Best solution to expand storage and ports for MacMini 2018

[victor.espina]

I have a MacMini Late 2018 with 32 GB RAM and 256 GB of internal SSD. Currently I have an old external 1 TB SSD connected via USB 3 with read speeds of about 93 MB/s, so I am looking to replace it with a newer, faster and better-looking solution to:

1) Extend my working storage capacity
2) Add extra external ports (USB and SD card reader)

My current candidate is an external hub designed specially for MacMinis that solves both problems:

My only problem with this otherwise perfect solution is that, according to the reviews, the internal SATA interface max speed is about 600 MB/s, either for the 2.5 slot or the M.2 slot. Is way better than the current 92 MB/s I have right now, but way worst than the 2.500 MB/s I could get from an SSD in an external (and uglier) Thunderbolt 3 enclosure... but the enclosure doesn't solve the need for more external ports, specially the SD card reader, so I would be forced to but another device to cover that.

So, I decided to search for other possible solutions that other MacMini's owners may have adopted.

TIA

Victor Espina

 

[joevt]

This one is Thunderbolt 3:
https://www.trebleet.com/product-pa...-with-nvme-sata-slot-cfexpress-card-slot-gray
But you see the jump in price (300%!) when you go from USB-C to Thunderbolt.

A Thunderbolt 4 dock would add more Thunderbolt ports but an NVMe would need to be connected using a separate Thunderbolt enclosure to get 2800 MB/s since Thunderbolt 4 controller chip only has one PCIe lane.

 

[Fishrrman]

I'd get a separate dock (no drive enclosure).
Then, get a separate drive as well (Samsung t7 "shield" is a good one).

Seems to me there was another thread or two here a while back that discussed that Quizlab hub, and found it "wanting"...

 

[Kenny99]

I use this 7 port USB 3.1 SWITCH with my 1T drives, Time Machine and USB Thumb drives. The drives are the "Spinners" so don't like to have them on all the time, (They are for backup files and files that are not used much.) I use the USB's for Movies and music that I want portable.

 

[victor.espina]

I use this 7 port USB 3.1 SWITCH with my 1T drives, Time Machine and USB Thumb drives. The drives are the "Spinners" so don't like to have them on all the time, (They are for backup files and files that are not used much.) I use the USB's for Movies and music that I want portable.

Yeah, that's the kind of setup I am trying to avoid. I love tidy desks and I am trying to avoid having unnecessary cables, specially the ones that connect external drives to my computer... cables that can be accidentally tripped causing data lost... it has happened to me more than once.

 

[victor.espina]

I'd get a separate dock (no drive enclosure).
Then, get a separate drive as well (Samsung t7 "shield" is a good one).

Seems to me there was another thread or two here a while back that discussed that Quizlab hub, and found it "wanting"...

That was my first idea... but I really hate having my main disk connected to my computer using a cable... specially one that I can easily disconnect by accident. Currently I have an external SSD connected to my MacMini and I've tripped it twice so far... last time the accident damaged my Parallels VM configuration, so I had to rebuild the VM (the main virtual disk didn't get damaged, luckily). Yes, this hub also uses a cable to connect to the MacMini but is a tiny USB-C one, so the chances of tripping it by accident are fairly less than with a normal external drive like the T7.

I've been reading any review I found (and user's experiences) about the Qwiizlab and it seems that is a device that really delivers. One guy that claims being using it for several months just told me that the NVMe drive can give 800-1000 MB/s when the hub is powered by an external power source, with no random ejects so far (this is the main issue with other hubs like this).

I also found a company called Trebleet that offers a MacMini hub with a Thunderbolt bus, that can deliver up to 2.500 MB/s from a connected NVMe... of course with a higher price tag of 300$...but its a nice option indeed... I am thinking about if its worth to expend the extra 200$ bucks considering that 800 MB/s (even 600 MB/s) is more than enough for what I do (programming, bouncing music).