As someone who reviews multiple devices for weeks and months at a time, it can be hard to keep track of all my files. That’s especially true for the laptop reviews I handle. Part of the tests include actually using the SSD equipped on those machines. That means storing my actual work files on them. But that also means my files are scattered. 

I’m not the most organized person in the world. I just happen to recall where most of my files are. Either that or I just have a system that works for me where I happen to know where the files I need are at. It’s not perfect and I am in the process of streamlining everything. That’s where the TeamGroup X2 Max portable SSD comes in.

There are a couple of key ‘events’ that transpired during my testing of what we’ll from here on out call the X2 Max – for brevity. First is when I used the X2 Max to facilitate my switching of the Legion Go S from Windows to Steam OS. Second is an ongoing matter where I use it to consolidate my work files. 

Let’s start with the first one. 

Overqualified host for switching OS on gaming handheld

I returned from our Computex coverage with the X2 Max and just as I arrived, we locked in a collaboration with Lenovo to feature the Legion Go S. At first I thought it was going to be the Steam OS version but instead it was still the Windows one. 

I asked permission from Lenovo to switch it to SteamOS and they were okay with it. So, the next task was actually doing it. 

I’ve done my fair share of changing OS and flashing devices before. However, it’s been a while since I did anything of the sort so I may have taken some missteps. One of them involves the X2 Max. 

Part of the process includes using a thumb drive to boot the SteamOS from. The X2 Max was the only one in my immediate vicinity so I grabbed that and proceeded with the process. 

By the way, I’m using some words very loosely here. If this is something you ever find yourself doing, just carefully follow the steps outlined by Valve. I digress. 

So, I did the things successfully. But the process also meant that the X2 Max was reformatted. And since my expertise in this area is limited, it took me a while to get the X2 Max back to full capacity. In fact, as of now, I still don’t have access to about 200GB of the available storage. But that’s a problem for Future Me. 

Transferring games 

Naturally, it didn’t stop there. I used the X2 Max to transfer some of the games from my gaming laptop to the Legion Go S. That’s around 500GB worth of gaming data and it took me about 37 minutes to complete the transfer. 

That transfer rate is:

 512,000 MB ÷ 2220 s ≈ 230.63 MB/s

That’s fairly realistic for real-world transfers of game files, which tend to include:

• Thousands of small-to-medium files
• Mixed file sizes (textures, assets, audio, etc.)
• Higher filesystem overhead

Not accounting for things like:

• Thermal throttling
• File type/fragmentation (games are often made up of thousands of small files)
• SSD buffer/cache filling up
• OS overhead
• Your source drive’s speed (if reading from a slow internal drive, that’ll bottleneck things)

Based on that data, here are estimates of the same transfer speed for different file sizes. 

Consolidating my work files 

My ongoing challenge right now is consolidating all of my work files. As of writing I have them scattered across a few laptops, a couple of hard drives, and another portable SSD. 

If you’ve done any sort of file migration yourself, you know that it can take a while, especially when you’re dealing with terabytes of data. With the X2 Max in tow, I have been slowly but surely tidying up my work files. 

What’s great is that the X2 Max’s transfer speed has been key in helping me accomplish this endeavour faster. 

I did a single massive transfer of 1TB in one sitting. It took about 50 minutes and 36 seconds for the transfer to be completed.

That transfer rate is: 

1,048,576 MB ÷ 3046 s ≈ 344 MB/s

Since these are straight up files: images, videos, some documents here and there. Here’s the estimated transfer speeds based on that rate. 

I forgot to actually time it. But overall, it took me about two and a half to three hours to move around about two to three terabytes of files. That’s already a lot of time saved. 

Previously, it would take me half a day if not all day to handle these file migration tasks. With the X2 Max, the task was successfully hastened. 

Travel-friendly portable SSD

I have since made the X2 Max my go-to portable SSD for travel. I’ve gone on a couple of work trips with it in tow. That means I have access to all my important work files at my convenience. 

Whether I’m working off of a review laptop, my own laptop, a review tablet, or my own tablet, I don’t have to worry about not getting to some of the stuff I may need to complete my work. 

For someone who has to change devices constantly, this is a godsend. 

As mentioned earlier, I still have some more organization to do. But I feel a little more at ease about completing them soonest because I have the X2 Max with me.

Is the TeamGroup X2 Max your GadgetMatch?

Yes. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do. I firmly believe that everyone could use a portable SSD and the TeamGroup X2 Max is one of the best that you can get a hold of right now. 

It’s a portable and fast storage device and can be used in a multitude of ways. It’s one of our easiest recommendations to date. 

Price and availability

The TeamGroup X2 Max currently retails for $69.99 USD for the 1TB option and $124.99 USD for the 2TB version that we have.

It’s available for purchase on Amazon. That’s an overall good deal considering other similar products breach the $200 USD mark.