After several generations of internal SSDs, Kingston introduced its first external model, the XS2000 Portable SSD, in August last year. The SSD is optionally available with 500 GB, 1 TB and also 2 TB of storage, offers USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 and transfer speeds of up to 2000 MB/s. In addition to the high speed, potential buyers would like to be convinced with a very compact format and IP55 protection against dust and water.
The 2 TB version of the Kingston XS2000 is available for our review. We will clarify whether this is not only convincing on paper, but also in practice in the following test.
Technical data
| Capacity | 2 TB |
| Interface | USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 (USB Type-C) |
| Flash type | Micron 96-layer TLC |
| Cache | SLC cache, no DRAM cache |
| Controller | Silicon Motion SM2320 |
| Max. Read/Write Speed (MB/s) | 2000/2000 |
| Operating temperature | 0 °C – 40 °C |
| Storage temperature | -20 °C – 85 °C |
| Special features | IP55 water and dust protection |
| Scope of delivery | Removable rubber case, USB-C to USB-C cable |
| dimensions | 69.54 x 32.58 x 13.5 mm |
| Weight | 28.9 g |
| Warranty | 5 years |
| Price | € 183.53 * |
The Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD is a compact external SSD that offers high transfer speeds of up to 2000 MB/s. This also represents the approximate maximum that is possible in practice via the Generation 3.2 2×2 USB interface (20 Gbit/s). Thunderbolt 3 or 4 would enable even more performance, but they are hardly common. Kingston relies on the Silicon Motion SM2320 for the controller, and an unspecified TLC NAND with 96 layers from Micron for the memory. Unfortunately, we have to do without a DRAM cache.
Scope of delivery
The external SSD comes in a compact white cardboard box. The XS2000 Portable is pictured on the front. Furthermore, the capacity, the maximum transfer speed, the USB-C port and the 5-year warranty are mentioned.
The scope of delivery is minimalistic, but completely sufficient. Besides the SSD, you will find a removable rubber sleeve that guarantees water and dust protection, as well as an approximately 30 cm long USB-C to USB-C cable. If you want to use your own, longer cable, you should make sure that it can transfer up to 20 Gbit/s as well. A case or similar is not included in the scope of delivery, but it is not necessary due to the existing protection.
Design and workmanship
The top and bottom of the Kingston XS2000 Portable are made of metal, with black plastic in between. The plastic strip houses the USB-C port and an LED. With a length of 69.54 mm, the SSD is very short and similar to that of many larger USB flash drives. The other dimensions are also very small.
The rubber cover is black and hides the SSD except for a cutout in the top and bottom as well as on the side where the USB port is located. Thanks to it, the XS2000 Portable meets the IP55 standard. This means that the SSD is well protected against dust and against water jets from any angle. The data is thus safe from water from the tap, mishaps with drinks or even heavier rain. However, the SSD should not be submerged. However, this should be sufficient for most users.
The build quality is good all around. The SSD leaves a high-quality impression and the removable rubber cover also doesn’t have any flaws, such as protruding material. The cable is a bit stiff and can already be too short for some use cases, for example on the mainboard of the desktop PC.
Test system
- ASUS ROG Strix B560-F Gaming WiFi motherboard
- Intel Core i5-11400F processor
- 32GB G.Skill RipJaws V 3200 RAM
- INNO3D GeForce RTX 3060 Twin X2 graphics card
- TeamGroup T-Force Cardea IOPS 1TB SSD
- Crucial P5 2TB SSD
- Seasonic Focus GX-550 power supply
Performance test
As with internal SSDs, we use the AS SSD, CrystalDiskMark, ATTO Disk and HD Tune Pro benchmarks and programs for our performance test.
Results of the performance test
Kingston advertises a maximum read and write speed of up to 2000 MB/s. In CrystalDiskMark, we were able to reach 2064.43 MB/s in sequential read and thus exceed the manufacturer’s specification. However, we could not quite reach Kingston’s specifications with 1783.33 MB/s in write. The SSD also scores very well in the AS SSD benchmark with 1820.61 MB/s in sequential read and 1585.46 MB/s in write. While the SSD offers acceptable performance here in 4K writes, it falls well short of our expectations in reads.
In the ATTO benchmark, the XS2000 Portable SSD offers a very good performance and is clearly ahead of the external SSDs we have tested so far. The same applies for the HD Tune benchmark. The overall performance impression across programs is good, with potential for improvement especially in the 4K performance.
- AS SSD Benchmark
- AS SSD Benchmark Score
- AS SSD Compression Benchmark
- AS SSD Copy Benchmark
- Crystal DiskMark
- ATTO Disk Benchmark
- HD Tune
- Access Times
| wdt_ID | SSD | Seq (lesen, MB/s) | Seq (schreiben, MB/s) | 4K (lesen, MB/s) | 4K (schreiben, MB/s) | 4K-64-Thrd (lesen, MB/s) | 4K-64-Thrd (schreiben, MB/s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adata SD600Q | 429,62 | 398,29 | 16,53 | 36,12 | 94,23 | 125,54 |
| 7 | Adata SC685 | 502,95 | 465,97 | 14,98 | 36,89 | 83,77 | 59,54 |
| 8 | Orico GV100 | 694,64 | 586,27 | 21,19 | 20,06 | 22,58 | 19,98 |
| 9 | Orico CN300 | 515,73 | 313,82 | 13,73 | 5,71 | 14,53 | 5,60 |
| 10 | HP P700 | 953,34 | 905,55 | 36,14 | 53,01 | 229,64 | 1.155,05 |
| 11 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 912,88 | 868,61 | 25,11 | 38,42 | 199,82 | 206,96 |
| 12 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 970,22 | 892,72 | 15,22 | 37,26 | 202,43 | 820,72 |
| 14 | ADATA SE770G | 953,14 | 909,55 | 22,11 | 73,58 | 360,31 | 350,51 |
| 15 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 1.820,61 | 1.585,46 | 14,92 | 48,09 | 166,27 | 813,47 |
| 16 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 1.411,21 | 1.405,40 | 25,28 | 64,10 | 209,08 | 355,01 |
| SSD | Seq (lesen, MB/s) | Seq (schreiben, MB/s) | 4K (lesen, MB/s) | 4K (schreiben, MB/s) | 4K-64-Thrd (lesen, MB/s) | 4K-64-Thrd (schreiben, MB/s) |
| wdt_ID | SSD | Lesen | Schreiben | Gesamt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adata SD600Q | 154 | 201 | 439 |
| 7 | Adata SC685 | 149 | 143 | 372 |
| 8 | Orico GV100 | 113 | 99 | 274 |
| 9 | Orico CN300 | 80 | 43 | 159 |
| 10 | HP P700 | 361 | 1.299 | 1.856 |
| 11 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 316 | 332 | 817 |
| 12 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 315 | 947 | 1.423 |
| 14 | ADATA SE770G | 478 | 515 | 1.241 |
| 15 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 363 | 1.020 | 1.561 |
| 16 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 375 | 560 | 1.135 |
| SSD | Lesen | Schreiben | Gesamt |
| wdt_ID | SSD | ISO (in MB/s) | Programm (in MB/s) | Spiel (in MB/s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adata SD600Q | 176,46 | 93,52 | 123,44 |
| 7 | Adata SC685 | 202,95 | 77,41 | 179,99 |
| 8 | Orico GV100 | 667,54 | 345,75 | 568,98 |
| 9 | Orico CN300 | 429,70 | 263,09 | 436,04 |
| 10 | HP P700 | 382,92 | 152,12 | 293,34 |
| 11 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 635,84 | 321,20 | 570,59 |
| 12 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 362,07 | 183,39 | 307,66 |
| 13 | ADATA SE770G | 391,67 | 267,24 | 328,17 |
| 14 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 622,89 | 159,19 | 391,50 |
| 15 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 370,79 | 252,65 | 332,82 |
| SSD | ISO (in MB/s) | Programm (in MB/s) | Spiel (in MB/s) |
| wdt_ID | SSD | Seq Q32T1 (lesen, in MB/s) | Seq Q32T1 (schreiben, in MB/s) | 4K Q32T1 (lesen, in MB/s) | 4K Q32T1 (schreiben, in MB/s) | Seq (lesen, in MB/s) | Seq (schreiben, in MB/s) | 4K (lesen, in MB/s) | 4K (schreiben, in MB/s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Adata SD600Q | 301,04 | 411,00 | 166,00 | 138,90 | 434,30 | 420,30 | 16,74 | 37,25 |
| 6 | Adata SC685 | 508,10 | 456,80 | 98,22 | 78,75 | 477,00 | 448,60 | 20,90 | 39,28 |
| 7 | Orico GV100 | 471,80 | 301,60 | 29,29 | 20,01 | 29,55 | 20,11 | 26,95 | 20,46 |
| 8 | Orico CN300 | 466,80 | 419,60 | 20,01 | 10,84 | 543,00 | 499,40 | 19,18 | 10,28 |
| 9 | HP P700 | 963,10 | 968,70 | 189,80 | 179,20 | 862,60 | 857,70 | 39,71 | 50,18 |
| 10 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 959,60 | 903,00 | 203,90 | 187,50 | 876,70 | 816,10 | 31,18 | 64,96 |
| 11 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 975,10 | 926,00 | 211,60 | 237,90 | 751,10 | 899,90 | 37,65 | 62,90 |
| 12 | ADATA SE770G | 996,40 | 920,80 | 302,30 | 294,90 | 912,40 | 827,10 | 37,37 | 76,93 |
| 13 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 2.064,43 | 1.775,36 | 176,80 | 225,50 | 1.764,02 | 1.513,77 | 21,77 | 77,06 |
| 14 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 1.674,86 | 1.549,60 | 214,06 | 230,03 | 854,22 | 1.466,82 | 27,21 | 72,38 |
| SSD | Seq Q32T1 (lesen, in MB/s) | Seq Q32T1 (schreiben, in MB/s) | 4K Q32T1 (lesen, in MB/s) | 4K Q32T1 (schreiben, in MB/s) | Seq (lesen, in MB/s) | Seq (schreiben, in MB/s) | 4K (lesen, in MB/s) | 4K (schreiben, in MB/s) |
| wdt_ID | SSD | 512 B | 1 KB | 2 KB | 4 KB | 8 KB | 16 KB | 32 KB | 64 KB | 128 KB | 256 KB | 512 KB | 1 MB | 2 MB | 4 MB | 8 MB | 12 MB | 16 MB | 24 MB | 32 MB | 48 MB | 64 MB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Adata SD600Q | 7.132 | 11.659 | 21.961 | 40.756 | 80.908 | 149.680 | 189.046 | 273.737 | 331.446 | 382.691 | 412.825 | 424.524 | 434.192 | 307.725 | 302.728 | 301.170 | 300.021 | 299.272 | 298.819 | 298.588 | 179.621 |
| 10 | Adata SC685 | 4.745 | 9.309 | 19.027 | 37.512 | 69.285 | 101.135 | 198.834 | 281.538 | 352.516 | 390.288 | 409.600 | 443.372 | 466.033 | 484.759 | 491.415 | 487.795 | 489.176 | 491.040 | 490.293 | 490.470 | 493.674 |
| 11 | Orico GV100 | 10.725 | 21.248 | 41.163 | 76.324 | 136.944 | 213.081 | 299.704 | 376.231 | 431.110 | 542.708 | 611.470 | 624.268 | 624.268 | 625.723 | 624.268 | 623.477 | 621.378 | 622.076 | 624.268 | 623.373 | 622.951 |
| 12 | Orico CN300 | 9.703 | 20.480 | 39.325 | 73.252 | 122.099 | 179.774 | 287.266 | 369.013 | 407.888 | 455.658 | 479.349 | 489.176 | 483.667 | 479.349 | 480.421 | 477.282 | 490.293 | 484.593 | 477.218 | 488.205 | 482.580 |
| 13 | HP P700 | 8.704 | 17.830 | 30.415 | 52.461 | 84.484 | 161.276 | 293.857 | 408.816 | 462.409 | 612.829 | 738.197 | 842.913 | 905.565 | 945.195 | 963.285 | 966.468 | 974.947 | 974.732 | 977.313 | 974.160 | 977.313 |
| 14 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 13.755 | 28.672 | 58.733 | 116.260 | 216.627 | 386.858 | 614.221 | 821.690 | 894.008 | 919.560 | 934.849 | 930.221 | 934.849 | 932.530 | 932.530 | 931.619 | 934.230 | 933.864 | 932.067 | 930.300 | 934.230 |
| 15 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 5.069 | 10.088 | 19.819 | 38.912 | 76.583 | 158.003 | 222.564 | 369.900 | 491.471 | 608.650 | 720.192 | 824.978 | 884.257 | 909.950 | 934.849 | 940.664 | 937.181 | 945.252 | 945.195 | 941.455 | 947.419 |
| 16 | ADATA SE770G | 18.849 | 37.027 | 63.681 | 150.601 | 234.967 | 409.820 | 632.007 | 813.554 | 887.434 | 912.847 | 925.639 | 952.639 | 952.639 | 927.925 | 925.639 | 931.619 | 925.639 | 929.385 | 932.067 | 932.510 | 923.067 |
| 17 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 4.967 | 10.189 | 20.681 | 45.850 | 87.153 | 158.003 | 304.074 | 583.107 | 609.328 | 895.418 | 1.161.499 | 1.391.887 | 1.606.596 | 1.673.537 | 1.689.908 | 1.696.225 | 1.723.289 | 1.730.150 | 1.731.841 | 1.736.441 | 1.736.419 |
| 18 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 8.639 | 17.152 | 32.175 | 65.536 | 133.218 | 232.351 | 302.587 | 599.409 | 1.051.146 | 1.276.766 | 1.332.185 | 1.368.238 | 1.402.274 | 1.454.576 | 1.480.579 | 1.485.397 | 1.491.308 | 1.500.031 | 1.513.239 | 1.517.174 | 1.505.857 |
| SSD | 512 B | 1 KB | 2 KB | 4 KB | 8 KB | 16 KB | 32 KB | 64 KB | 128 KB | 256 KB | 512 KB | 1 MB | 2 MB | 4 MB | 8 MB | 12 MB | 16 MB | 24 MB | 32 MB | 48 MB | 64 MB |
| wdt_ID | SSD | 512 B | 1 KB | 2 KB | 4 KB | 8 KB | 16 KB | 32 KB | 64 KB | 128 KB | 256 KB | 512 KB | 1 MB | 2 MB | 4 MB | 8 MB | 12 MB | 16 MB | 24 MB | 32 MB | 48 MB | 64 MB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Adata SD600Q | 9.576 | 16.811 | 32.095 | 44.720 | 81.920 | 159.843 | 197.874 | 271.073 | 336.082 | 382.691 | 410.401 | 416.928 | 421.114 | 421.962 | 423.239 | 424.238 | 424.309 | 424.954 | 425.116 | 425.294 | 427.147 |
| 10 | Adata SC685 | 4.484 | 9.170 | 18.481 | 36.772 | 65.775 | 91.910 | 151.114 | 231.303 | 302.706 | 332.529 | 379.918 | 423.667 | 446.202 | 461.824 | 473.014 | 474.943 | 476.160 | 479.645 | 481.498 | 481.532 | 485.856 |
| 11 | Orico GV100 | 11.392 | 22.216 | 42.794 | 78.610 | 136.944 | 209.518 | 296.023 | 372.587 | 475.205 | 603.979 | 678.802 | 725.501 | 723.723 | 729.083 | 732.096 | 730.231 | 732.096 | 733.750 | 735.439 | 733.308 | 735.439 |
| 12 | Orico CN300 | 10.189 | 21.142 | 41.265 | 76.773 | 136.265 | 215.022 | 309.841 | 393.216 | 462.409 | 509.807 | 532.874 | 532.874 | 539.267 | 544.125 | 534.495 | 529.806 | 545.354 | 534.925 | 546.588 | 530.974 | 533.315 |
| 13 | HP P700 | 8.003 | 14.664 | 27.950 | 42.794 | 81.039 | 161.276 | 206.931 | 293.857 | 421.715 | 546.400 | 653.127 | 752.622 | 809.666 | 830.871 | 857.410 | 865.075 | 865.920 | 867.159 | 870.239 | 866.956 | 868.074 |
| 14 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 13.151 | 26.491 | 53.115 | 111.885 | 241.081 | 429.179 | 628.555 | 902.925 | 953.227 | 975.786 | 991.756 | 989.319 | 989.319 | 991.756 | 994.205 | 993.384 | 994.205 | 993.387 | 994.205 | 994.790 | 994.205 |
| 15 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 1.568 | 8.720 | 17.920 | 38.718 | 79.847 | 148.011 | 190.608 | 282.699 | 396.128 | 603.979 | 718.440 | 664.444 | 842.913 | 863.777 | 882.182 | 884.204 | 873.975 | 873.473 | 863.777 | 875.333 | 896.920 |
| 16 | ADATA SE770G | 22.288 | 42.496 | 81.039 | 159.419 | 246.581 | 458.850 | 671.088 | 926.371 | 972.292 | 1.002.553 | 1.015.358 | 1.015.358 | 1.017.764 | 1.015.358 | 1.015.358 | 1.015.247 | 1.015.358 | 1.015.247 | 1.015.358 | 1.016.312 | 1.015.358 |
| 17 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 6.209 | 12.512 | 25.221 | 48.425 | 90.329 | 160.482 | 302.587 | 549.136 | 557.104 | 961.779 | 1.012.963 | 1.129.555 | 1.315.860 | 1.436.880 | 1.491.308 | 1.518.735 | 1.524.448 | 1.549.137 | 1.552.397 | 1.558.178 | 1.559.915 |
| 18 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 3.270 | 6.477 | 12.924 | 26.557 | 38.526 | 73.643 | 124.452 | 195.358 | 332.309 | 482.250 | 709.805 | 736.356 | 821.096 | 1.096.971 | 1.147.705 | 1.176.502 | 1.214.350 | 1.258.291 | 1.259.326 | 1.283.457 | 1.284.380 |
| SSD | 512 B | 1 KB | 2 KB | 4 KB | 8 KB | 16 KB | 32 KB | 64 KB | 128 KB | 256 KB | 512 KB | 1 MB | 2 MB | 4 MB | 8 MB | 12 MB | 16 MB | 24 MB | 32 MB | 48 MB | 64 MB |
| wdt_ID | SSD | Minimum (in MB/s) | Maximum (in MB/s) | Average (in MB/s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adata SD600Q | 274,30 | 293,20 | 279,20 |
| 7 | Adata SC685 | 194,30 | 240,60 | 216,90 |
| 8 | Orico GV100 | 330,60 | 342,50 | 341,00 |
| 9 | Orico CN300 | 352,50 | 375,70 | 370,60 |
| 10 | HP P700 | 290,30 | 335,80 | 303,70 |
| 11 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 368,80 | 372,60 | 371,70 |
| 12 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 190,00 | 305,70 | 271,30 |
| 13 | ADATA SE770G | 400,50 | 437,10 | 419,90 |
| 14 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 589,50 | 601,80 | 597,70 |
| 15 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 218,60 | 581,30 | 563,10 |
| SSD | Minimum (in MB/s) | Maximum (in MB/s) | Average (in MB/s) |
| wdt_ID | SSD | AS SSD (schreiben) | HD Tune Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adata SD600Q | 1,465 | 0,073 |
| 7 | Adata SC685 | 1,806 | 0,181 |
| 8 | Orico GV100 | 0,117 | 0,063 |
| 9 | Orico CN300 | 0,662 | 0,059 |
| 10 | HP P700 | 0,055 | 0,085 |
| 11 | Teamgroup PD1000 (10 Gbps) | 0,108 | 0,072 |
| 12 | SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD V2 | 0,098 | 0,083 |
| 14 | ADATA SE770G | 0,122 | 0,074 |
| 15 | Kingston XS2000 2 TB | 0,134 | 0,079 |
| 16 | Corsair EX100U 2 TB | 0,057 | 0,125 |
| SSD | AS SSD (schreiben) | HD Tune Pro |
Conclusion
Overall, Kingston offers a compelling package with the XS2000 Portable SSD. The SSD is very compact, extremely lightweight and also offers high performance. Thus, it fulfills the most important criteria of an external storage medium with flying colors. Besides these points, Kingston offers another practical bonus with the IP55 certification.
Apart from that, Kingston can also convince with a low price. Cheaper external SSDs often only offer USB 3.2 Gen 1 or 2 and thus at best half the transfer speed of the XS2000 Portable SSD. If we restrict the comparison to Gen 2×2, the XS2000 Portable SSD is currently the cheapest external SSD available.
Kingston offers a lot at a low price with the XS2000 Portable SSD. If you’re looking for fast, yet affordable external storage in a very small form factor, you should take a look at this external SSD.
Kingston XS2000 Portable SSD 2 TB
Access times
Transfer rate (read)
Transfer rate (write)
Value for money
91/100
Very fast and compact external SSD with IP55 certification at a very attractive price.
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