Hi, I just bought a 2013 iMac and connected it to a Samsung 980 NVMe M.2 SSD inside an Orico 10Gbps enclosure as an external drive using one of the USB 3.0 ports. The boot time is now about 30 seconds which I'm pleased with and the read/write times are in the low 400s. I would like to know if getting a Thunderbolt1/2 enclosure or an SSD with a Thunderbolt cable attached would increase the boot speed and make opening browsers and programs snappier. I don't do video editing or other demanding tasks but just want things to be quicker, if that's feasible. I'm aware of diminishing returns so if the cost and resultant increase in speed would be minimal, then I'll remain as is. I already have an Apple Thunderbolt cable and an Apple Thunderbolt 3 to 2 adapter. Your thoughts would be appreciated.
Best external SSD for 2013 iMac
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Cory Cooper
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Hello and welcome.
The 2013 iMacs have Thunderbolt 1 (10 Gbps) and USB 3.0 (5 Gbps) ports. Yes, Thunderbolt 1 is faster than USB 3.0 and has less overhead. No matter what enclosure and adapters, you will be limited to those transfer speeds.
However, you won't see tremendous speed gains for most operations like browser usage and application launching. It may startup slightly faster, but not anything crazy.
Hope that helps.
C
The 2013 iMacs have Thunderbolt 1 (10 Gbps) and USB 3.0 (5 Gbps) ports. Yes, Thunderbolt 1 is faster than USB 3.0 and has less overhead. No matter what enclosure and adapters, you will be limited to those transfer speeds.
However, you won't see tremendous speed gains for most operations like browser usage and application launching. It may startup slightly faster, but not anything crazy.
Hope that helps.
C