CONCLUSION

   SATA based portable SSDs may not be able to compete with their NVMe based cousins but still having a compact 1/2TB drive which can reach read and write speeds all the way up to 550-450MB/s respectively can’t be called bad. Yes 1000MB/s is better but how many consumers and even professionals really need such performance levels? With that out of the way as you can see from the charts the SL200 1TB is clearly among the 3 fastest SATA based portable SSDs so at least in that regard there’s nothing to complain about. I can complain about the plastic enclosure which just like with other similar models doesn’t offer much protection (not rugged) but since size and weight are what manufacturers prioritise lately that can’t be helped.

   With a current price tag set at 155Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) the SL200 1TB USB 3.1 Portable SSD by Lexar is priced slightly higher than expected. This could be due to serious availability issues however (I was unable to find it anywhere in the USA right now) but still at the time of this review this is a serious drawback. That being said the SL200 1TB is very fast, compact, comes with two USB cables (increased compatibility out of the box) and is covered by a 3-year limited warranty which is why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Compact Size & Weight
- Very Good Performance
- AES 256 Encryption
- Just 9.5mm Thick
- Shock Proof
- 3 Year Limited Warranty

CONS

- Price & Current Availability
- Enclosure Durability (Plastic)