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Western Digital today announced its latest My Passport SSD portable drive. Yes, that popular one with the name as the one released two years ago, which was almost the same as the one released before that.
But I'm happy to report that the 2020 version is an entirely different storage device. You will be able to tell it apart at first glance.
New design, twice the speed
First of all, the new portable SSD now comes in an entirely different shape and has four color options, including gray, blue, red, and gold.
It's faster, too. The drive uses a USB-C port and features USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps). What's most significant, per Western Digital, is that it now houses an NVMe internal SSD, as opposed to the SATA drive on the previous models.
As a result, it can deliver copy speeds of up to 1050 MB/s. That's about twice the rate of the 2018 release.
Rugged design with security in mind
Similar to the previous version, though, the new WD My Passport is also rugged. Western Digita says it can handle drops from a height of up to 6.5 feet (1.98 m).
For data security, it features 256-bit AES hardware encryption. You can password-protect the content to keep it from prying eyes.
Out of the box, the new My Passport SSD is pre-formed in the exFAT file system, allowing it to work right away with multiple platforms, including Windows and Mac. You can always reformat it, however.
| Capacity | 500GB / 1TB / 2TB |
| Model (Replace xx with GY for Gray, BL for Blue, RD for RED, and GD for Gold) | WDBAGF5000Axx / WDBAGF0010Bxx / WDBAGF0020Bxx |
| Interface | USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10Gbps) with USB-C |
| USB 3.0/2.0 compatible | Yes |
| Cable included | USB-C and one USB-A adapter |
| Dimensions | 3.94 x 2.17 x .35 in (100 x 55 x 9 mm) |
| Storage | NVMe SSD |
| Copy speed | Up to 1050 MB/s |
| Encryption support | AES 256-bit |
| Security | Password (optional) |
| Supported operating systems | Windows (8.1 and later), Mac OS (10.13 and later) |
| MSRP (U.S.) | $119.99 / $189.99 / TBD |
| Warranty | 5 years |
Pricing and Availability
The new My Passport SSD portable drive comes with a 5-year warranty and is available now in 500 GB and 1 TB capacities for the suggested retail prices of $119.99 and $189.99, respectively. You'll need to wait till the end of the year mid-September, for the 2TB version, which will carry a $359.99 price tag.
Update: The in-depth review of the My Passport SSD is now available.
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