I mostly use it to make vids and take pictures for my online business, I am having lot of hard time finding SSD that would be compatible with IPad5 pro. Any recommendations will help. Ive tried several popular ones that have high reviews similar to Silicon Power A30 2Tb but I’m not having any luck. My IPad storage is full and I can’t make any more vids for my business.
iPad Pro (5th generation)
As the iPad has limited power capabilities, dependent upon the Storage Device, an external power source is often required. For HDD or SSD, connected via USB, an external power source is almost certainly required.
If you have one of the newest iPad Pro models, with a USB-C connector, you may need to utilise a powered USB hub (i.e., it has its own source of power) - connecting both the iPad Pro and the storage device to ports on the hub - or an Apple USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter:
https://store.apple.com/xc/product/MUF82ZM/A
There are many third-party USB Hubs that have a USB-C connection for iPad plus a USB-C PD (Power Delivery) pass-through power connector to which you can connect your USB-C Power Adapter - along with the hub itself incorporating a combination of additional USB-C ports, USB 2.0/3.1 Type-A ports, Ethernet LAN, HDMI, VGA, SD and microSD card-readers. Perhaps consider Kingston, Anker, Hyperdrive and Satechi - although there are many others from which to choose. A Google Search for USB-C Hubs compatible with iPad will find a number of articles and recommendations.
Some additional information about connecting external storage devices can be found here:
Connect external devices or servers with Files on iPhone - Apple Support
https://www.imore.com/how-use-external-hard-drives-your-iphone-or-ipad
To be recognised by iPadOS, the attached USB storage device must be formatted to FAT, FAT32, exFAT, APFS or HFS+ with a single partition. Microsoft NTFS is not supported. Formatting and partitioning, if required, must be performed using a separate computer; iPad does not provide any facilities to format an external storage device.
When choosing an SSD for use with iPad, you will need to avoid any that include hardware encryption that are reliant upon installation of software drivers. iPadOS provides no facility for device-specific driver installation beyond those incorporated within an installable App.
As the iPad has limited power capabilities, dependent upon the Storage Device, an external power source is often required. For HDD or SSD, connected via USB, an external power source is almost certainly required.
If you have one of the newest iPad Pro models, with a USB-C connector, you may need to utilise a powered USB hub (i.e., it has its own source of power) - connecting both the iPad Pro and the storage device to ports on the hub - or an Apple USB-C Digital AV Multiport Adapter:
https://store.apple.com/xc/product/MUF82ZM/A
There are many third-party USB Hubs that have a USB-C connection for iPad plus a USB-C PD (Power Delivery) pass-through power connector to which you can connect your USB-C Power Adapter - along with the hub itself incorporating a combination of additional USB-C ports, USB 2.0/3.1 Type-A ports, Ethernet LAN, HDMI, VGA, SD and microSD card-readers. Perhaps consider Kingston, Anker, Hyperdrive and Satechi - although there are many others from which to choose. A Google Search for USB-C Hubs compatible with iPad will find a number of articles and recommendations.
Some additional information about connecting external storage devices can be found here:
Connect external devices or servers with Files on iPhone - Apple Support
https://www.imore.com/how-use-external-hard-drives-your-iphone-or-ipad
To be recognised by iPadOS, the attached USB storage device must be formatted to FAT, FAT32, exFAT, APFS or HFS+ with a single partition. Microsoft NTFS is not supported. Formatting and partitioning, if required, must be performed using a separate computer; iPad does not provide any facilities to format an external storage device.
When choosing an SSD for use with iPad, you will need to avoid any that include hardware encryption that are reliant upon installation of software drivers. iPadOS provides no facility for device-specific driver installation beyond those incorporated within an installable App.
Transferring photos to external storage isn’t possible using the built-in Files App. If you are not sharing photos via the iCloud Photo Library and iCloud for Windows - or transferring photos to your Windows PC using iTunes for Windows - by far the easiest [and personally recommended] method of copying your Photo Library to USB storage is to use one of the better third-party File Manager Apps that can directly access your iPad Photo Library.
Perhaps consider Stratopherix FileBrowser - Document Manager, or its “pro version” FileBrowser Professional:
https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/filebrowser-document-manager/id364738545
https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/filebrowser-document-manager/id364738545
You might review the extensive online Manual and help files to determine suitability for your needs.
Clearly, to install a third-party App to resolve your problem, you’ll need storage space on your iPad to install it…
If your internal storage is full, your only option is to better manage the storage that you have - and delete unused Apps or unneeded data.
These support pages should prove to be helpful:
About storage on your device and in iCloud – Apple Support
What's the difference between device storage and iCloud storage? – Apple Support
Manage your iCloud storage – Apple Support
How to check the storage on your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch – Apple Support
Clear Other storage on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support
“Offloading” Apps can be a helpful method of creating temporary space for a software update - or installation of another App:
https://9to5mac.com/2020/01/21/how-to-offload-apps-in-ios-to-save-space-without-deleting-their-data/
Additional information about creating sufficient space can be found here:
If you need more space for an update on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support
External storage options - as you are already exploring - can often help with managing limited internal storage.
Do you have a computer? You might try offloading content, where you might store in an external drive. Does it have to travel with you on an iPad Pro?
I do have windows laptop and iPhone, but the even with USB drive connected it doesn’t let me transfer pictures to USB. I can’t even check my email, it shows storage full on iPad.
Compatible SSD for IPad Pro 5
