Does software encryption (APFS Encrypted) result in significant overhead when using faster SSDs with a faster Apple silicon Mac? What about computing SHA256 digests?
USB4
Early testing of TB5 SSDs show they do deliver much faster speeds that even USB4 models, although not as high as some claim. But their cache size may limit streaming large amounts of data.
Some support USB4, others don’t. Some share the controller, others don’t. Some support DFU mode but then can’t be used to create a bootable external disk on Apple silicon.
Did you think your Intel Mac doesn’t support the 20 Gb/s speed of USB 3.2 Gen 2×2? It can do, with a little extra hardware support, just as it will a USB4 SSD.
How to connect a USB4 SSD to get better performance from an Intel Mac. Should you buy a Thunderbolt 4 hub, or a Thunderbolt 5 dock? Do any of these live ‘up to’ their claimed performance?
What TB5 actually provides in its Symmetric and Asymmetric modes, why those are most important to connect Mac to dock or hub, and how that can go wrong.
How much faster should a Thunderbolt 3 SSD be for making Time Machine backups? How can you speed up backups to your NAS? Here are representative speeds from real testing.
Do external SSDs draw so much power that they’re likely to exceed that available from Thunderbolt or USB4? What would the consequences be in terms of heat?
Why an Intel Mac’s up to 40 Gb/s from Thunderbolt 3 is less than an Apple silicon Mac’s up to 40 Gb/s from USB4, and how you can benefit from it.
This has become more complex with increasingly popular hybrid drives that support USB4/Thunderbolt and fall back to USB 3.x.
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