Samsung’s unbridled performance
Posted on Feb 6, 2026 by Admin
Built for power, endurance and precision, the Samsung Portable SSD T9 has the horsepower for when productions are pushed to their limits
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There are few subjects more demanding or beautiful than thoroughbred race horses in motion. Power, elegance and explosive speed all collide in a matter of seconds, and there are no second takes when muscles flex, manes fly and hooves thunder past the lens.
Capturing that energy isn’t just a test of camera craft but of workflow. From the moment footage is recorded to the instant it’s reviewed, backed up and edited, every link in the chain has to move as fast as the subject itself. That’s exactly the environment in which the Samsung Portable SSD T9 proves its worth.
A week-long shoot at the sprawling Paardeburg Stud and a high-profile race course in South Africa was all about the motion and muscles of elite horses filmed at speed. It left no margin for error. Mixed with stunning summer light and evocative scenes, it proved an incredible setting for a promotional film.
When it comes to the rarified world of horses that could win major international races around the globe, creating a short film to impress the stud’s high-end clients means nothing less than a cinematic wonder will do.
Enter British filmmaker Mike Neale, who has worked on features with big stars such as Harvey Keitel and Malcolm McDowell, as well as international sports heroes from rubgy and motorsports.
With his reputation for creative work, all shot on high-end cinema cameras, and his experience capturing incredible action, he was hired. Using a professional cinema camera and a full-frame digital option as a B camera and 4K drones for aerial footage, he jetted off with a small team travelling light, so that they were free to react to what they saw.
After long shooting days and high frame rates, Neale quickly generated enormous volumes of data. Managing that data efficiently was not optional – it was fundamental.
On the shoot, the Samsung Portable SSD T9 became the backbone of the workflow. Compact enough to live in a pocket or kit bag, yet powerful enough to handle serious data loads, it allowed footage to be offloaded quickly and confidently between takes. With read and write speeds of up to 2000MB/s via USB 3.2 Gen 2×2, transfers were fast enough to keep pace with the shoot.
Speed matters when you’re working with animals. Horses don’t wait, and don’t repeat moments on cue. Every burst of motion has to be captured, checked and secured without interrupting the rhythm of the shoot. Fast offloads meant cards were cleared quickly and the camera could stay rolling. And when temperatures were getting up to a sweltering 37°, the heat was on.
The Samsung Portable SSD T9 thrives in demanding conditions. “I may not be an expert on horse breeding or racing, but I know what I need from equipment on location – especially with lots of footage, high temperatures, dust and the bumps of travelling.
“We had to have reliable equipment that wouldn’t go wrong,” says Neale. “The Samsung Portable SSD T9 was used to store loads of footage on location, and it sped up our editing workflow. We were able to quickly move big files onto the drive and work directly from it. Our workflow was fast and simple to achieve under pressure.”
In the summer sun, the Samsung Portable SSD T9’s Dynamic Thermal Guard technology actively manages heat, maintaining very consistent performance during long transfers, which is crucial for backing up large volumes of high-bit-rate footage in the field. There is no performance drop-off, sudden throttling or unpleasant surprises halfway through a copy.
Physically, the Samsung Portable SSD T9 is designed for real-world production. Its rubberised exterior offers protection against knocks and drops of up to 3m, which brings peace of mind when kit is constantly moving. Curved diagonal lines and reverse carbon patterns on its surface give a luxurious, fabric-like feel.
Capacity is another critical factor. With options up to 4TB, the Samsung Portable SSD T9 can comfortably hold footage from entire shooting days – or even whole projects – on a single unit. It is not just an offload device, but a shuttle drive between set and post. For this project, it allowed footage to move seamlessly from location to edit without fragmenting data across multiple drives.
Back in the edit suite, the same speed translated into productivity. Working directly from the Samsung Portable SSD T9, Neale was able to scrub through high-resolution footage smoothly, build timelines quickly and respond creatively without waiting for files to load. It is storage that doesn’t just hold data but actively supports creative momentum.
Under the hood, Samsung’s long-standing expertise in memory and storage technology provides confidence that the data is safe. High-quality NAND, robust controller design and optional hardware encryption combine to protect valuable footage, while a five-year limited warranty reinforces the Samsung Portable SSD T9’s position as a pro-grade tool, not a disposable accessory.
In a shoot defined by power and grace, storage had to match the subject. The Samsung Portable SSD T9 delivered speed without instability, toughness without bulk and performance without compromise. It kept the workflow moving from the thunder of hooves on set to the precision of the final edit.
With fast-moving subjects – animals, athletes or action – storage should never slow you down. With Samsung’s Portable SSD T9, speed isn’t just captured on camera. It runs through the workflow.
PRO results from on high
The majestic landscape around the Paardeburg Stud begged for some aerial shots, and once again Samsung was up to the task. The Samsung PRO Plus microSD 1TB card has the space and speed to store a massive amount of data. With incredible read/write speeds of up to 180MB/s and 130MB/s respectively, this tiny card handles high-performance tasks and is perfect for drones.
Samsung’s protection – from water, temperature, X-ray, drops, magnet and wear – will keep your data safe. The Samsung PRO Plus microSD 1TB card is built to deliver professional performance and peace of mind.
More information at samsung.com/uk/memory-storage/portable-ssd/
This article appears in the February/March 2026 issue of Definition
