WD Blue 2TB 2.5' SATA SSD with up to 560MB/s read speed

Product Information

Do you absolutely need a heatsink for a PS5 SSD? Sony says yes, and you can easily add your own heatsink to SSDs that aren't marketed specifically for the PS5. You can also use one of the best external drives with the PS5 to store games, but these are only for game storage — you'll need an internal expansion drive to actually play the games. The Sony PS5 has an internal benchmark measuring how fast the system can read data from the drive. This is the most critical performance metric for gaming, as a speedy response time is responsible for ensuring a smooth gaming experience. As you can see in the 'PS5 Read Benchmark' column above, the fastest SSD in our test pool was 90% faster than the slowest model. Sony will even flag performance as being potentially inadequate if the read score is below about 4,000 MB/s.

SN850 with heatsink is intended for Desktop PCs and PlayStation™ 5 (PS5 system software version 21.02-04.00.00 or higher required).Details about the extent of our regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority are available from us on request. Today’s A-list titles can take up 200GB or more of storage. A range of capacities from 1TB to 4TB means you get to keep more games at the ready and get into the action fast. Game Mode 2.0 serves up even more PC performance-boosting features like load prediction to ready game assets for fast in-game loading. Get the ultimate gaming edge over your competition with insane speeds up to 7,300 MB/s for top-level performance and ridiculously short load times. Get into the match fast as you zoom past load times with blazing speeds of up to 5,150MB/s 1 (1TB and 2TB models).

Note that the Maxio MAP1602A doesn't include DRAM, and on Windows PCs it would use the HMB (host memory buffer) feature to get around this. But even in the PS5, performance still appears fine. If you want other alternatives, the Lexar NM790 4TB and Silicon Power US75 4TB (see below) use the same controller and NAND, while the Netac NV7000 4TB opts for a Phison E18 controller and 176-layer Micron TLC NAND. Extremely low latency loads graphics fast with minimal stutter and lagging for an incredibly smooth, satisfying gaming experience.

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Designed with an M.2 2280 slim, light, and compact form factor to easily slide into your gaming rig. Naturally, not all of the drives that we test will make the final cut for our list of Best SSDs for the PS5, but that doesn't mean those drives failed the test, or wouldn't be a great deal if you can catch them on sale. The Solidigm P44 Pro is a great SSD that delivered respectable performance in our PS5 SSD benchmarks, and given the slim difference between the fastest and slowest SSDs on our list, it could make a great drive if the price is right. The only thing we'd try to avoid is any SSD that uses QLC NAND, as those drives can slow down significantly as they're filled to capacity. WD also supports the SSD with a respectable five-year warranty that will let you game with peace of mind. This drive is made for the PlayStation 5, but it is a bit pricier than other options, so you'll want to keep an eye out for sales. It's also super fast for gaming on a PC, particularly with DirectStorage on the horizon.

Likewise, extensive testing has failed to expose meaningful differences between the drives — it's common to see at most a one to two second difference between drives in game load times. Other testing we've seen from multiple outlets indicates very few meaningful differences, if any, for game loading times.Overall, you're unlikely to notice the speed difference between most Gen4 SSDs and could make a good argument for simply selecting the most cost-effective drive that meets the capacity target that you want — 4TB and 2TB drives are particularly popular. Klarna Bank AB (publ) is Authorised by the Swedish Financial Services Authority (Finansinspektionen) and is subject to limited regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority.However, other real-world tests show much smaller differences.For instance, our 'Copy to M.2' benchmark consisted of timing how long it took to move four games totaling 192.6 GB ( Mass Effect: Andromeda, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Elden Ring, and Astro's Playroom) from the internal PS5 SSD to the expansion drive. In most cases, we only logged a difference of a few seconds, and converting to MB/s the fastest and next-slowest drive only showed a 10% difference. What size of SSD should you buy for the PS5? You might =be fine with a 1TB drive, but we recommend selecting a 2TB or 4TB model due to the current low pricing trends for these models. Besides, who wouldn't want more storage for extra games? Get up to 20% more power efficiency at maximum speed over the previous generation 3 (1TB model) for an even better overall gaming experience on your portable rig.