I have way too many external drives, and while MagSafe-enabled drives are very interesting these days, but nothing beats the convenience of a regular external SSD. There are literally hundreds of choices in this category, and regardless of whatever model you choose, you get a few things as standard: fast read/writes, reliable designs, and easy connectivity.
In Hardwired, AC Senior Editor Harish Jonnalagadda delves into all things hardware, including phones, audio products, storage servers, and networking gear.
I've been using SK Hynix's Beetle X31 in recent weeks, and it is an intriguing option. The drive has a unique design with flowing sides, and I prefer it to the boxy designs that Samsung usually goes with. While the drive has been around for just over a year, the 2TB model is new, and that's the one I'm testing. It costs $169 on Amazon — $10 less than the equivalent Samsung option — and if you don't want that much storage, SK Hynix also sells a 1TB model that's $89, and a 512GB edition at just $49.
The X31 is available in gold and grey color variants, and I'm using the latter. If you are interested in getting the drive, I'd suggest getting the gold model — it looks just that little bit more elegant.
The sleek design makes it inherently pocketable, and I didn't have any issues taking it on the road. The chassis itself is made out of aluminum, and it has a silky coat similar to that of the Nord 4. You get rubber feet at the bottom that ensure it doesn't move around on a desk, and SK Hynix even bundles a silicone case that provides additional durability.
Even without the case, the X31 holds up incredibly well in daily wear and tear. But given that the case allows the drive to withstand two-meter tumbles and an additional barrier against dust and water ingress — it doesn't have ingress protection — I'd recommend using it.
There isn't much else to talk about the design. The USB-C port is located on the right, and there's a tiny status LED next to it that lights up when the drive is in use. SK Hynix provides USB-C to USB-C and USB-C to USB-A cables with the package, so you can easily connect the X31 to just about any device without needing additional cables.
Nothing I've said so far is different to what you get with most portable SSDs, but it's worth noting that the Beetle X31 doesn't miss out on the basics. Now, where the drive truly shines is data transfers; it has a custom M.2 2242 SSD — a variant of the BC711 — inside the enclosure, and it features an AsMedia ASM2362 controller. What's interesting is that it has an embedded DRAM, which usually isn't the case with these drives.
The result is that the X31 is able to hit sequential writes of 965MB/s and reads going up to 1,006MB/s, and it sustains those speeds a lot longer than other external SSDs I tried out recently. That alone makes it worthy of recommendation, and with a 2TB model now available, this is the best time to pick up the X31.
I didn't have any issues using the X31 with the Honor Magic 7 Pro, Vivo X200 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, and my custom Windows machine. The drive does a great job with extended transfers, and it doesn't lose connectivity. It tends to get a little warm with heavy use, but that's the case with all external drives.
Overall, I think SK Hynix is onto a winner with the Beetle X31. The diminutive design combined with fast internal SSD and integrated DRAM makes it a great choice if you need an external drive to store photos, videos, and documents, and you can now get it in a 2TB model.
