# Lexar SL500

- Source: https://stierproducts.com/products/lexar-sl500
- Category board: https://stierproducts.com/categories/external-ssds
- Placement: #13 of 28 in External SSDs, C tier
- Brand: Lexar
- LP on this board: 385
- Last researched: 2026-09-10T01:10:11.397Z
- Method: https://stierproducts.com/methodology
- Dataset: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22062813 - every board at once, one dated snapshot per release, same licence, prices and photographs left out
- Reuse: Text, rankings, tier assignments, LP values and verdicts are free to quote and reuse with attribution to stierproducts and a link to the source URL (CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence.

## Verdict

DriveVault's 'exceptionally well-rounded' verdict plus Digital Foundry coverage make it the best-rounded Gen 2x2 alternative on the board.

## For

- Exceptionally well-rounded: slim, light, good-looking, fast, and broadly compatible
- Competitively priced
- 2 GB/s-class speeds
- ZDNet's pick for the best external drive on the market after hands-on testing
- Slim design

## Against

- Backed by a single-outlet crown rather than multi-source consensus

## Evidence

Consolidated from 16 independent outlets

| Outlet | Said by | Stance | Link | Link status |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| DriveVault | - | B | https://www.drivevault.io/blog/lexar-sl500-review.html | fetched and confirmed |
| Bhphotovideo | bhphotovideo.com | B | https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1933038-REG/lexar_lsl500m001t_rnbng_sl500_usb_3_2_gen2x2.html | fetched and confirmed |
| Digital Foundry | - | C | https://www.digitalfoundry.net/reviews/lexar-sl500-elite-legends-a-premium-portable-ssd-with-2gbs-speeds | fetched and confirmed |
| Belfasttelegraph | belfasttelegraph.co.uk | B | https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/life/technology/tech-review-lexar-sl500-portable-ssd-packs-huge-storage-into-tiny-powerhouse/a/153150934.html | fetched and confirmed |
| AppleInsider | Andrew O | B | https://appleinsider.com/articles/26/08/18/lexar-armor-700-8tb-review-impressive-capacity-good-speeds-with-a-catch | fetched and confirmed |
| Digital Camera World | digitalcameraworld.com | C | https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/buying-guides/best-portable-hard-drives-for-photographers | fetched and confirmed |
| Macworld | Gabriela Vatu | B | https://www.macworld.com/article/3139790/get-an-extra-2tb-for-your-mac-for-just-210-with-this-rare-sale.html | fetched and confirmed |
| Karl Conrad | Karl Conrad | B | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiBqk7gFong | fetched and confirmed |
| ZDNET | Adrian Kingsley-Hughes | C | https://www.zdnet.com/article/best-external-hard-drive/ | fetched and confirmed |
| Jay Perillo | Jay Perillo | B | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7to-Toveps | fetched and confirmed |
| Gadget Vault Pro | Gadget Vault Pro | C | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZktd-CTSFM | fetched and confirmed |
| Truthify | Truthify | C | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiVW_2lZGcY | fetched and confirmed |
| Огляд UA | Огляд UA | B | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvBsf52adMw | fetched and confirmed |
| My Top list | My Top list | B | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtUJGhPZ02c | fetched and confirmed |
| Newsshooter | Matthew Allard | B | https://www.newsshooter.com/2026/06/22/lexar-4tb-sl500-usb-c-3-2-gen-2x2-portable-ssd-with-magnetic-set-on-sale-for-349-99-usd/ | fetched and confirmed |
| PCWorld | Gabriela Vatu | B | https://www.pcworld.com/article/3139866/ssd-deals-are-basically-gone-but-lexars-4-5-star-2tb-drive-is-190-off-now.html | fetched and confirmed |

## Nearest alternatives on this board

| Rank | Product | Tier | Page |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 8 | Kingston XS1000 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/kingston-xs1000 |
| 9 | addlink P30 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/addlink-p30 |
| 10 | Corsair EX300U | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/corsair-ex300u |
| 11 | OWC Envoy Pro Mini | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/owc-envoy-pro-mini |
| 12 | OWC Envoy Ultra | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/owc-envoy-ultra |
| 14 | Seagate Ultra Compact SSD | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/seagate-ultra-compact-ssd |
| 15 | SanDisk Extreme Portable V2 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/sandisk-extreme-portable-v2 |
| 16 | Adata SE920 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/adata-se920 |
| 17 | PNY RP60 | D | https://stierproducts.com/products/pny-rp60 |
| 18 | Lexar SL600 | D | https://stierproducts.com/products/lexar-sl600 |

The full board is at https://stierproducts.com/categories/external-ssds.

## What this tier means

- C: Fair. Acceptable in the right situation, outclassed at its price.

## How to read this

- Each category is researched in four independent runs, one per lens (expert consensus, value, reliability, community pulse). Every run ranks a board of candidates that deliberately includes products buyers cross-shop but should avoid. Placements score on a ranked ladder (LP), and tiers are derived from LP, so no tier is ever assigned by hand.
- LP is this product's points on its own category ladder. It is comparable within a category and not across categories.
- Link status reports what our pre-publication link check found when it fetched the cited URL. It says nothing about the quality of the review.
- A citation with no usable link is listed rather than dropped, and is excluded from the counted total above.

## Image

https://stspimgdevmfyk46r5vwkay.blob.core.windows.net/images/products/lexar-sl500.webp

Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence.