Following the lead of companies like Xteink, Lexar is the latest to sacrifice a USB-C port in the pursuit of slimming down its hardware. Lexar’s Muse is an ultra-slim portable SSD that's less than 4mm thick, making it one of the slimmest you can buy. At its thickest point in the middle, it measures just 3.8mm, but that tapers to only 1mm at the edges thanks to high-density NAND stacking and a ‘custom ultra-thin PCB architecture’ inside.

But performance remains solid with read speeds up to 1,050MB/s and write speeds maxing out at 1,000MB/s. That's fast enough to record 4K Apple ProRes video at up to 120fps when connected to a compatible iPhone. The downside is that without a standard USB-C port, you'll need to rely on – and make sure not to lose – Lexar's proprietary SnapLink cable that magnetically attaches to a pogo-pin connector on the side of the drive. The company doesn't specify the strength of the magnets, but this approach also means there’s an increased risk of the cable being accidentally knocked off during a file transfer.

And if you are using the Muse to record videos through your phone, you'll need to slip it into an included magnetic sleeve in order to mount it to the back of your device, adding quite a bit of thickness in the process. This raises the question: is the convenience of a thinner drive really worth the hassle of a proprietary cable?

The launch of the Lexar Muse Ultra-Slim Portable SSD is set for later this year, with 512GB and 1TB capacities. Whether this innovative design wins over tech enthusiasts or just gathers dust remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: we now have a choice – between convenience and compatibility, or a thinner SSD that’s less than 4mm thick.