Slow USB File Transfer Speeds

[WinDIMMson]

Hello,

 

I seem to be experiencing slow USB file transfer speeds. I have a Dell Inspiron 7586 laptop.  It has two USB Type-A 3.0 ports. From what I understand, USB 3.0 is supposed to have a maximum transfer speed of 600 MB/s; however, I seem to be getting a maximum of about 50 MB/s (averages about 25 MB/s). I'm transferring files to/from a SanDisk USB 3.1 Gen 2, 128 GB flash drive. I was wondering if this flash drive is backwards compatible with USB 3.0; if it is, I have no idea what's causing this. 

 

I've already tried selecting "better performance" in the device policy settings. This made no difference.

 

If you need further information, please don't hesitate to ask. 

 

Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks for your time!

[Eigenvektor]

26 minutes ago, WinDIMMson said:

From what I understand, USB 3.0 is supposed to have a maximum transfer speed of 600 MB/s; however, I seem to be getting a maximum of about 50 MB/s (averages about 25 MB/s).

The slowest link in the chain determines the speed. It doesn't really matter if USB can theoretically transfer 600 MB/s if either the SanDisk's read speed is the limiting factor or the write speed of the disk you're transferring to. What are the specs of these disks?

[WinDIMMson]

12 minutes ago, Eigenvektor said:

The slowest link in the chain determines the speed. It doesn't really matter if USB can theoretically transfer 600 MB/s if either the SanDisk's read speed is the limiting factor or the write speed of the disk you're transferring to. What are the specs of these disks?

Thank you so much for your reply. I'm not sure of the read speed of the the flash drive; all I know is that it's USB 3.1 Gen 2. The USB ports on my computer are USB 3.0 and the drive I'm transferring from is a Western Digital BLUE SATA 3 SSD. Thanks again! 

[Eigenvektor]

8 hours ago, WinDIMMson said:

Thank you so much for your reply. I'm not sure of the read speed of the the flash drive; all I know is that it's USB 3.1 Gen 2. The USB ports on my computer are USB 3.0 and the drive I'm transferring from is a Western Digital BLUE SATA 3 SSD. Thanks again! 

The SSD should have a maximum write speed above 500 MB/s, so the limit is likely the flash drive. Unfortunately it being USB 3.1 Gen 2 doesn't say much, it's usually the flash memory or the controller that's the limit. Around 30 MB/s is a fairly typical limit for such devices. There are faster ones, but they usually cost a lot more.