SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD 4TB — 2,000 MB/s Both Ways, Forged Aluminium, IP65
2,000 MB/s read and writeUSB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps)256-bit AES hardware encryptionIP65, 3 m drop
The SanDisk Extreme PRO Portable SSD in its 4TB form: USB 3.2 Gen 2x2, and 2,000 MB/s published in both directions rather than read alone. Part number SDSSDE81-4T00-G25 is the 4TB model. The chassis is forged aluminium inside a silicone shell, which works as both armour and heatsink for a drive being written to hard, and the encryption is hardware AES-256 rather than software — the distinction that matters for anyone carrying client material off site. At 4TB it is a drive that holds a whole project rather than a working subset of one.
Compatibility — check before buying:
The speed depends entirely on the port. 2,000 MB/s requires a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps) connection, and that interface is uncommon: Apple has never implemented it on any Mac, Thunderbolt is not the same thing, and neither the PS5 nor an iPad provides it. On any of those the drive runs at Gen 2 speed, roughly 1,000 MB/s. It is still a good drive there; it is simply half of what you paid for, and it is the single most common disappointment with this model. Check the machine’s port specification for “20 Gbps” or “Gen 2x2” before ordering. The USB-A cable in the box works but is capped at 10 Gbps by the port standard whatever the drive can do. And be careful with the family name: SanDisk sells three drives called Extreme PRO Portable SSD — an older USB 3.1 Gen 2 model at 1,050 MB/s rated IP55, this 2,000 MB/s Gen 2x2 model rated IP65, and a USB4 model at 3,800 MB/s. Tell us your machine and we will tell you which one it can actually feed.
Best For
✓ Video and photo work on a machine with a 20 Gbps port
✓ Whole-project storage rather than a working subset
✓ Carrying client material that must be encrypted
✓ Location work in rain, dust or rough handling
✓ Editing directly from an external drive
✓ Fast backup of a working project drive
Key Features
2,000 MB/s read and 2,000 MB/s write
SanDisk publishes both figures for this capacity, and they are identical. Symmetry matters when you ingest as much as you export — a card offload writes at full speed rather than at some unstated fraction of the read figure.
4TB, which changes how you work
At two terabytes you still decide what goes on the drive. At four you usually do not. For a photographer or an editor that is the difference between managing storage and simply using it.
256-bit AES hardware encryption
Done by the drive itself with password protection, so the contents are unreadable to whoever finds it and no software has to be installed on the machine that opens it. Software-encrypted drives cannot say that.
Forged aluminium under a silicone shell
The aluminium draws heat away from the controller, which is what stops a fast drive throttling during a long write, and the silicone takes the impact. IP65 and a three-metre drop rating are the published results.
Technical Specifications
| Identification |
| Brand |
SanDisk |
| Series |
Extreme PRO Portable SSD (USB 3.2 Gen 2x2) |
| Part Number |
SDSSDE81-4T00-G25 |
| EAN / GTIN |
0619659184735 |
| MPN |
SDSSDE81-4T00-G25 |
| Drive |
| Capacity |
4TB |
| Type |
Portable external SSD |
| Interface |
USB 3.2 Gen 2x2, up to 20 Gbps |
| Connector |
USB Type-C on the drive |
| Colour |
Black |
| Performance |
| Sequential read |
Up to 2,000 MB/s |
| Sequential write |
Up to 2,000 MB/s |
| Host requirement |
20 Gbps needs a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 port; Macs, iPads, the PS5 and Thunderbolt-only ports run this drive at roughly half speed |
| Durability and security |
| IP rating |
IP65 — dust-tight and protected against water jets |
| Drop resistance |
Up to 3 m |
| Encryption |
256-bit AES hardware encryption with password protection |
| Chassis |
Forged aluminium with a silicone shell |
| Operating temperature |
0 °C to 45 °C; non-operating −20 °C to 85 °C |
| Physical |
| Dimensions |
110.26 × 57.34 × 10.22 mm |
| Weight |
77.5 g |
| In the box |
| Contents |
Extreme PRO Portable SSD, USB Type-C to Type-C cable, USB Type-C to Type-A cable, Safety and Warranty Guide |
| Cable length |
Not published |
| Warranty |
| Warranty |
1-Year Warranty (Singular) |
| Manufacturer Term |
SanDisk publishes a 5-Year Limited Warranty on this model on both its global and UK/EU product pages. Singular’s direct warranty is 1 year; beyond that we assist you with the manufacturer’s warranty process for its full duration. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I get 2,000 MB/s on a MacBook Pro?
No. Apple does not implement USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 on any Mac, and Thunderbolt is a different standard, so this drive runs at Gen 2 speed there — around 1,000 MB/s. On a Mac, SanDisk’s USB4 Extreme PRO is the model that actually goes faster, because Macs do support USB4 and Thunderbolt 4.
What is the difference between this and the USB4 version?
Speed and trade-offs. The USB4 model reaches 3,800 MB/s but needs a USB4 or Thunderbolt 4 host, weighs 170 g against 77.5 g here, has a 2 m drop rating rather than 3 m, ships with only a USB-C cable, and — importantly — SanDisk publishes no encryption for it at all. This model keeps 256-bit hardware encryption and both cables.
Can I edit video directly from it?
Yes, and the aluminium chassis is why: sustained work generates heat, and heat is what makes a fast drive slow down. On a 20 Gbps port this handles multi-stream 4K comfortably. On a 10 Gbps port it still works well at about 1,000 MB/s.
Is IP65 waterproof?
It is dust-tight and resistant to water jets — rain, spray, a hose down. It is not an immersion rating, so do not put it in a pool or a river. For that you would need IP67 or IP68.
Singular Expert Insight
Two things make this the right drive: a genuine 20 Gbps port, and data that needs to be encrypted by the drive rather than by an app. If only the second is true it is still a sound choice — hardware AES-256 with password protection is uncommon in this class and turns a lost drive from an incident into an inconvenience. If neither is true, you are buying headroom you cannot use, and a 1,050 MB/s drive from our
external SSD range will feel identical on your machine. Mac owners in particular should look past this model: no Mac reaches Gen 2x2, so the
USB4 Extreme PRO is the faster drive there despite costing more — with the caveat that SanDisk publishes no encryption for it. And if 4TB is wanted for archive rather than for work, a desktop
external hard drive buys several times the capacity for the money.
Buyer’s Guide
Buy it if
You have a 20 Gbps USB-C port and you write to the drive as much as you read from it. Symmetrical 2,000 MB/s across 4TB, hardware AES-256, IP65 and a chassis built for sustained work.
Skip it if
Your machines are Macs, iPads or Thunderbolt-only — none reach Gen 2x2, and either a cheaper drive or the USB4 model is the better buy. Skip it too for bulk archiving, where capacity per euro matters more.
Also consider
The USB4 Extreme PRO if your machine is a modern Mac or a USB4 laptop. A 1,050 MB/s Extreme Portable SSD if your ports are 10 Gbps. An external hard drive if the job is archiving.