Photo Accessory News

Sony has unveiled two new tough external SSD drives that photographers will want to take a look at: the high-performance SL-M series and the standard compact SL-C series. For photographers who need to store their images on the go in challenging environments – such as travel photographers, outdoor photographers, sports photographers, wedding photographers, heck just about any photographer! – these new external Sony SSD could prove to be a handy mobile backup solution.

"These external SSD drives boast ultra-toughness, high-speed, hardware encryption and new utility software features aimed at photographers and videographers providing them the peace of mind to know that their data is safe even in challenging environments," Sony said in a press announcement. The Sony SL-M and SL-C’s SSD drive's high speeds enable quicker workflow when processing, editing, duplicating and storing data, according to Sony.

Here are a few more highlights about the Sony SL-M and SL-C series external SDD drives:

• The SL-M series and SL-C series are designed to be dustproof, waterproof, impact proof and durable

• Up to 1000MB/s read and write speed

• Hardware encryption with intelligent utility software to protect and secure photos and videos

• Both models will come in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB storage capacities

• On sale in summer 2019

• Pricing not announced yet

Read more details on these two drives in Sony's press announcement below. You should also check out our story on How to Buy the Right External Hard Drive for Your Photos. 

"The SL-M series and SL-C series both feature an innovative one-piece aluminum body with an omni-directional shockproof construction that provides the user with a sense of security when it comes to storing data. With an IP67 rating, both series are dustproof and waterproof and feature a USB Type-C port that is waterproof even without a sealing cap. Data is also protected even if dropped in up to 3 feet of water. These external SSD drives are highly durable and can withstand pressure of up to 6000kgf and bending of up to 2000kgf meaning that the user need not worry about carrying alongside other, heavier equipment. Additionally, the SL-M series and SL-C series are impact proof, withstanding drops from up to 9 feet.

Both the SL-M series and SL-C series have a stylish wave-surface aluminum body providing slip free grip along with an easy-to-find silver and yellow design. Plus, both models feature a conveniently placed LED so it’s easy to see, as well as rubber bands to hold ID labels in place and label stickers to identify different drives.

The high performance SL-M series has an outstanding read and write speed of up to 1000MB/s, while the standard compact SL-C series has an impressive 540MB/s read speed and 520MB/s write speed. Both series also feature a USB 3.1 Gen 2 (USB Type-CTM) interface and the SL-M series is able to achieve incredible high speeds with NVMe SSD technology. Thanks to the latest SSD controller for both models, users can enjoy constant high speed even when working with extremely large data files that are copied or overwritten many times. These ultra-fast speeds make professional workflow more efficient, whether you want to process high resolution photos or 4K videos, duplicate original files to another device or edit a lot of images at once.

These external SSD drives include four helpful features to make sure that your data is always safe. First, with password protection, data can be secured with hardware encryption providing AES 256-bit encryption without any speed decline.  Second, dual password protection is supported on the SSD Utility app which is free to download. The owner (administrator) can share the locked drive with other users using just the user password, without having to reveal the administrator password. Plus, with cross platform compatibility, users can set a password to lock from a Mac then open from Windows PCs or Android smartphones, and vice versa.

Third, the Lifetime Checker, also available on the SSD Utility app, helps check the condition of the storage drive so the user can be prepared when they’re reaching their limit. Through the SSD Utility app, updates or upgrades can be applied to keep the device working perfectly. Fourth, file rescue software helps to reduce fear over losing precious data. Accidentally deleted files including RAW or high-resolution videos may be recovered, giving the user greater peace of mind.

Both models with be available in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB storage capacities.

The SL-M series and SL-C series will be available from summer 2019 and pricing is to be confirmed."