Lekuo M.2 NVMe USB4 Enclosure Review: Unbeatable Price for the Performance

Preface

Apple’s M-series chips have redefined performance, delivering remarkable power efficiency and snappy application responsiveness that make the Intel x86 era feel like a distant memory. However, this efficiency comes with a trade-off: neither RAM nor storage is user-upgradable. While the on-package RAM is fixed, the inclusion of at least two Thunderbolt ports on every Mac, each supporting up to 40Gbps of bandwidth with PCIe tunneling, opens up opportunities for storage expansion.

Macs with M-series chips support three Thunderbolt standards: Thunderbolt 3 and 4, both offering 40Gbps, are found on models since 2020, while Thunderbolt 5, with an impressive 80Gbps, is exclusive to high-end models like the M4 Pro, M4 Max, and M3 Ultra starting in 2024.

The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) introduced USB4 to advance high-speed peripherals. Compatible with Thunderbolt 3 and 4, USB4 delivers the same 40Gbps bandwidth without requiring Intel’s Thunderbolt certification, potentially offering comparable performance at a lower cost.

Today, we’re reviewing the Lekuo (formerly IOCREST) M.2 NVMe SSD enclosure, a USB4 device that promises high performance at a budget-friendly price of just $57.99.

Design

The Lekuo enclosure features a sleek, functional design. The top is dominated by a large, grooved black aluminum panel that serves as an effective heatsink, keeping temperatures in check during intensive use—more on its thermal performance later.

On the bottom, a small hatch secured by a single screw provides access to the M.2 NVMe SSD slot. While a tool-less design would have been ideal, the screw mechanism is straightforward and secure.

Inside, the enclosure includes an M.2 slot with multiple mounting points to accommodate various M.2 drive sizes including 2230, 2242, 2260 and 2280. A rubber push-pin secures the SSD in place, ensuring stability.

Lekuo also includes a thermal pad in the package, designed with a practical twist: it’s sticky on one side for attachment to the aluminum hatch, while the non-sticky side interfaces with the SSD, ensuring efficient heat transfer without residue on the drive.

The enclosure comes with a screw driver, a metal opening pick that doubles as a bass pick, and a half-foot long USB4 cable.

We will be demonstrating the performance with Seagate’s FireCuda 530 1TB NVMe Gen4 SSD. It features a Phison E18 controller with Micron 176-layer NAND rated for 0.7 DWPD, or 1275 TBW and a five year warranty. This SSD is discontinued and replaced by the 530R, but similar Phison-E18 based SSDs, such as the Kingston Fury Renegade, is also a good choice,

Performance

To evaluate the Lekuo M.2 NVMe USB4 enclosure’s performance, I compared it against two other M.2 NVMe enclosures: the ACASIS TBU-405, equipped with an Intel JHL7440 Thunderbolt 3 controller, and the Inateck FE2028, powered by the same Asmedia ASM2464PD USB4 controller as the Lekuo. Tests were conducted on a Windows PC with USB4 and an Apple M1 Max Mac Studio with Thunderbolt 4, using Crystal Disk Mark on Windows 11 Pro (Performance Policy) and Amorphous Disk Mark on macOS Sequoia 15.5.

Baseline: Seagate FireCuda 530

To establish a performance baseline, I tested the Seagate FireCuda 530 SSD directly connected via an internal PCIe 4.0 M.2 interface on a Windows 11 Pro system.

These results confirm that the Seagate FireCuda 530, with its high sequential and random performance, does not bottleneck the enclosures in our tests, allowing us to accurately assess their capabilities.

Windows PC, USB4

The ACASIS TBU-405, with its Intel JHL7440 Thunderbolt 3 controller, significantly underperformed compared to the Asmedia ASM2464PD-based enclosures. Despite sharing the same chipset, the Lekuo AA24M11 outperformed the Inateck FE2028, likely due to its superior cooling design, which mitigates thermal throttling in the notoriously hot-running ASM2464PD controller.

Apple M1 Max Mac Studio, Thunderbolt 4

The trend continues on the Mac Studio, with the Asmedia ASM2464PD-based enclosures outperforming the Intel JHL7440. The Lekuo AA24M11 consistently edges out the Inateck FE2028, particularly in sequential read and write speeds, thanks to its effective thermal management.

Conclusion

The Lekuo M.2 NVMe USB4 enclosure (AA24M11) stands out as a top performer in our tests, delivering exceptional speed and reliability for a USB4-based storage solution. Its Asmedia ASM2464PD controller consistently outperformed the Intel JHL7440-based ACASIS TBU-405 across both Windows and macOS platforms, achieving near-identical peak sequential read speeds to the Inateck FE2028 while surpassing it in write performance and low-queue-depth scenarios. The Lekuo’s superior thermal design, featuring a robust aluminum heatsink and well-engineered thermal pad, ensures sustained performance by mitigating the ASM2464PD’s tendency to overheat, giving it a clear edge over the Inateck.

Price, however, is where the Lekuo truly shines. In October 2023, the ACASIS TBU-405 cost $99.99, and in April 2024, the Inateck FE2028 was priced at $72.99. As of July 2025, the Lekuo AA24M11 is available for just $57.99, offering Thunderbolt 3/4-level performance at a significantly lower cost. While the single-screw hatch could be more user-friendly, this minor drawback is negligible compared to the enclosure’s compact design, versatile M.2 compatibility, and outstanding value. For Mac users looking to expand storage or PC users seeking a budget-friendly, high-performance NVMe enclosure, the Lekuo AA24M11 is an unbeatable choice, delivering premium performance at a remarkably affordable price.

Extra Reading - Advertised Max Speeds Are Pointless

When evaluating SSD and enclosure performance, manufacturers often highlight maximum sequential read and write speeds, such as those achieved at high queue depths (e.g., QD256). However, for everyday users, these numbers are less relevant than low queue depth metrics like Sequential 1M QD1 and Random 4K QD1. Here’s why.

Queue depth (QD) refers to the number of pending input/output requests an SSD handles simultaneously. High queue depth scenarios (e.g., QD256) are typical in enterprise environments, such as servers managing hundreds of concurrent data requests. In contrast, everyday tasks—web browsing, file transfers, gaming, or even intensive workloads like 4K video editing—rarely exceed a queue depth of 1 to 4. For most users, the Seq. 1M QD1 and Rnd. 4K QD1 metrics better reflect real-world performance, as they measure how quickly an SSD responds to single, sequential, or small random requests, which are common in consumer applications.

Even in demanding tasks like video editing, where large files are read or written, the workload is predominantly sequential with low queue depths. For example, editing 4K or 8K video in software like Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere involves reading large media files sequentially or writing rendered output, typically at QD1 or QD2. These tasks don’t generate the parallel requests needed to reach high queue depths, and the advertised maximum speeds (like the 7028 MB/s read speed of the Seagate FireCuda 530 at QD256) are rarely achievable. This is due to bottlenecks in the storage interface (e.g., USB4/Thunderbolt’s 40Gbps limit, equivalent to ~5000 MB/s) and system overhead, such as protocol inefficiencies or controller limitations in external enclosures.

Additionally, Random 4K QD1 performance is critical for snappy system responsiveness, as it reflects how quickly an SSD handles small, random file operations—like loading application data or accessing system files. Strong performance in these metrics ensures a responsive experience for everyday tasks, making them far more relevant for typical users than high queue depth numbers.

Looking Ahead

In my next blog post, I’ll dive into a comprehensive comparison of multiple SSDs tested both internally and externally on a Windows system, pushing their limits with a variety of workloads. I’ll also explore how these external SSDs perform when connected to a macOS system, benchmarking them against the internal soldered SSD found in modern Macs. Stay tuned to see how these drives stack up and whether external storage can rival the blazing-fast performance of Apple’s integrated solutions.