OWC 8TB Express 1M2 Portable NVMe Thunderbolt (USB-C) SSD USB4 Ultra Fast External SSD Drive with Aluminum Heat Sink Enclosure

Solid design, very easy to install the SSD (I got the bare version). And this is screaming fast. Zero effort getting it working with MacOS.I really don't like the fans in some enclosures - the make noise and can fail. If you have a drive with no moving parts what's the point of having an enclosure that has a moving part? Since this enclosure is essentially 100% heat sink it doesn't need one.It is somewhat larger than other enclosures that have similar functionality. But the overall design gives me more confidence in its reliability than others that I have seen and used. In my application it's sitting permanently on my desk so it never needs to go in my pocket anyway.Highly recommended.

The media could not be loaded. I've bought a few different external drive systems over my lifetime, but none as quality on par as this chonky boy. It is thicc, you may notice the same thing, but I'll tell you why it's for good reason. I purchased the 0TB version of the OWC Express 1M2 SSD enclosure and I paired this up with a Samsung 990 Evo Plus. My needs for more hard drive space was quickly realized when the base Mac mini M4's measly 256 GB of storage wasn't gonna cut it. #basemodelgangThe premium quality straight out of the box was noticeable in my hands. Heavy. It feels well made and the aluminum reminds me of an expensive tool. It looks cool, I think. Matches the color of my Mac enough. All the fins, slices, across the top of the enclosure allow a massive amount of heat to be dispersed passively. No fans, no noise. And it works well! I have noticed it gets warm to the touch, but nowhere near concerning. It supports PCIe 4.0.It's not the most portable SSD, I will say that is a downside, but it can be for the occasional need. I like that it's thin enough to slide into the front pouch of a backpack. The better part of this setback, is that it allows me to edit videos in Final Cut Pro directly from the drive right as it sits on my desk. Quietly operating, without a sound. It's fast, faster than anything I've used and almost double to internal Mac mini read/write speeds and averages above 3,000 for both.I think this product is for someone who wants to expand their computer with more storage, but doesn't mainly travel with it. If your priority is portability, you may already know this isn't for you. The things that make it not so great option to carry, are the exact reasons you want it when performance and sound are what you are looking for in your search for an external hard drive.

Like a lot of people I was tempted recently by the Mac Mini M4 base model and its value proposition. Of course, only having a 256GB SSD for storage is a problem and Apple charges a ridiculous amount for additional storage so I decided to build an external drive. That's where this OWC 1M2 enclosure comes in. I researched the available enclosures and this one stands head and shoulders, or should I say aluminum fins above the competition. Unlike most others, the 1M2 is a solid block of aluminum with huge heat-dissipating fins that permits your m.2 nvme ssd module to run at full speed without throttling. It certainly does for the 2TB WD Black module I used, which runs warm when busy but does not throttle.Assembly of the 1M2 with your SSD module is easy plus there are lots of tutorials on YouTube. OWC includes a short Thunderbolt 4 cable which works perfectly. Of course you want to connect the 1M2 to one of the Thunderbolt 4 ports on the BACK of the Mac Mini, not the front ports which are much slower.My speed tests speak for themselves: 3200MB/s Write, 3145MB/s Read (Blackmagic benchmark). This is WAY faster than the onboard 256GB SSD and astonishingly good for an external drive. I relocated my user folder to the external disk (again lots of YouTube howtos, I recommend the ones by Mac Sound Solutions). It was easy to do and works extremely well.I am delighted with the 1M2 enclosure and recommend it without reservations. Don't be tempted to skimp and go with a cheap solution. You don't want heat buildup to throttle your disk speeds or worse, shorten the life of your SSD module. Packaging is 100% recyclable which is nice to see.

The OWC Express 1M2 Portable NVMe Thunderbolt enclosure is a standout addition to any Mac setup. This sleek, well-built device offers rock-solid connectivity with zero issues during my usage. The all-metal construction feels premium in hand and inspires confidence that it can handle daily transport.What sets this enclosure apart is the seamless Thunderbolt connectivity, allowing for blazing-fast transfer speeds that make working with large files a breeze. As a longtime user of OWC products, this enclosure maintains their reputation for exceptional Mac-compatible peripherals.If you're looking for a reliable, high-performance external drive solution that complements your Mac ecosystem perfectly, the OWC Express 1M2 delivers on all fronts. Another quality addition to OWC's trusted lineup of Mac accessories.

I create Youtube videos and have been editing with Davinci Resolve right off the SSD and have had zero problems. I also have some LLMs locally and keep the model files on the drive and haven't had any problems there either. Even when I am doing heavy work off the SSD, this thing barely gets warm. Out of all my enclosures of varying price ranges (this is my 4th enclosure), this one keeps the coolest . The enclosure itself is metal, nicely designed for heat dissipation, super sturdy constructions, and has a good heft to it. My complaints are that it is a chore to install the SSD into the enclosure and annoying if you want to take it out, especially if you added in the rubber footing to cover the screw holes. It's also a lot bigger than my other enclosures, but I don't necessarily dock any points for that because it needs to be the size it is to dissipate the heat as well as it does.