Lexar SL500 USB SSD review: 20Gbps storage cut thin to win
At a glance
Expert's Rating
Pros
Excellent 20Gbps performance
Super-slim, trim profile
5-year warranty
Cons
Slower writing 48GB of files and folders than its SL600 cousin.
Our Verdict
If what you seek is a fast, good-looking USB SSD that slides into your pocket almost imperceptibly, or mounts easily to the back of your mobile device, then Lexar’s SL500 is likely what you’re looking for.
Physically, Lexar’s SL500 portable USB 3.2×2 SSD makes its SL600 and SL660 stablemates look like chunky monkeys. Actually, measuring a mere 0.3-inches thick (less than 0.2 at the edges), by 2.1-inches wide, by 3.3-inches long, the SL500 make nearly all external SSDs appear chunky.
As it’s also attractively styled, and weighs a mere 1.5 ounces, let’s just say the SL500 is a super model among external SSDs.
Further reading: See our roundup of the best external drives to learn about competing products.
What are the SL500’s features?
The SL500 is a super-slim, USB 3.2×2 (20Gbps) external SSD that comes in 2TB, and soon, 4TB flavors. It ships with a short Type-C to Type-C cable and is warrantied for five years. That’s a limited warranty that no doubt assumes that you won’t hit it with a sledgehammer, or write several petabytes of data to it.