TL;DR
Having trouble connecting an external SSD to my 2021 MacBook Pro with Apple M1 Pro via a specific Satechi USB-C cable.
That specific cable does not work on my M1 MacBook Pro but works if I go through a USB-C hub and also works fine on a M3.
| Device | Connection type | Connected to | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| SanDisk SSD | Satechi USB-C to USB-C First cable bought | 2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Fail |
| SanDisk SSD | Satechi USB-C to USB-C Replacement cable | 2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Fail |
| SanDisk SSD | Satechi USB-C to USB-C via i-tec USB-C Hub |
2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Success |
| SanDisk SSD | Sandisk original USB-C to USB-A cable via i-tec USB-C Hub |
2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Success |
| SanDisk SSD | BenQ OEM USB-C to USB-C cable | 2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Success |
| SanDisk SSD | Satechi USB-C to USB-C | 2023 MacBook Pro M3 | Success |
| SanDisk SSD | Satechi USB-C to USB-C | 2023 MacBook Pro M3 | Success |
| BenQ PD2706U | Satechi USB-C to USB-C | 2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Fail |
| BenQ PD2706U | Satechi USB-C to USB-C via i-tec USB-C Hub |
2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Fail |
| BenQ PD2706U | BenQ OEM USB-C to USB-C cable | 2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Success |
| BenQ PD2706U | BenQ OEM USB-C to USB-C cable via i-tec USB-C Hub |
2021 MacBook Pro M1 | Success |
Long story
I had the SSD connected to a USB hub (USB-C on the SSD and USB-A in the hub) and never had any issues.
I decided to drop the hub and connect the SSD straight to the Mac and therefore purchased a 10 inch Satechi USB-C to USB-C cable.
When I plugged the SSD using the new cable, nothing happened. I tried all ports on the mac and none worked.
I don't see the SSD in the Finder and in Disk Utility. I went back to the shop and had the cable replaced as I thought it was defective.
I tried with the replacement cable and the same happened. So I tried with a 3rd cable that I had at home and it worked straight away.
So I went back to the shop a 3rd time, with their cable, my SSD and my working cable. They connected my SSD to 4 different new MacBooks, with the cable I bought there and the one I had at home and it worked straight away on all 4 Macs with both cables.
I just tried connecting the SSD with the new cable to my USB hub and the hub to the Mac and it works too.
What on earth could be the issue??
Best Answer
The cable you are referring to can only do power delivery to 100 W and USB 2.0 (480 Mb/s). The SSD has an USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gb/s) interface. An Apple M1 Pro can handle that speed (and much faster speeds).
This cable is the wrong choice for Mac with USB C ports. If you wanted to stay with the same brand, you would want this cable (the 10 inch one), which is considerably higher in price.
Time could be spent trying to determine why the drive is not recognized by the Mac when directly plugged in using the cable you purchased. However, I would consider this as a waste of time, since the connection speed would be about 4.8% of the drive maximum transfer speed.
According to the link you gave, the drive was supposed to have both an "USB Type C cable and Type A cable included". You might try to determine what happened to the USB Type C cable.
Examples of possible replacement cables (from MyCableMart.com) are given below. (Note: USB 3.1 Gen 2 = USB 3.2 Gen 2 = USB 3.2 Gen 2x1 and all three are 10 Gb/s)
6 inch
1.5 foot