6 ms·

Ask HN: Large USB drives that don't get blazing hot?

I just transferred like 3mb of image data from a "256GB Sandisk Extreme PRO USB 3.1" and my goodness was it ever hot for transferring such a small amount of files over such a short period of time imho. To the point that I started worrying about it's trustworthiness... surely that much wear and tear with heating up/cooling down over time can't be good? Would gladly settle for a much "slower" USB drive if it did not as hot and would hopefully be a bit more reliable longterm?

kasperset 5y ago
I guess older generation drives running on USB 2.0 would be slower but run cooler.
- johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
  Good idea! Can't find too many 256gb sized USB 2.0 drives though, on Newegg at least. A search for "usb 2.0 256" on amazon.ca only shows 3.0 drives!
  - daniel_reetz 5y ago
    I'm not sure if this is the right direction, I have some USB 2.0 drives that get hot, too.
  - squarefoot 5y ago
    You might also use a small USB2 hub in between to force the device to configure and work as USB2. If the device doesn't draw too much current no external power would be necessary to the hub. Another solution to keep using it as a USB3 device would be to open the drive and give the flash chips some decent heatsinks; even just a small copper plate would still be better than nothing, and drilling a few holes into the case would ease thermal exchange. To fix heatsinks don't use self adhesive thermal pads as they're suboptimal; a proper thermal glue can be bought online for cheap and works extremely well. For example: https://www.ebay.com/itm/201533371776 https://www.ebay.com/itm/201533371776 https://www.ebay.com/itm/173916377819 https://www.ebay.com/itm/173916377819 (no relation with the sellers)
EMM_386 5y ago
They can get hot but this should be acceptable per the design spec. From what I can find that drive is rated at: > -13 to 185 °F (-25 to 85 °C) So as long as it's not cooking above 185F/85C you should be ok.
- johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
  Must not have been above 85C as I can still type without wincing!
- avhon1 5y ago
  It's still a terrible waste of energy to generate that much heat with a storage device which is essentially idle.
  - morsch 5y ago
    I doubt these require more than the usual 500mA at 5V (probably less), so the terrible waste is limited to 2.5W...
    - avhon1 5y ago
      USB 3 provides up to 900mA, so potential waste of up to 4.5W
- squarefoot 5y ago
  According to its data sheet the device is rated between 32° – 95°F (0° – 35°C). That limit seems definitely too low to me, but it's the official data sheet. https://documents.westerndigital.com/content/dam/doc-library/en_us/assets/public/sandisk/product/usb-flash/extreme-pro-usb-3-1/data-sheet-extreme-pro-usb-3-1.pdf https://documents.westerndigital.com/content/dam/doc-library...
sandreas 5y ago
I prefer using Adapter-Variants: SanDisk MobileMate with a fast MicroSD Noname NVMe Adapter with a used Intel Optane or Samsung 950/960/970 Pro/Evo For USB Sticks I use SanDisk Ultra Flair.
- n4bz0r 5y ago
  Besides the speed and volume advantages, the NVMe approach also has the benefit of a considerably longer lifespan. All that while having somewhat comparable to USB sticks footprint (certainly not an HDD case ballpark).
- gruez 5y ago
  IME nvme to usb adapters tend to run pretty hot as well. The only difference is that the form factor is much bigger so the same heat is dissipated over a larger area.
nvch 5y ago
Samsung T7 throttles to never reach temps higher than 45°C (but write speed falls to 50Mb/s)
nom 5y ago
I've wondered about this for years now. Why do USB drives get so hot? My SD cards don't. Maybe it is the interface chip? But my tiny USB card readers don't get hot and they have more design constraints. Maybe it's because of cheap components that push thermal limits to keep the prices down? I'd love to hear some insights from someone working lose to that field.
- tpmx 5y ago
  My guess: super crappy (chinese) low budget voltage regulators. Not working near this field, but have had some practical related experience. Clarification: I don't think Samsung etc are using counterfeit inferior regulators - I suspect they are using inferior regulators because it makes the BOM cost lower.
- randyrand 5y ago
  5v down to 3.3v on device.
  - tpmx 5y ago
    Yeah. I guess it must be as simple as a) switching voltage regulation vs b) resistive voltage regulation. Right?
  - rasz 5y ago
    1.2 and 1.8 V
- uj8efdjkfdshf 5y ago
  To be fair, I've always had overheating issues with the microSD cards I've used to the point where I've stopped bothering with them.
johnchristopher 5y ago
Oh my, thank you ! I thought I somewhat had a problem with either the drives I bought last 3 years or my laptop (3 years as well). Simply plugging the drive and waiting 5 minutes gets it hot.
mikub 5y ago
I have a pretty new 128GB "Kingston DT MicroDuo 3C" which stays really cool, considering it's size that's really impressive.
dlsa 5y ago
Does the drive capacity influence temperature? Not necessarily. I've got the same brand of 128GB and 256GB drive they don't run any different in temperature. Perhaps attach a heatsink if it bothers you. I've done that with harddrives I've run for long periods on hot days. I've done that even with a little drive smaller than my thumb. On a related note, I had a little usb flash drive (verbatim) that was very hot and after I inspected it I discovered a fault on the board, an actual hotspot which didn't exist on another similar device. I promptly got my data off the drive. A few months later I plugged it in out of curiosity and the drive started to cook itself. I pulled it out and it was too hot to touch, so I promptly destroyed it. I figured the thing was going to take out my computer sooner or later anyway.
- johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
  Good work, soldier! Thanks for the hilarious anecdote!
PaulHoule 5y ago
The properties of silicon change in a reversible way as temperature changes and a little bit above 100 centigrade most devices fail to work. It doesn’t kill the device. People used to think that the lifetime of electronics was shortened by high temps in the normal range but when hyperscalers started building modern data centers they found they could run hotter than data centers used to without ill effect.
randyrand 5y ago
take the drive apart and carefully put your finger on each chip until you know the hot ones.
Lammy 5y ago
Try an m.2 enclosure and bring your own NVMe drive :) https://plugable.com/products/usbc-nvme/ https://plugable.com/products/usbc-nvme/
sigsergv 5y ago
I've recently bought SanDisk Cruzer Blade USB Flash Drive 128GB and it's cool in all senses.

kasperset 5y ago

I guess older generation drives running on USB 2.0 would be slower but run cooler.

johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
Good idea! Can't find too many 256gb sized USB 2.0 drives though, on Newegg at least. A search for "usb 2.0 256" on amazon.ca only shows 3.0 drives!
- daniel_reetz 5y ago
  I'm not sure if this is the right direction, I have some USB 2.0 drives that get hot, too.
- squarefoot 5y ago
  You might also use a small USB2 hub in between to force the device to configure and work as USB2. If the device doesn't draw too much current no external power would be necessary to the hub. Another solution to keep using it as a USB3 device would be to open the drive and give the flash chips some decent heatsinks; even just a small copper plate would still be better than nothing, and drilling a few holes into the case would ease thermal exchange. To fix heatsinks don't use self adhesive thermal pads as they're suboptimal; a proper thermal glue can be bought online for cheap and works extremely well. For example: https://www.ebay.com/itm/201533371776 https://www.ebay.com/itm/201533371776 https://www.ebay.com/itm/173916377819 https://www.ebay.com/itm/173916377819 (no relation with the sellers)

EMM_386 5y ago

They can get hot but this should be acceptable per the design spec. From what I can find that drive is rated at: > -13 to 185 °F (-25 to 85 °C) So as long as it's not cooking above 185F/85C you should be ok.

johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
Must not have been above 85C as I can still type without wincing!
avhon1 5y ago
It's still a terrible waste of energy to generate that much heat with a storage device which is essentially idle.
- morsch 5y ago
  I doubt these require more than the usual 500mA at 5V (probably less), so the terrible waste is limited to 2.5W...
  - avhon1 5y ago
    USB 3 provides up to 900mA, so potential waste of up to 4.5W
squarefoot 5y ago
According to its data sheet the device is rated between 32° – 95°F (0° – 35°C). That limit seems definitely too low to me, but it's the official data sheet. https://documents.westerndigital.com/content/dam/doc-library/en_us/assets/public/sandisk/product/usb-flash/extreme-pro-usb-3-1/data-sheet-extreme-pro-usb-3-1.pdf https://documents.westerndigital.com/content/dam/doc-library...

sandreas 5y ago

I prefer using Adapter-Variants: SanDisk MobileMate with a fast MicroSD Noname NVMe Adapter with a used Intel Optane or Samsung 950/960/970 Pro/Evo For USB Sticks I use SanDisk Ultra Flair.

n4bz0r 5y ago
Besides the speed and volume advantages, the NVMe approach also has the benefit of a considerably longer lifespan. All that while having somewhat comparable to USB sticks footprint (certainly not an HDD case ballpark).
gruez 5y ago
IME nvme to usb adapters tend to run pretty hot as well. The only difference is that the form factor is much bigger so the same heat is dissipated over a larger area.

nvch 5y ago

Samsung T7 throttles to never reach temps higher than 45°C (but write speed falls to 50Mb/s)

nom 5y ago

I've wondered about this for years now. Why do USB drives get so hot? My SD cards don't. Maybe it is the interface chip? But my tiny USB card readers don't get hot and they have more design constraints. Maybe it's because of cheap components that push thermal limits to keep the prices down? I'd love to hear some insights from someone working lose to that field.

tpmx 5y ago
My guess: super crappy (chinese) low budget voltage regulators. Not working near this field, but have had some practical related experience. Clarification: I don't think Samsung etc are using counterfeit inferior regulators - I suspect they are using inferior regulators because it makes the BOM cost lower.
randyrand 5y ago
5v down to 3.3v on device.
- tpmx 5y ago
  Yeah. I guess it must be as simple as a) switching voltage regulation vs b) resistive voltage regulation. Right?
- rasz 5y ago
  1.2 and 1.8 V
uj8efdjkfdshf 5y ago
To be fair, I've always had overheating issues with the microSD cards I've used to the point where I've stopped bothering with them.

johnchristopher 5y ago

Oh my, thank you ! I thought I somewhat had a problem with either the drives I bought last 3 years or my laptop (3 years as well). Simply plugging the drive and waiting 5 minutes gets it hot.

mikub 5y ago

I have a pretty new 128GB "Kingston DT MicroDuo 3C" which stays really cool, considering it's size that's really impressive.

dlsa 5y ago

Does the drive capacity influence temperature? Not necessarily. I've got the same brand of 128GB and 256GB drive they don't run any different in temperature. Perhaps attach a heatsink if it bothers you. I've done that with harddrives I've run for long periods on hot days. I've done that even with a little drive smaller than my thumb. On a related note, I had a little usb flash drive (verbatim) that was very hot and after I inspected it I discovered a fault on the board, an actual hotspot which didn't exist on another similar device. I promptly got my data off the drive. A few months later I plugged it in out of curiosity and the drive started to cook itself. I pulled it out and it was too hot to touch, so I promptly destroyed it. I figured the thing was going to take out my computer sooner or later anyway.

johnnyApplePRNG 5y ago
Good work, soldier! Thanks for the hilarious anecdote!

PaulHoule 5y ago

The properties of silicon change in a reversible way as temperature changes and a little bit above 100 centigrade most devices fail to work. It doesn’t kill the device. People used to think that the lifetime of electronics was shortened by high temps in the normal range but when hyperscalers started building modern data centers they found they could run hotter than data centers used to without ill effect.

randyrand 5y ago

take the drive apart and carefully put your finger on each chip until you know the hot ones.

Lammy 5y ago

Try an m.2 enclosure and bring your own NVMe drive :) https://plugable.com/products/usbc-nvme/ https://plugable.com/products/usbc-nvme/

sigsergv 5y ago

I've recently bought SanDisk Cruzer Blade USB Flash Drive 128GB and it's cool in all senses.