Why can not use USB-C - Lightning cable from the box with iPad 8th gen to connect with external SSD?

It should not work.

Not sure what is going on.

Lightning connector equipped iPads, USUALLY, need to additional, external power source to supply enough power to ANY connected external drive.

I own two 2015/2016 iPad Pros with a Lightning connection and use the same Samsung T5 SSD and it definitely needs additional external power with the USB-3 camera adapter..

Can you actually access the files on the SSD and preview/view/import them, from the Files app, into the iPad from the SSD without having any additional external power source?

What part of the world are you from?

Can you provide an Amazon link to this third party adapter?

This maybe something I may try with my own Lightnng connector iPad Pro.

It would not be beyond Apple's doing that in their own adapters, that they have included some sort of chip that acts as an artificial limiter, to limit how their different adapters interact with their different devices, just to exert more control over how their products gets used.

I would very much like to check out this third party adapter you found on your country's version of Amazon.

It looks like a knockoff/counterfeit of Apple's own adapter, BUT HEY, it works and it works without using any external power source.

So, that is something!

Actually played the video from inside the Files app.

If that company completely copied the Apple adapter, the power connection port should be for the Lightning port amd NOT USB-C as that power port would normally be where Lightning Connector end would plug in from your Lightning to USB-C cable.

The USB-C end plugs into your 18 or 20W Apple power/charging adapter block.

There is something in these third party adapters that is blocking somethng from triggering this message and allowing the external drives to work through these adapters.

Keep me updated about this.

I noted some other third party adapters with that link, as well.

They look cheap enough to take a risk on too!

Some have camera card readers/USB/ and either HDMI or audio headphone jacks, with the Lightning port for power.

I may still need external power to power one of those, but for the one you ordered, it maybe cheap enough to order and just test for file transfer reliability.

Let me know how this adapter has been working out for you.

Best of Luck to You!

I wonder though with the Lightning connector if both the power supply and battery will heat up more and battery will get eaten up faster with using external, drives without the limiter of using external power.

Lightning port equipped iPads were never meant to use these higher power draining devices using just the iPad's own power supply and battery to power such drives.

So, I am a little worried about extra heating using such external drives ONLY relying in the battery power and the power supplied put into Lightning port/connedtor equipped iPad models.

But I think these adapters are cheap enough to at least test and take a risk on for some short term testing.

There a A WHOLE LOT of counterfeit Apple adapters being sold on Amazon.