EMTEC Speedin X600 External SSD Review: Affordable, Portable Storage

Thumb drive makers have managed to cram quite a bit into the pinky-sized drives, but there are limits to capacity and to some degree performance, since there is only so much room to work with. Fortunately, there is a nice middle ground between thumb drives and larger external SSDs that conform to the popular 2.5" form factor. EMTEC, for example, has a new line of external SSDs that use a 1.8" form factor, which offer respectable read speeds, although they won't win any performance contests versus more expensive drives.

The EMTEC Speedin' X600 is a USB 3.0-compatible drive available in 128GB, 256GB or 512GB capacities at affordable price points. And at just 94 x 54 x 12 mm and 50g in weight, it will easily fit into your pocket. Thanks to a sturdy all-composite design, it shouldn't break either, unless you're really trying to crush the thing.

Because it's USB 3 and not USB 3-C, the EMTEC Speedin' is not the fastest external solid state storage option you can get, and the benchmarks on the proceeding pages will show it's not a high-end drive on par with something like the Samsung T3. But for the money, you get some nice capacity in a rugged, tiny footprint, that could make it and ideal for mobile users in need of some responsive external storage.

We say mobile users because with its six-inch included cable, it's probably not ideal for a tower. The cable was too short for it to connect a USB port on my tower and also sit atop the case; I had to leave it hanging in mid-air. On a notebook, which will be seated on a table, the short cable would not be an issue.

EMTEC Speedin' X600 SSD Specifications & Features

Model	X600 256GB	X600 512GB
Capacity	256GB	512GB
Interface	Compatible with USB 3.0 (Gen.1, 5Gbps), 2.0
Dimensions	94 x 54 x 12 mm
Weight	50g
Speed	Up to 320MB/sec
UASP Mode	Support
Encryption	None
Security	EMTEC security software, password protection
Warranty	Limited 1-year (U.S.)

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Included with the EMTEC Speedin' X600 SSD is some basic documentation and a six inch USB 3.0 cable. EMTEC's security software, which can be used to encrypt the drive's contents, is included on the drive itself and also downloadable from its home page. The warranty on the drive is for two years in the European Union and one year everywhere else.

The drives are for sale at Micro Center, Fry’s, Amazon.com, and BestBuy.com. The 256GB unit we'll be showing you here has an MSRP of $79.99 while the 512GB unit is priced at $169.99. Availability has been scarce, however, and street prices have been somewhat higher.