I recently got a brand new external SSD, the ADATA SV620. It's 240 Gb, and has a micro USB 3.0 port. It came with a short USB 3.0 cable. The computer I'm using is a 2015 MacBook, with the Apple USB-C multiport adapter. My SSD is formatted with two partitions: a 50 Gb ExFAT for general storage, and a 190 Gb Mac Extended Journaled partition for Time Machine backups.
When I plug my SSD into the multiport adapter with an old USB 2.0 cable, it works fine and I can read/write at the expected ~40 MB/s speed. I have absolutely no issues using the SSD with a USB 2.0 cable.
The issue arises when I use the USB 3.0 cable. When I plug it in, I can READ files at an appropriate speed with no issues. I can watch 1080p 60fps videos, and I can copy files onto my computer at over 300 MB/s. But if I try to WRITE, it will start copying the file, but once it's finished ~10 Mb, it stops, the normally blue light on the SSD turns red, my computer does the spinning colour wheel, and becomes completely unresponsive until I unplug the SSD (it doesn't even let me eject it properly, so I just have to unplug it).
I have a program called Blackmagic Disk Speed Test, and if I run a test on my SSD using USB 3.0, it gets a read speed of 2 MB/s, and a write speed of >300 MB/s.
I thought it might be an issue with my Apple Multiport adapter. So I got an external hard drive dock, plugged in a 7200 RPM hard drive, used a USB 3.0 cable, and did a speed test. I got a read/write speed of around 100 MB/s. To confirm, I repeated this test with a USB 2 cable, and got a much lower speed, so I doubt there's an issue with my multiport adapter. I thought perhaps the USB 3.0 cable wasn't working, but then it doesn't make sense that I could read, but not write. Like I said, if I try to write, it becomes unresponsive.
Could there be an explanation I'm not thinking of? Or is my brand new, one-week-old SSD defective?
By the way, I don't have another computer with USB 3.0 that I can use to test, so I can't entirely eliminate the possibility that it's an issue with my computer.
When I plug my SSD into the multiport adapter with an old USB 2.0 cable, it works fine and I can read/write at the expected ~40 MB/s speed. I have absolutely no issues using the SSD with a USB 2.0 cable.
The issue arises when I use the USB 3.0 cable. When I plug it in, I can READ files at an appropriate speed with no issues. I can watch 1080p 60fps videos, and I can copy files onto my computer at over 300 MB/s. But if I try to WRITE, it will start copying the file, but once it's finished ~10 Mb, it stops, the normally blue light on the SSD turns red, my computer does the spinning colour wheel, and becomes completely unresponsive until I unplug the SSD (it doesn't even let me eject it properly, so I just have to unplug it).
I have a program called Blackmagic Disk Speed Test, and if I run a test on my SSD using USB 3.0, it gets a read speed of 2 MB/s, and a write speed of >300 MB/s.
I thought it might be an issue with my Apple Multiport adapter. So I got an external hard drive dock, plugged in a 7200 RPM hard drive, used a USB 3.0 cable, and did a speed test. I got a read/write speed of around 100 MB/s. To confirm, I repeated this test with a USB 2 cable, and got a much lower speed, so I doubt there's an issue with my multiport adapter. I thought perhaps the USB 3.0 cable wasn't working, but then it doesn't make sense that I could read, but not write. Like I said, if I try to write, it becomes unresponsive.
Could there be an explanation I'm not thinking of? Or is my brand new, one-week-old SSD defective?
By the way, I don't have another computer with USB 3.0 that I can use to test, so I can't entirely eliminate the possibility that it's an issue with my computer.