Toshiba Canvio Premium 4TB Portable HDD Review

Toshiba Canvio Premium 4TB Portable HDD Review It is not long time since I had a closer look at the Canvio Basics with 2TB. Today we're upping it all with the Toshiba Canvio Premium (product link) in a 4TB version. Toshiba Canvio Premium The Canvio series is a proven one which has been around for many drive versions. The latest takes everything up a notch with the latest HDD technology. That means an improved performance as well as higher capacities. All without compromising anything. The Canvio Premium is available in capacities of 1TB, 2TB, 3TB, and 4TB. Even though the official product page doesn't state the latter at this time. The smaller versions weigh just 160g while the larger come in at 225g. Neither is a lot and perfect for a portable drive Despite the low weight, the drive is premium quality. In a way, that's a given when we consider the name and Toshiba's reputation. It features an aluminium design with diamond-cut edges. The bottom is just plastic though. Portable Storage at Its Finest The Canvio Premium is portable HDD storage at its finest. Sure, it can't compete with the speed of modern NVMe-based USB drives, but it has the capacity advantage. With a 4TB capacity that fits right into your pocket and doesn't break your budget, it'a perfect. The design makes it quite durable too. Sure, you shouldn't juggle with it, but I'm sure it'll survive a couple of drops without taking much physical damage. Toshiba made sure that the drive is compatible with all sort of devices. There's basic USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 Type-A support, but also Type-C. Toshiba includes a Type-C adapter for when you need it. Whether you're on the go or just because you have modern devices, it doesn't matter. You can connect it everywhere and it's even bus-powered. That's always a plus which means that we don't need to be near an outlet or carry a bulky and heavy power supply with us. Free Toshiba Software Included Toshiba also included a couple of software pieces with the drive. They are free and ready to download from the support page. There is backup software and also security software available. With the included backup software for the PC, you can schedule automated backups and forget about them. As long as the drive is connected, it will happen on its own. On the other hand, the Toshiba Security Software protects your data from prying eyes. With it, you can password protect the drive. Feature Highlights Up to 4TB capacityBus-PoweredType-C Adapter IncludedDiamond-cut Aluminium DesignBackup and Security Software Included3-year warranty Specifications Capacities: 1TB, 2TB, 3TB, 4TBInterface: USB 3.0 (backwards compatible with USB 2.0)Interface Transfer Rate: Up to 5 GbpsSize: 1TB, 2TB models: 109 x 78 x 13.55 mmSize 3TB, 4TB models: 109 x 78 x 19 mmColour: SilverWeight: 160 to 225 grammes Package and Accessories Toshiba, as most manuafacuturers, have an easy-to-recognise packaging. Once you've had a few of them, you instantly recognise them as what they are. The front of the box has all the vital information such as feature highlights and capacity printed on it. The included drive is also visible through the transparent part of the box. The rear side explains a few of the details in various languages. This includes the aluminium finish, included adapter and software options. The sides don't have a lot of information, but we do find the requirements and box content printed here. There's also a visual reprentation of the drive grade, in this case "Pro". Within the box is the drive itself along with a support and a regulatory note. There's, naturally, also the USB cable which is a Type-B to Type-A. As bonus, Toshiba includes a USB Type-C adapter for modern systems and smart devices as well as a pouch for the drive. The USB Type-C adapter is a tiny thing, just as large as it has to be. A welcome bonus which allows you to use the drive on close to any USB unit. The included cable is a standard USB 3.0 Type-B. Last but not least, there is the pouch in which the drive will fit snuggly and stay warm. Well, that's not why, but why not give your tech a little comfort while you protect it from scratches and other wear-and-tear. Test Setup and Methodology There are many ways to test a storage drive, and we have chosen to include close to every test possible. We will start with a typical benchmark analysis of the formatted drive with various village scenarios. A mechanical drive will have to move its read-heads over the surface to reach the data location, and that has a natural impact on the performance. To see the impact it might have, the drive will be tested empty as well as with 25%, 50%, and 75% space usage. For these tests, we will be using Anvil’s Storage Utilities, AS SSD Benchmark, ATTO Benchmark, and CrystalDiskMark which all give us familiar figures which we can compare to other drivers. Hardware Supermicro C7Z270-PGIntel Core i7-7700KCrucial Ballistix Sport DDR4 2400MHz (4x8GB)Toshiba OCZ VX500 512GB SSDbe quiet! Dark Power Pro 11 (1200W)Noctua NH-D15S Software Anvil’s Storage UtilitiesAS SSD BenchmarkATTO BenchmarkCrystalDiskMarkWindows 10 Pro Anvil's Storage Benchmark Anvil’s Storage Utilities is a complete benchmark solution used to test any writeable storage drive. It also has a drive endurance test that consistently reads and writes data to the selected medium to deliver days, months, and potentially even years of use in a shorter period. Empty Drive Drive with 75% Data Fillage Drive Analysis With the performance analysis, we get a good view of the drive’s consistency. We want as straight a line as possible for a good result. Drive Comparison For the drive comparison, we will use the performance figures from empty drives here. AS SSD Storage Benchmark The AS SSD software determines the performance of Solid State Drives (SSD). The tool contains five synthetic and three practice tests. The synthetic tests determine the sequential and random read and write performance of the SSD, and they aren’t using the operating system cache. The copy tests are cached and as such not viable results at this time. Empty Drive Drive with 75% Data Fillage Drive Analysis With the performance analysis, we get a good view of the drive’s consistency. We want as straight a line as possible for a good result. Drive Comparison For the drive comparison, we will use the performance figures from empty drives here. ATTO Disk Benchmark The ATTO Disk Benchmark performance measurement tool is compatible with Microsoft Windows. Measure your storage systems performance with various transfer sizes and test lengths for reads and writes. Several options are available to customise your performance measurement including queue depth, overlapped I/O and even a comparison mode with the option to run continuously. Empty Drive Drive with 75% Data Fillage Drive Analysis With the performance analysis, we get a good view of the drive’s consistency. We want as straight a line as possible for a good result. Drive Comparison For the drive comparison, we will use the performance figures from empty drives here. CrystalDiskMark CrystalDiskMark is a small HDD and SSD benchmark utility that allows you to measure a drive’s sequential and random performance. Empty Drive Drive with 75% Data Fillage Drive Analysis With the performance analysis, we get a good view of the drive’s consistency. We want as straight a line as possible for a good result. Drive Comparison For the drive comparison, we will use the performance figures from empty drives here. Pricing and Final Thoughts At the time of this review, Toshiba's Canvio Premium with 4TB can be yours for very little. At least when you consider what you get. The grey version is available for £141.79 and the silver version for £137.45. Final Thoughts When you pick up the Canvio Premium, you understand why it has the name. It feels great to handle and looks at least as good. I mean, it's still a portable HDD, so there are limits. But for what it is, it's great. The overall design is simple but also well thought out. The rounded edges and corners make it easy to slip right into your pocket when you head out. And it is a great portable drive. Since it is bus-powered, there is no need to carry a bulky or heavy power supply. Simply grab the drive and a USB cable, and you're good to go. In fact, you're very good to go as you can carry a massive 4TB of data on this drive. That is a lot of capacity in a small size. It's also worth noting again that it comes with a nice pouch to protect it from pocket-scratches. The weight isn't bad either, but there is some. After all, it's a mechanical drive which requires materials. That said, I've had power supplies for other drives that weighed more than this one does overall. The performance isn't ground breaking, but it's great. The new generation of drives allow us to breach the previous 120MB/s barrier of 2.5" drives and take us up to 140MB/s and above. A small improvement in numbers, but in percent it is an improvement of 16.6% between the rough numbers. Should I Buy One? If you're in the market for a great looking, sturdy, and high-capacity HDD for on-the-go, then yes. You can't go wrong with the Toshiba Canvio Premium. It delivers what it promises! Pros Good performanceUp to 4TB capacitySingle-cable setup thanks to bus-powerPocket-sizedType-C adapter and pouch included Cons None "Toshiba's Canvio Premium delivers a good performance and large capacity in pocket-size. What's not to love?" Toshiba Canvio Premium 4TB Portable HDD Review Thank you Toshiba for providing us with this sample.