Best Portable Ssds · head-to-head

WD My Passport SSD (2022) vs Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD

A sourced, side-by-side comparison. Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD is cheaper at $99. Every spec and price links to its source.

Which is better: the WD My Passport SSD (2022) or Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD?

The Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD wins 2 of the 2 specs we compare head to head; the other wins 0. The Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD is the cheaper at $99. The Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD both leads on specs and costs less — the straightforward pick.

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Key specs, head to head

The numbers that decide it, drawn to scale — longer bar wins, the accent bar is the stronger figure.

Read (Mbps)
WD My Passport SSD (2022) 1050
Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD 2000
Write (Mbps)
WD My Passport SSD (2022) 1000
Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD 2000

Full spec sheet

marks the stronger figure where "more" — or "less", for price and weight — is unambiguously better.

Spec WD My Passport SSD (2022) Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD
US price $100 $99
BrandWDKingston
Released20222021-10
Capacity (GB) 500 500
Read (Mbps) 1050 2000
Write (Mbps) 1000 2000
Interface USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps)
Encryption AES 256-bit hardware
IP rating IP55
Weight (g) 29
Release 2022 2021-10

Sources — WD My Passport SSD (2022): newegg.com (verified 2026-06-15). Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD: storagereview.com (verified 2026-06-15).

What's the difference between the WD My Passport SSD (2022) and Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD?

Where the two actually differ on the specs we track (3 of 7). Matching specs are omitted.

  • Read (Mbps): WD My Passport SSD (2022) 1050 vs Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD 2000
  • Write (Mbps): WD My Passport SSD (2022) 1000 vs Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD 2000
  • Interface: WD My Passport SSD (2022) USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) vs Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps)

What reviewers say

Sourced tester consensus for each — the "what people who used it think" layer, not just specs.

WD My Passport SSD (2022)

Two whitelisted labs benchmarked the WD My Passport SSD NVMe (1,050/1,000 MB/s, USB 3.2 Gen 2, DRAM-less Blue SN550E): Tom's Hardware (Feb 2021) and StorageReview (Sep 2020). Both call it slim, secure and fast in real-world use but note it falls ~200 MB/s short of its rated speeds and, being DRAM-less, lags DRAM-based rivals like the Crucial X8 in file-copy/moderate-dataset tests. Tom's found a small 12GB SLC cache that drops sustained writes to ~710 MBps once saturated, though the drive stays cool (45C surface). (2 sourced reviews, 2 lab-tested.)

Praised: Slim, light, pocketable design with AES-256 hardware encryption and 5-year warranty; Fast large-file read-back and solid real-world portable-SSD performance; Runs cool under sustained load (45C surface).

Flagged: DRAM-less design; falls behind DRAM-based rivals (Crucial X8) and lags in file-copy tests; Fell short of WD's rated 1,050/1,000 MB/s in real benchmarks (~200 MB/s under); Small SLC cache (12GB) drops sustained write to ~710 MBps once saturated.

Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD

All three whitelisted lab reviews (Tom's Hardware and StorageReview on 1TB units, TechPowerUp on 2TB) survived verification with every quote and measured value confirmed against source text. Consensus: the XS2000 is an ultra-compact, aggressively priced 20Gbps drive that reaches near its 2 GB/s sequential rating, but its DRAM-less design brings weak sustained writes and no encryption. (3 sourced reviews, 3 lab-tested.)

Praised: Near-2 GB/s sequential speeds close to the rated 2,000 MB/s; Extremely compact and lightweight design; Aggressive pricing and 5-year warranty.

Flagged: Weak sustained write once the SLC cache fills (214 MB/s on 1TB per Tom's Hardware, 300 MB/s to fill the 2TB per TechPowerUp); DRAM-less architecture hurts random IO performance; No AES encryption or security features.

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