Samsung P9 and P7 Portable SSDs Launch Globally With USB4 Speeds
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Samsung P9 and P7 portable SSDs. Image: Digiopedia / Samsung. |
Samsung is moving its portable SSD lineup into the USB4 era with the new P9 and P7, offering transfer speeds of up to 4,000MB/s, capacities reaching 8TB and a new performance tier above the company’s T-series drives.
Samsung is rolling out its new P9 and P7 portable SSDs, introducing USB4 connectivity to its consumer external storage lineup and roughly doubling the maximum transfer speeds offered by its previous high-performance portable drives.
The two SSDs were first unveiled on August 26 at Gamescom 2026 in Cologne, Germany. Samsung describes the P9 as the flagship option aimed primarily at demanding professional workflows, while the P7 is positioned as a more general-purpose portable drive for work, entertainment and storage across multiple devices.
Both models use a USB4 Gen 3×2 interface capable of up to 40Gbps. Samsung rates the drives for sequential read speeds of up to 4,000MB/s and sequential writes of up to 3,800MB/s, although actual performance will depend on the host system, cable, workload and other factors.
That puts the new P-series significantly ahead of Samsung's T9, which uses USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 and tops out at around 2,000MB/s for sequential reads and writes. In practical terms, the move to USB4 gives Samsung considerably more bandwidth for large file transfers, video production and other storage-intensive workloads.
The P9 is Samsung's new portable flagship
The Portable SSD P9 sits at the top of the new range.
Samsung says it can reach sequential read speeds of up to 4,000MB/s and write speeds of up to 3,800MB/s. The company is particularly emphasizing sustained write performance on the P9, positioning the drive for creators working with large RAW files and ultra-high-resolution video.
Samsung says the P9 can support direct 12K video recording in compatible professional workflows, allowing footage to be written directly to external storage rather than requiring an intermediate internal drive or memory card.
The company is also offering capacities ranging from 1TB through 8TB. Samsung describes the 8TB P9 as the world's first 8TB USB4 portable SSD capable of reaching speeds of up to 4,000MB/s. That is a manufacturer claim rather than an independently established industry designation, but the combination of 8TB capacity and 40Gbps USB4 connectivity puts the P9 at the high end of the portable SSD market.
Samsung's US specifications list the P9 with AES 256-bit hardware encryption, Samsung Magician software support and a five-year limited warranty. The drive measures roughly 90 × 65 × 8.3mm and weighs about 96 grams.
P7 brings the same interface to a broader audience
The P7 occupies a slightly different place in the lineup.
Samsung is pitching it as a versatile drive for people moving data among PCs, Macs, smartphones, tablets, cameras, game consoles and other compatible devices. Despite that broader positioning, the P7 also uses USB4 Gen 3×2 and Samsung lists maximum transfer speeds of up to 4,000MB/s read and 3,800MB/s write.
That makes the distinction between the P7 and P9 less about headline peak bandwidth and more about how Samsung is positioning and tuning the products. The P9 is being marketed around sustained high-performance production workflows, while the P7 emphasizes broad compatibility, portability and everyday high-speed storage.
The P7 has been tested for drops of up to 2 meters, as well as shock and vibration resistance. Samsung's regional technical specifications list both new drives with AES 256-bit hardware encryption and a five-year limited warranty. The P7 weighs approximately 98 grams, slightly more than the P9.
USB4 is the biggest upgrade
The shift to USB4 is arguably the most important part of Samsung's new generation.
Samsung's earlier T9 already offered relatively fast portable storage, but its USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 connection limited advertised speeds to about 2GB/s. The P9 and P7 move that ceiling to around 4GB/s.
The improvement matters most for users regularly moving hundreds of gigabytes of video, project files, game assets or other large datasets. For smaller transfers and ordinary document storage, the practical difference may be less noticeable.
There is also an important hardware requirement: reaching Samsung's advertised maximum speeds requires a system with a sufficiently fast USB4 connection. Plugging the drives into an older or slower USB interface will limit throughput to whatever that connection can support.
Samsung itself notes that its maximum transfer figures are based on internal testing and that real-world performance can vary according to the host configuration, cable and operating environment.
Up to 8TB of portable storage
Samsung is offering both families in four capacities:
- 1TB
- 2TB
- 4TB
- 8TB
Availability will differ by region, and Samsung has cautioned that certain capacities may arrive later in some markets.
The jump to 8TB is particularly notable for creators and other users who need substantial portable storage without carrying multiple drives. The trade-off is price: Samsung's initial US pricing puts the highest-capacity models firmly in professional-storage territory.
Samsung announced the following US MSRPs:
| Capacity | Samsung P9 | Samsung P7 |
|---|---|---|
| 1TB | $339.99 | $289.99 |
| 2TB | $649.99 | $549.99 |
| 4TB | $1,349.99 | $1,149.99 |
| 8TB | $2,699.99 | $2,289.99 |
Those are Samsung's suggested launch prices, and actual retail pricing can vary by market and seller.
A phased global rollout
Samsung's launch schedule varies slightly depending on the region.
The company's global and US announcements describe a global rollout beginning in September 2026, while several regional Samsung announcements give August 31 as the start date. The differences indicate a phased release rather than a single worldwide availability date.
Samsung's US store now has product pages for the P9 and P7, although the configurations viewed at the time of writing were listed as unavailable or offered a notification option rather than immediate purchase. Availability may therefore continue to vary by capacity and market as the rollout progresses.
Samsung moves beyond the T-series
The P9 and P7 represent more than a routine speed update for Samsung's portable SSD portfolio. They introduce a new P-series identity, move the company's high-performance external drives to USB4 and raise maximum advertised throughput from roughly 2GB/s to 4GB/s.
The P9 is the more professionally focused model, with Samsung highlighting sustained performance and direct 12K recording. The P7, meanwhile, delivers the same headline USB4 transfer speeds while being positioned for a broader mix of computers, mobile devices, cameras and consoles.
For users with compatible 40Gbps hardware, the new drives offer a substantial bandwidth increase over Samsung's previous portable generation. Whether that performance justifies their relatively high launch prices will depend heavily on workload — particularly as slower portable SSDs remain sufficient for many everyday storage and backup tasks.
With capacities reaching 8TB and USB4 finally replacing USB 3.2 at the top of Samsung's portable lineup, however, the P9 and P7 mark a clear generational shift for the company's external SSD business.
