What just happened? Lexar has just announced what it claims to be the world's thinnest portable SSD. Measuring just 3.8 mm (0.15 inches) and tapering to 1 mm (0.04 inches) at the edge, the Muse is so thin that it uses a proprietary snap-on cable to connect to the device instead of a USB-C port.

The new Lexar Muse Ultra-Slim Portable SSD, to give it its full name, has almost credit-card-like dimensions of 80 × 48 × 3.8 mm (3.15 x 1.89 x 0.15 inches).

Achieving those measurements meant that a regular USB-C port in the SSD wasn't an option. Lexar's solution is called SnapLink, a proprietary pogo-pin magnetic data connection. This uses a spring-loaded pin interface and N52-grade neodymium magnets.

The connector pairs with the SnapLink Magnetic Cable, which has a USB type-C connector on the other end (it also comes with a Type-A adapter).

Having a proprietary cable does come with drawbacks, of course. The main one is that if you lose it, you're unlikely to have another one just lying in a drawer somewhere. Moreover, not everyone is a fan of magnetic connections that can be easily detached with a small knock.

The drive also comes with a magnetic mounting sleeve that Lexar says can secure it to compatible MagSafe iPhones, although promotional images show the Muse attached to iPads and MacBooks as well. Lexar's existing SL500 Magnetic Set uses a separate magnetic ring to attach the SSD to non-MagSafe devices, suggesting the Muse could use a similar system, though the company has yet to explain exactly how those other attachments work.

As for the SSD's specs, Lexar says it offers read speeds up to 1,050 MB/s and write speeds up to 1,000 MB/s. How much that tiny enclosure affects sustained performance remains to be seen.

Storage-wise, the Muse will be available in 512 GB and 1 TB capacities when it arrives sometime in the final quarter of this year.

The big question is how much the drive will cost. The memory crisis has pushed up the price of SSDs considerably, as we all know, so we expect a portable variant claiming to be the thinnest in the world to come at quite the premium.

The Muse could appeal to creators who record high-resolution video directly to external storage. Its slim profile should make a phone-and-SSD setup less cumbersome, while the quoted speeds are more than adequate for most mobile workflows. We'll reserve judgment until real-world tests arrive.