ORICO has dished out quite a few unique and versatile storage accessories over the years, including the folder-shaped iFolder Go SSD, its 8-in-1 USB-C hub, and more we’ve already checked out. The BookDrive P10Plus is another interesting addition, combining a compact 10Gb/s portable SSD with a magnetic design that snaps onto compatible phones. It also has a second USB-C port for up to 100W PD passthrough charging for added convenience. I’ve been using the 1TB model to see whether those extra features actually make it more useful in everyday use, or if they’re just nice additions on paper. Head below for a closer look and more details.
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Hands-on with ORICO’s BookDrive P10Plus External SSD
ORICO’s official Amazon storefront is offering its 1TB BookDrive P10Plus external SSD for $149.99 shipped. You can also snag a 512GB variant of this drive, which is available for $79.99 shipped. There’s also the P10Pro drive in both 512GB and 1TB capacities, which also adds an SD/TF card reader along with another Type-C port for added versatility.
Features at a glance
- USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface
- Up to 1,000MB/s transfer speeds
- MagSafe-compatible magnetic mounting
- Dedicated USB-C port with up to 100W PD passthrough
- Aluminum alloy construction
- Short USB-C cable and two magnetic rings included
9to5Toys’ Take
The BookDrive P10Plus feels less like ORICO simply built another portable SSD and more like it actually considered how people are using external storage with modern phones. This one has a magnetic design, so it can snap onto the back of, say, an iPhone or other compatible phones. Connect it to the phone using the short USB-C cable, and the drive sits neatly behind the phone instead of dangling from the port. ORICO also includes a couple of adhesive magnetic rings, so you can use the same setup with devices or cases that don’t already have built-in magnets. In my testing, the magnetic hold also felt strong enough for normal everyday use.
The silver metal shell also gives the P10Plus a much nicer feel than the cheap plastic enclosures you’ll find on some portable drives. It’s certainly not as tiny as something like ORICO’s K20 Mini, but that added size starts making more sense once you factor in the additional charging hardware.
The BookDrive P10Plus, as mentioned earlier, also has a second USB-C port, and it’s easily one of my favorite features of this model. That secondary port supports up to 100W PD passthrough charging, which is particularly useful when you’re recording video, taking photos, or moving larger files from a phone. You can keep the SSD connected as usual and plug a charger or power bank into the second port to keep the host device powered at the same time. It’s just as handy with laptops and tablets that don’t have many ports to spare. That PD connection is power-only, though, so you can’t use this as a mini USB-C hub with a second data port.
As a USB 3.2 Gen 2 drive, the P10Plus tops out at 1,000MB/s, which I was able to test and verify when plugged into both an iPhone and a Windows PC. That’s right where I’d expect a decent 10Gb/s portable SSD to land, and it’s more than enough for typical file transfers, editing projects directly from the drive, and so on.
One thing I note here is that the transfer speed can dip during long, continuous transfers. It’s not necessarily a deal-breaker, and it didn’t bother me much for normal everyday use, but it’s definitely something to keep in mind if your main use case involves repeatedly writing hundreds of gigabytes in one shot, or other similar sustained loads. This may potentially stand as a bottleneck while trying to record videos directly to the drive from compatible phones.
ORICO includes a roughly 13cm USB-C cable in the box, and I actually think the short length works well when the drive is magnetically attached to a phone. You don’t end up with a bunch of cable hanging off the bottom of your setup, which keeps everything looking relatively clean. It gets a little more awkward with laptops, though. You can use the included magnetic rings to stick the BookDrive onto the lid of a notebook, but the short cable can end up being a pretty tight fit depending on where the USB-C ports are located.
All things considered, I really like what ORICO is doing with the BookDrive P10Plus. It’s a good option to consider if you regularly shoot video from an iPhone or use other USB-C devices with limited ports. Having a magnetic 1TB SSD sitting directly behind the phone is already convenient, but being able to transfer/move large files or back up while feeding up to 100W of power through the same setup makes it considerably more useful for longer sessions.
It’s also priced pretty well at $150 for the 1TB model, especially with SSD prices sitting as high as they are right now. The BookDrive P10Plus may not be the fastest portable SSD out there, but that’s not really the point. For creators who will actually make use of the magnetic mounting and PD passthrough, it’s a clever and genuinely useful little storage solution.
Buy the ORICO BookDrive P10Plus SSD
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