Recommended external SSD for Sentry/Dashcam storage

[rf@tpa237]

Is anyone having success with "SanDisk 1TB Extreme PRO Portable External SSD" for Sentry / Dashcam storage for Model X? I know Samsung T5 is used and recommended by many folks here but I wonder how that performs as well given the fact it must likely have a bus power draw higher than 2W, which is supposedly the threshold Tesla set for Model X (vs. 5W~6W for Model 3 and Y).

I was about to order the Samsung T5 when I stumbled on the non pro Sandisk Extreme version at my local costco store. But when I did a little research I found out that the pro version had double the write speed, (1,050 MB/s vs 550 MB/s), comparable to Samsung T7 so that got me thinking and landed here!

Getting my 2020 X delivered in a few days and trying to prep in advance

 

[scottf200]

Just went thru this process as I'm getting my MCU1 to MCU2 upgraded as we speak. I ordered the SD card below as it can handle a wide temp range, is plenty fast, and is made for a LOT of usage. 256GB should be plenty for wear leveling and video.

SanDisk 256GB High Endurance Video microSDXC Card with Adapter for Dash Cam and Home Monitoring systems
$47 -- https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P4HBRMV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

One site that talks about options: USB Flash Drives for Tesla Dashcam | TeslaTap

 

[Hebert]

I would suggest write speed is key to preventing partially written video files. When I upgraded to 150 MBps write speed that problem went away. Even faster would be better.

 

[scottf200]

I would suggest write speed is key to preventing partially written video files. When I upgraded to 150 MBps write speed that problem went away. Even faster would be better.

Interesting that the manual says 4 MB/s *sustained*. The SD card I mentioned above is class 10 ... so 10 MB sustained speed.

Speed Class Rating - Class 10
Speed Class Rating - UHS-I / U3 / Class 10 / V30
Read Speed - 100MB/s
Write Speed - 40MB/s

Speed Class Rating
There are two kinds of speed indications regarding SD bus generation: Speed Class mark and UHS Speed Class mark. The Speed Classes defined by the SD Association are Class 2, 4, 6, and 10. UHS Speed Classes are UHS Speed Class 1 (UHS-1) and UHS Speed Class 3 (UHS-3), and are designed for UHS devices only.

Speed Class and UHS Speed Class symbols indicate the minimum writing performance to ensure smooth writing of streaming content such as video shooting. That is, Class 2/4/6/10 cards are designed for a minimum sustained transfer rate of 2/4/6/10 megabytes per second (MB/s). UHS-1 and UHS-3 denote a 10 MB/s and 30 MB/s minimum write speed respectively.

Below: Tesla's Official Advice for what USB Drive to buy to Sentry/Dashcam : teslamotors

 

[rf@tpa237]

Just went thru this process as I'm getting my MCU1 to MCU2 upgraded as we speak. I ordered the SD card below as it can handle a wide temp range, is plenty fast, and is made for a LOT of usage. 256GB should be plenty for wear leveling and video.

SanDisk 256GB High Endurance Video microSDXC Card with Adapter for Dash Cam and Home Monitoring systems
$47 -- https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P4HBRMV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

One site that talks about options: USB Flash Drives for Tesla Dashcam | TeslaTap

The SanDisk 256GB High Endurance surely looks like the winner here. Good capacity, speed and mostly importantly the temperature range. Thanks for sharing

 

[Ron97062]

I bought https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P4HBRMV and put it in this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G5JV2B5

The micro card reads keeps the whole thing low profile so it doesn't stick up and get in the way. It's been operating perfectly.

 

[EV bud]

I bought https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P4HBRMV and put it in this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G5JV2B5

The micro card reads keeps the whole thing low profile so it doesn't stick up and get in the way. It's been operating perfectly.

I just got this solution as well — super easy, low profile and reformatted in the Tesla now that it’s supported.

 

[rf@tpa237]

The SanDisk 256GB High Endurance surely looks like the winner here. Good capacity, speed and mostly importantly the temperature range. Thanks for sharing

Got the SanDisk 256GB High Endurance as well. For the card reader I went with this 4-in-1 reader, which allows you to view footage from any phone as well (iPhone, Android). Some folks might consider it a drawback that this reader won't fit straight into the USB port due to the shape but that wasn't an issue for me since I wanted the whole thing hidden beneath the surface as shown in the pictures attached. I used a USB male-to-female extension and its' been working great!

So for my solution I ordered the following:

1. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P4HBRMV
2. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XBLX2PV
3. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M1JZZV7 ( I ended up not using this one because I repurposed a similar capable from my logitech universal TV remote which had a much slimmer cable than this)

 

[Bob Denny]

Is anyone getting more than the last hour from their dashcam (well, without beeping the horn or touching the icon every 5 minutes ha ha)? My giant uSD has almost nothing on it. I thought maybe it would store video like my old Apeman $50 dashcam, like rolling silo filling up the card so you can go back a week plus etc.

 

[scottf200]

Is anyone getting more than the last hour from their dashcam (well, without beeping the horn or touching the icon every 5 minutes ha ha)? My giant uSD has almost nothing on it. I thought maybe it would store video like my old Apeman $50 dashcam, like rolling silo filling up the card so you can go back a week plus etc.

That was my misconception as well compared to my BlackVue that is also in the car.
It seems the video is constantly being taken in memory (if red light on) and only externalized when the horn (if opt on) or touching the icon.

 

[vamsi539]

How are you all managing the data transfer? I.e to view the files when needed? Without a PC handy?

I found this and got one so I can easily view the files on my phone anywhere.

SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive 64GB for iPhone and iPad, Black/Silver, (SDIX30N-064G-GN6NN)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CIEBS74/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_GLy7EbBCMTAT7

 

[scottf200]

How are you all managing the data transfer? I.e to view the files when needed? Without a PC handy?
I found this and got one so I can easily view the files on my phone anywhere.
SanDisk iXpand Flash Drive 64GB for iPhone and iPad, Black/Silver, (SDIX30N-064G-GN6NN)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CIEBS74/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_GLy7EbBCMTAT7

a) Viewer within car.
b) A couple post above the OP pointed out this and an amazon link to it for external viewing on a variety of phones/hardware. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XBLX2PV?tag=tmc064-20

 

[rf@tpa237]

Is anyone getting more than the last hour from their dashcam (well, without beeping the horn or touching the icon every 5 minutes ha ha)? My giant uSD has almost nothing on it. I thought maybe it would store video like my old Apeman $50 dashcam, like rolling silo filling up the card so you can go back a week plus etc.

That’s by design as indicated on page 91 in the manual. Dash cam is pretty much on a 60 min overwriting loop unless you explicitly save the clip. See attached.

 

[Nuclear Fusion]

I use a WD Purple 256GB microSD card in a USB-A adapter.
Has been flawless

 

[Bob Denny]

That’s by design as indicated on page 91 in the manual. Dash cam is pretty much on a 60 min overwriting loop unless you explicitly save the clip. See attached.

I know that. Hence, I see no need for a giant micro-SD. Mine is mostly empty space after 3 months.

 

[scottf200]

I know that. Hence, I see no need for a giant micro-SD. Mine is mostly empty space after 3 months.

It is for wear leveling and longevity and reliability of your device. After all you want it to be reliable in the event of genuine need (car crash or sentry caught car hitting you/vandal).

Wear leveling is a technique that some SSD controllers use to increase the lifetime of the memory. The principle is simple: evenly distribute writing on all blocks of a SSD so they wear evenly. All cells receive the same number of writes, to avoid writing too often on the same blocks.