25 | 500GB: SDSSDE70-500G-G25 1TB: SDSSDE70-1T00-G25 2TB: SDSSDE70-2T00-G25 4TB: SDSSDE70-4T00-G25 | 2TB: SDSSDE83-2T00-G25 4TB: SDSSDE83-4T00-G25 8TB: SDSSDE83-8T00-G25 |
| Internal Storage | NVMe SSD | ||
| Dimensions | TBD | 3.35 x 2 x 0.39 in (85 x 51 x 9.8 mm) | TBD |
| Weight | TBD | 0.10 lb (46.9 g) | TBD |
| Copy Speed (estimated) | 1,000 MB/s | Up to 2,000 MB/s | Up to 4,000 MB/s |
| Interface | USB-C | ||
| USB Standard | USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gps) | USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 (20Gps) | USB4 |
| Backward Compatibility (supported peripheral standards) | Thunderbolt 3 and newer, USB 2.0 and newer | Thunderbolt 4, Thunderbolt 3, USB 2.0 and newer | |
| Design | Rectangle with rounded corners | ||
| Ruggedness | Up to a 3-meter drop | IP65 Up to 3-meter drop | |
| Security | None | 256-bit AES Encryption | |
| Power | USB bus-powered via a USB-C port | ||
| Package Content | Portable Drive USB-C cable | ||
| Warranty | 3-year | 5-year | |
| Availabilgty | 2nd half of 2026 | 1TB: Now 500GB, 2TB, 4TB: 2nd half of 2026 | 2nd half of 2026 |
| US Launch Price | TBD | $259.99 (1TB) | TBD |
Availability
Sandisk says that of the three, the 1TB version of the SANDISK Extreme Portable SSD is available now worldwide, with the US suggested retail price of $259.99. Its 500GB, 2TB, and 4TB versions, as well as the rest of the SANDISK Extreme PRO Portable SSD (available in 2TB, 4TB, and 8TB) and SANDISK Portable SSD (500GB, 1TB, and 2TB), will be available in the second half of 2026.
The SANDISK Portable SSD comes with a 3-year limited warranty, while the other two higher-end drives come with a 5-year warranty.
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