Apple’s MacBook Pro laptops are beloved by consumers all over the world who value their amazing build quality and strong performance. However, Apple Mac devices are infamous for being more difficult than Windows machines to upgrade. Luckily, when it comes to replacing the onboard storage for a high-performance solid-state drive, it is possible to upgrade the MacBook Pro.
Below we have discussed some of our favorites SSD solutions for the MacBook Pro range. Before getting to the list, there’s some important information regarding SSD compatibility that is worth remembering.
Simply put, which SSD you can install in your MacBook Pro will depend entirely on which year your laptop was released. Models from different generations have different disk controllers so can only handle specific SSDs. To check the disk controller on your MacBook Pro, take the following path:
Click the Apple icon (located at the top left)
- Select “About this Mac”
- Select “System report”
- Under the SATA Express/SATA submenu choose the Physical Interconnect.
Note: Unfortunately, Apple decided with its latest generation MacBook Pro devices remove the ability to upgrade the SSD. This is a terrible decision as many laptop users like to futureproof their machines with upgrades.
To make it easier to understand which models require which SSDs, check out the table below:
MacBook Pro | Early 2008 | Late 2008, Early 2009 & 2010 | Early 2011 to Mid-2012 | Retina (mid 2012 to early 2013) | Late 2013 to late 2016 | Touch (late 2016 to 2017) |
Controller type | SATA 1.0 | SATA 2.0 | SATA 3.0 | Mini PCIe | PCIe | No support to upgrade |
Speed | 1.5 Gbit/s | 3.0 Gbit/s | 6.0 Gbit/s | 8.0 Gbit/s | > 8.0 Gbit/s | |
Type of SSD for upgrade | 2.5” SATA SSD | 2.5” SATA SSD | 2.5” SATA SSD | mSATA SSD with converter card | PCIe SSD |
Best SSD for MacBook Pro
Still, looking for the best SSD drive for MacBook pro? The below list will help you to make your choice.
Sandisk SSD Plus 1TB
SanDisk is a respected name in the SD card and memory card market but is also a major manufacturer of hard drives. The company’s SSD Plus comes with SATA Revision 3.0 interface, which makes it ideal for MacBook Pro machines made in 2011 and 2012. It is also compatible with MacBook Pros built before 2011 because the SSD Plus is backward compatible with SATA 2.0 and 1.0.
With a sequential write speed of 445MB/s, saving data to the SanDisk SSD Plus is rapid, while the up to 535MB/s read speed means retrieving the data is also fast. I like that this is one of the coolest replacement SSD’s on the market, so you shouldn’t see it overheat your Mac too much. Because of this, you will see battery gains on your MacBook Pro.
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WD Blue 3D NAND SSD
For superfast data management and storage on MacBook Pro, few SSD solutions stack up to the WD Blue 3D NAND. It is worth noting you pay more for the performance than a standard SSD, but with plenty of storage space and huge performance gains, it could be worth it for power users. Sequential write speed can reach up to 560MB/s, so you can save files more quickly. Read speed is clocked up to 560MB/s as well, allowing stored files to be accessed rapidly.
Coupled with OS X on a MacBook Pro, the WD Blue 3D NAND will allow the system to boot quicker, which launching apps will also be smoother. Furthermore, the drive takes 25% less power than SSDs from previous generations. WD Blue also has also crafted a durable SSD that will work for 1.75 million hours of average use before failure. To prove its durability, the company offers a 5-year warranty.
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Samsung 860 EVO
Samsung’s 860 EVO is an excellent option for MacBook Pro users who require a sturdy SSD that performs well for daily use. However, because of its SATA 3.0 connection, it is only compatible with MacBook Pro machines built-in 2012 or before. Write and read speeds are clocked up to 520MB/s and 550MB/s respectively, so you get more than enough data performance for saving files and then opening and transferring them.
While not an SSD for the pro user, the Samsung 860 EVO makes machine performance smoother, including startup and shut downtimes, and general navigation around your MacBook.
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Transcend JetDrive 820
For MacBook Pros released from 2013 to 2016, Apple changed how the devices accepted SSD configuration, only allowing PCIe drives. One of the best options in this category is the Transcend JetDrive 820, which works on later models including the MacBook Pro Retina. Thanks to its use of PCIe Gen 3 x 2 interface, the Transcend JetDrive provides write speeds rated at 959MB/s.
This means the drive provides massive amounts of performance from its 3D NAND flash technology. Furthermore, Transcend has included thunderbolt support to ensure unbelievable data transfer speeds of up to 10GB/s.
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Here in this article, we have recommended some of the best SSD that you can use with your Macbook pro. We hope this helped to choose the best Solid State Drive for MacBook pro. Please check them and let us know which one is the best according to you?