After the latest PS5 firmware update, we picked the best hard drive.

With the recently released new PS5 update finally allowing you to move PS5 games to external USB storage, we think a quick look at some of the best external hard drives for PS5 game storage is a smart move.

Before we start, if you have already purchased an external hard drive for PS4, you should have no problem using one of them on PS5. It may need to be reformatted when inserted (this will erase all current data on the drive), but after a quick process, you can start using it.

If you have upgraded your PS4 with an internal hard drive, you can also consider buying a cheap hard drive box and converting it to an external drive. This will be a quick and simple fix, but will obviously stop your PS4 from use for future use-unless you reinstall the old drive.

Remember, the most important thing is that any PS5 games transferred to an external hard drive cannot be played and can only be kept there for storage purposes. When you want to play them again, you need to transfer them back to internal storage and apply any new updates. This is not a perfect solution, but the process is usually much faster than installing or downloading the game every time.

This is currently the best solution, at least until Sony announces a list of compatible PS5 SSDs that you can install in the console's (currently inactive) expansion slot. Digital Foundry is still monitoring this situation, and once we get some specific information, we will undoubtedly update their list of the best SSDs for PS5.

Okay, back to our purpose here:

After Digital Foundry tested various PS5 external hard drives, they concluded that SATA SSD is your best choice. When moving PS5 games between internal and external storage, this will provide you with fast transfer speeds and load times that are comparable to (sometimes more than) the PS5's internal storage when running backward-compatible PS4 games.

The only choice you have to make is to choose between a dedicated external drive or an internal SSD with a SATA to USB adapter. The former is a quick and easy solution that can be plugged directly into your console after unpacking. At the same time, the latter requires a small extra step to modify it to use an adapter or case for external use-but you can save a little money this way to get the same performance.

No matter which method you use, the following choices will solve your PS5 storage problem.

The first recommendation is Samsung T5: a slim and stylish portable SSD. The transfer speed is up to an impressive 500MB/s, and the price of a 1TB drive is quite reasonable. Of course, you pay a high price for using faster and more powerful flash storage, but it has become more affordable in recent years.

If you want the most straightforward solution, this is the method you want to choose.

If you want to take the more complicated internal SSD and adapter route, then you need Crucial MX500 or Samsung 870 EVO and Sabrent SATA to USB adapter. It has the same 1TB storage and the same transmission speed, but you can save a few cents by purchasing them separately. You can choose other SATA SSDs like SanDisk or Western Digital, but Samsung and Crucial drives are considered the best in their class.

Samsung 870 EVO/Crucial MX500 SATA to USB adapter

As an old model, Seagate portable hard drive has become the most valuable PS5 external hard drive easy choice because of its reliability and economy. However, as a mechanical drive, the transfer speed between internal and external storage will be much slower than that of SSD. Also, for the same reason, any PS4 game you run it will suffer a longer loading time.

In other words, you can get more storage space. You can buy some drives of different sizes, but 2TB may be the wisest and most value-for-money option. The 4TB version may be a bit too much for most people, and if you really want to get the most benefit at less than 2p per GB, 5TB is not a bad choice.

Various PlayStation brand versions of the drive are also available-including versions inspired by Last of Us 2-but it is essentially the same, but at a higher price. Unless you really want your hard drive to be some kind of statement, there is no need to spend money on it.

For another option, you may also want to consider Western Digital Elements or Passport series. These hard drives are usually in the same price range as the Seagate Portable and provide similar performance, but are sometimes more expensive.

For a slightly cheaper option, you can choose a hard drive from the Toshiba Canvio Basics series. The smallest 1TB hard drive is usually around £40, so it is not much different from the external hard drives of Seagate and Western Digital. However, any savings will help, no matter how small!

If you think you don’t need considerable extra storage space or are using a smaller game library, then this is a good choice. Considering the lack of mature PS5 games, this may be the current thinking of many of us. However, games like Returnal and Deathloop will still be released this year—unless there are more unfortunate delays—and more PS5 upgrade patches may still appear in many previous-generation popular games and PlayStation exclusive games.

If you have some extra cash to splash and want to set yourself up the fastest PS5 external hard drive, then Crucial X8 is an option. Digital Foundry's favorite in its best gaming SSD roundup, it is twice as fast as the Samsung T5. However, if you just want something for PS5 game storage, then the cost of this drive is much higher.

Remember, considering that you cannot run PS5 games from extended storage, the value of an external SSD is limited on PlayStation 5. In other words, if you think you will make a lot of back and forth transfers, you will get some benefits. You decide to play any PS4 game from external storage and will benefit from fast loading times, although the drive will not be much faster than the cheaper SSD options listed above.

In general, if you plan to get a PS5 external hard drive after the latest update of the console, then these are the drives you should consider. Now we are eagerly waiting for the news of when the internal SSD storage can be upgraded! Or, if you are still looking for a console, you can follow our page dedicated to tracking all the latest PS5 stock news.

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