Review on 💻 ACASIS USB4.0 M.2 Thunderbolt 3 NVMe Dock: Portable Type-C SSD Reader & Tool-Free Enclosure at 40Gbps by Walt Smirnoff

In the last 2 weeks I have been writing reviews of external M.2 NVME enclosures as well as M.2 2280 NVME SSDs that come with M1 Macs will work. There is a problem with SSDs not being able to reach their maximum speed or just not working with Apple M1 Mac hardware or macOS software. Also, the speeds of different Thunderbolt 3 enclosures vary. After trying multiple cases and SSDs, I finally found the best combination for the M1 Mac Mini. An Acasis USB4/Thunderbolt 3 case with an Intel 7440 chip works best. But the hull isn't the only part of the velocity equation. You still need the best SSD. I found the WD Black SN750 to deliver the highest speeds (2250 writes, 2450 reads) when used with an Acasis chassis. I also tried a Sabrent TB3 case with a WD SSD but the speed was only about 50% of the Acasis/WD combo. One of the SSDs that crashed my M1 Mac Mini was the SK Hynix Gold P31. SK is a highly rated SSD with the best value for money currently available, but it is not clear that the SK Hynix NVME will NOT work with M1 Mac hardware and/or macOS software. Also tried Samsung EVO Plus SSD with Acasis case, but the write speed only reached about 1400 and the read speed was good at 2400. It is also known that Samsung SSD with Mac M1 has slower performance compared to Intel Mac. Either way, if you really want to get the best performance out of your M1 Mac with a USB4/Thunderbolt 3 external enclosure and an M.2 2280 NVME SSD, you know that the Acasis/WD Black SN750 combo works best . At least February 2021. Updated 24/02/2021 Forgot to correct my estimate. SK Hynix Gold P31 NVME in combination with Acasis USB4 case (USING THE INTEL 7440 CHIPSET) is the reason why SK Hynix does not work with M1 Mac. I've also tried using an SK Hynix with a Jeyi USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) case and it worked with my M1 Mac Mini with no issues and at about max speed for USB 3.2 Gen 2 (Jeyi uses a Realtek RTL 9210 controller IC which is said to be the best currently compared to the JMicron JMS583 chip). I also tried SK Hynix with Sabrent Thunderbolt 3 case which also crashed my M1 Mac Mini as did the Acasis USB4/TB3 case. Summary: SK Hynix works with HE-USB4/TB3 cases. Until SK Hynix updates the firmware for their Cepheus controller chip, do not purchase if you intend to use SK Hynix with a USB4/TB3 enclosure.