🛒
On the one hand, the Crucial X10 Pro is Micron's first USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps) portable SSD—rivaling the SanDisk Extreme Pro or the WD Black P50—and it has everything to live up to its specs. As a matter of fact, it's the fastest portable SSD for the USB standard I've tested.
On the other hand, it's simply the souped-up version of the X9 Pro on the inside. The two are identical features and look, albeit sporting different colors.
Micron announced the Crucial X10 Pro late last month with the Crucial X9 Pro, which shares the same physical design and capacities but features the slower USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps) standard.
So, the biggest and only difference between the two is that the X10 Pro features a peripheral connection speed twice that of its X9 Pro twin brother.
In my testing, the X10 Pro indeed edged out the X9 Pro when used with the right USB port—by a good margin but far from double the speed. When used with the 10Gbps and slower USB standards, its performance was similar to the X9 Pro, as expected.
So, if you have a computer that has a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 or faster USB-C port, the X10 Pro is worth its price, which is about $40 more than the X9 Pro. However, considering 10Gbps USB is still much more popular than the 20Gbps standard, there is little to no difference between the two in most cases.
And since 10Gbps is plenty fast, if you need a quick decision in a Crucial X10 Pro vs. X9 Pro matchup, grab whichever costs less. If you don't want to miss out on anything, the X10 Pro is the way to go.
Crucial X10 Pro: A non-compromising portable USB SSD
The Crucial X10 Pro joins the small crowd of portable SSDs supporting the USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20Gbps).
That's because the standard itself hasn't taken off—it was first available over two years ago—mostly because the 10Gbps ceiling speed of the USB 3.2 Gen 2 is fast enough for most situations and is the current mainstream peripheral connection together with the 5Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 1.
But faster is always better. And the Crucial X10 Pro was the fastest among its handful of peers in my testing. We'll get to the performance section soon, but the table below shows the differences between this portable SSD and its X9 Pro twin sibling.
Crucial X10 Pro vs. Crucial X9 Pro: Hardware specifications
 |  | |
| Crucial X10 Pro Portable SSD | Crucial X9 Pro Portable SSD | |
| Capacity | 1TB, 2TB, 4TB | 1TB, 2TB, 4TB |
| Part Number | CT1000X10PROSSD902 (1TB) CT2000X10PROSSD902 (2TB) CT4000X10PROSSD902 (4TB) | CT1000X9PROSSD9 (1TB) CT2000X9PROSSD9 (2TB) CT4000X9PROSSD9 (4TB) |
| Internal Storage | NVMe SSD | NVMe SSD |
| Product Color | Black | Silver |
| Dimensions | 2.56 x 1.97 x 0.39 in (65 x 50 x 9.91 mm) | 2.56 x 1.97 x 0.39 in (65 x 50 x 9.91 mm) |
| Weight | 1.48 oz (42 grams) | 1.3 oz (40 grams) |
| Write Speed (up to) | 2,000 MB/s | 1,050 MB/s |
| Read Speed (up to) | 2,100 MB/s | 1,050 MB/s |
| Interface | USB 3.2 Gen 2.2 Type-C (20Gb/s) | USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C (10Gb/s) |
| Backward Compatibility | USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10Gbps), USB 3.2 Gen1/USB 3.0 (5Gb/s), USB 2.0 | USB 3.2 Gen1/USB 3.0 (5Gb/s), USB 2.0 |
| Ruggedness | Water, dust, and sand resistant (IP55) | Water, dust, and sand resistant (IP55) |
| Security | Password protection, 256‐bit AES hardware encryption | Password protection, 256‐bit AES hardware encryption |
| Power Usage | USB Bus Powered via a USB-C port | USB Bus Powered via a USB-C port |
| Package Content | Crucial X10 Pro Portable SSD USB-C Cable | Crucial X9 Pro Portable SSD USB-C Cable |
| Supported Platform | Windows, macOS, Android | Windows, macOS, Android |
| Warranty | 5-year limited warranty | 5-year limited warranty |
| US Price (at launch) | $119.99 (1TB) $169.99 (2TB) $289.99 (4TB) | $79.99 (1TB) $129.99 (2TB) $239.99 (4TB) |
Crucial X10 Pro vs. Crucial X9 Pro: Mostly the same portable SSDs
As noted in the table above, the two drives are mostly the same, except for the color and the USB standard. The way the USB standard works, they are interchangeable in terms of applications.
Both share the same physical design with a rectangular shape and rounded corners. The two are light and compact enough to be attached to a keyfob, hence the little ring hole at one corner.
And they share the same features, too. Both have built-in 256-bit AES hardware encryption and can be password-protected. They ship pre-formatted with the versatile exFAT file system to work right out of the box with all supported platforms but can be easily reformatted if need be.
There's no software preloaded on the drive, but you'll find links to download bundled applications, including a one-month trial of Adobe Creative Cloud.
In most cases, plug the drive in and use it as is. Installing any software is unnecessary unless you need to protect the information from prying eyes.
Crucial X10 Pro: Fastest USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 performance to date
I tested the 2TB version of the Crucial 10 Pro, which proved to be the fastest to date when used with the 20Gbps USB standard—consistently sustaining faster speeds than other same-standard counterparts by tens of MB/s, as shown in the charts below. And that was impressive.
However, when used with older USB standards, the drive was on par with its lesser peers, even a tad slower at times, albeit within the margin of error.
While the drive didn't deliver close to the standard's ceiling speed, that's normal for USB, which generally has severe overhead. It's safe to say the X10 Pro is as fast as can be for the standard it supports.
Like the case of the X9 Pro, the X10 Pro also ran cool in my week-long trial. I didn't encounter any issues with it.
Crucial X10 Pro Portable SSD's Rating
Pros
Fast performance overall with top NVMe USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 performance
Super-compact yet spacious; rugged, practical design
Supports all platforms, including Android.
Cons
No USB-A cable or adapter included
A tad expensive
Conclusion
The Crucial X10 Pro is an excellent portable SSD. But compared to the X9 Pro, it's a tad expensive, costing around $40 more.
If you have a computer with 20Gbps USB and want to squeeze every MB/s out of that, the drive is an excellent buy.
On the other hand, in day-to-day usage, the X9 Pro will likely deliver a similar, if not the same, experience. That's because, in most cases, we don't write much data at a sitting to truly benefit from the higher connection standard of USB 3.2 Gen 2x2.
With that out of the way, get the Crucial X10 Pro today! It's always great to turn things up to 11.
Comments are subject to approval, redaction, or removal.
It's generally faster to get answers via site/page search. Your question/comment is one of many Dong Knows Tech receives daily.
Thank you!
(•) If you have subscription-related issues or represent a company/product mentioned here, please use the contact page or a PR channel.