Vava Touch SSD w/Fingerprint Scanner Review

Vava Touch SSD w/Fingerprint Scanner Review

Buy it at Amazon: Vava Touch SSD w/Fingerprint Scanner [Affiliate Link]

Takeaway: Easy to use, fast data transfers, secure, small and compact.

You’ll receive the SSD, 12” USB-C to USB-C cable, 12” USB-A to USB-C cable, and a drawstring carrying bag. The drive measures about 4”L x 1-1/8”W and is just over 1/4”H. On one side is a USB-C port which fits either of the included cables. The housing has a brushed-aluminum finish on the front and a polished glossy back. The only thing printed on the drive is the brand name, VAVA, so there are no markings on the drive to indicate its model or capacity, however, the drive is available in 500GB, 1TB, and 2TB capacities as well as two colors, blue or gray. Next to the logo is a 1/2” square fingerprint reader. The SSD weighs under 1.5 oz and has an incredibly small footprint and isn’t that much larger than a pack of gum, similar in size to the Amazon FireTV stick.

The carrying case for the drive has a microsuede texture on the outside and a divider sleeve that separates the interior into two sections. That way you can store the drive and the cables separately so you don’t scratch up the finish on the housing. Both cables and the drive fit in to the pouch neatly and the drawstring can be pulled tight and tied so nothing falls out.

While my unit didn’t come with any instructions, the unit is basically plug-and-play. Just plug it into your computer or laptop using either of the included USB cables to view the contents of the drive in a file explorer. When the drive is protected, there are two folders on the drive that contain the software for setting up password or fingerprint security for Mac or Windows. This is the default state of the drive when you receive it and you may have to "reset" it by clicking the Forget password link before you can setup your own password.

Then just run the appropriate one for your system. To setup the password and fingerprint security for this drive, open the VAVA SSD Touch software. Enter the Settings to activate security mode to set up a password. Select a password you’ll remember. If you forget it, there is no way to recover the data on the drive and the only way to use the drive again will to format it and wipe it clean. After copying several large files to the drive and back to my computer, I found that the write speed is pretty fast, averaging around 390 MB/second. Copying the same file from the drive takes only about 8 seconds, so pretty close to the 540 MB/s advertised speed. However, I did find that USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports had an average performance around 325-340 MB/s for read and write, while USB 3.1 Gen 2 ports were able to achieve higher speeds of 475-485 MB/s and sometimes even over 500MB/s, so depending on your computer’s hardware, the actual speed performance may vary.

After setting up a password, anytime you plug the drive into a computer, it will be protected and only display the software setup folders. In addition to a password, you can use the fingerprint reader as the security measure. To add fingerprint data, go to the Settings in the software and toggle on Fingerprint Unlock. Each time you want to change the settings you’ll need to enter the drive’s password. When adding fingerprints, you’ll need to scan the same finger multiple times. It helps to scan a different part of your finger each time so it gets a complete picture. After about 5 scans it should have a full scan and you can either add more fingerprints, for example one for backup, or if you want to give another trusted user access like a spouse or co-worker. You can save up to 10 fingerprints. You also have the option to name the fingerprint data, in case you want to revoke access later on.

To unlock the drive, you can simply place your finger on the fingerprint scanner and it should unlock within a few seconds without the need to enter a password. This will also work on computer where the VAVA Touch software hasn’t been installed. Also, if you don’t want to secure the drive and have to enter a password or scan your finger each time you plug it in, you can turn security mode off, but if you do so, your password will be deleted. You fingerprint data will be retained so if you decide to secure the drive later on, you won’t have to re-add them, but you will have to create a new password.

The other cool thing you can do with this drive is plug it directly into a smartphone with a USB-C port. Then scan your fingerprint when the LED around the scanner lights up to unlock the drive. After scanning my fingerprint I was able to access the drive’s contents and view the secured files on it. However, there’s no accompanying app for the drive, it doesn’t connect to iOS devices without a USB-C port, and you won’t be able to use the password to unlock the SSD. The other thing to be aware of is that the drive gets fairly warm to the touch during operation because it doesn’t have any internal cooling mechanism and high drive temps may cause the drive to reduce read and write speeds on occasion.

All in all, I think the drive is really cool. It’s small, compact, secure, and fast. The AES 256-bit encryption means your data and personal information on it is safe from hackers in the event that it gets lost or stolen. And the fingerprint scanner allows you to share the device with trusted individuals and log in quickly without having to use different passwords or install software or apps on all your devices.

Buy it at Amazon: Vava Touch SSD w/Fingerprint Scanner [Affiliate Link]