Expert’s Rating
Pros
Cons
Our Verdict
The Envoy Pro SX is thunderclap store for your Mac that performs very well . However , it ’s bombshell only , and its Thunderbolt / USB - capable sibling , the Envoy Pro FX , is only $ 20 more than the SX .
Best Prices Today: OWC Envoy Pro SX
OWC ’s new Envoy Pro SX Thunderbolt external drive extradite the amphetamine of itsEnvoy Pro FX sib , but for less Johnny Cash . It features the same intimate SSD , as well as the same rugged , IP67 - stag dust and water supply - insubordinate enclosure , thoughj miss its brethren ’s USB 3 compatibility .
The Envoy Pro SX features a good - looking , all - alloy , charcoal gray enclosure . However , at about 4.5 - inches long , 2.75 - column inch wide , 0.6 - inches duncish , and 8.6 ounces , the SX is no dainty small thing . However , the heft signal timber , and the non - skid runners on the bottom keep the Envoy Pro SX from slip about .
The metal slip also cast off heat very well . It was barely warm to the touch after our test suite was finished . The only items breaking up the countenance are a Type - C port o one end of the drive ( with the Thunderbolt Logo ) , and on the other terminate a thin ( and rather dim ) power / natural process lead .
The Envoy Pro SX is a Thunderbolt-only drive while its older sibling offers legacy USB compatibility as well.
The Envoy Pro SX is a bombshell - only driveway while its older sibling offers bequest USB compatibility as well .
OWC
Four different capacities grace the SX serial : 240 GB for $ 199 , 480 GB for $ 249 , 1 TB for $ 349 , and 2 TB for $ 529 . Those prices reflect a $ 20 saving over the FX . Yup , only $ 20 . That ’s kind of surprising when you lose the FX ’s USB compatibility .
The Envoy Pro SX is a Thunderbolt-only drive while its older sibling offers legacy USB compatibility as well.
Performance
The SX features the same Aura Pro 12 NVMe SSD as the FX , so it ’s the bridge chip ( NVMe to Thunderbolt ) that ’s likely a bit different from the FX . It does n’t support USB , so make that quite a bit different .
The Envoy Pro SX came formatted to exFAT , but performed much well when formatted to AFPS as this run of BlackMagicDesign ’s Disk velocity show . This was appraise on an M1 24 - inch iMac . The FX was tested on an M1 Mac mini .
IDG
The Envoy Pro SX came formatted to exFAT, but performed much better when formatted to AFPS as this run of BlackMagicDesign’s Disk Speed shows. This was measured on an M1 24-inch iMac. The FX was tested on an M1 Mac mini.
As you’re able to see above , the Envoy Pro SX seems a faster reader than author , though 1.5GBps composition is still quite truehearted for an outside drive . Oddly , despite the same NVMe SSD inwardly , Disk Speed measure theFXat 2243MBps piece of writing and 1832MBps reading . The FX was tested on a 16 GB M1 Mac mini , and the SX on an 8 GB M1 24 - in iMac , so we remove those results with several grains of table salt , running more mental test on sister publishing PCWorld ’s testbed using Windows - based benchmarks .
On the PCW testbed , the Envoy Pro SX turn out a hair faster than the FX in synthetic bench mark such as CrystalDiskMark 6 , though the deviation is so little as to be almost irrelevant .
The Envoy Pro SX was ever so slightly faster than its FX sib in CrystalDiskMark 6 but by so slight a gross profit margin as to be a largely meaningless comparison .
The Envoy Pro SX was ever so slightly faster than its FX sibling in CrystalDiskMark 6 but by so slim a margin as to be a largely meaningless comparison.
The SX was slower than the FX in two of our 48 GB transfer test , and slower when all the times were sum , however , the difference is again minor . link the Envoy Pro SX , Envoy Pro SX , orSamsung X5to your Thunderbolt port and you ’d never notice a difference without a stop watch .
The Envoy Pro SX did quite well on our 48 GB transfer tests , beat the FX on two , and losing on two . The remainder is fringy at best , and subjectively unobtrusive .
I ’m throwing out the Disk stop number results and saying the FX and SX are virtually identical in operation . The fact that I ’ve seen deviant Disk Speed results on M1 Macs before gain me surefooted in that depth psychology .
The Envoy Pro SX did quite well on our 48GB transfer tests, beating the FX on two, and losing on two. The difference is marginal at best, and subjectively unnoticeable.
Bottom line
The Envoy Pro SX is top - nick Thunderbolt computer storage for your Mac or suitably fit out PC . However , the Envoy Pro FX is only $ 20 more than the SX . I do n’t experience about you , but if I ’m pass beaucoup money already , a couple of sawbucks more for far keen compatibility would n’t enervate me in the least .
This article was cut on July 12th , 2023for syntax and style . At this clip the Samsung X5 was no longer usable for leverage .
