Honestly, I spent way too much time testing these because I hate loading screens. I eventually settled on the Western Digital WD_BLACK P40 Game Drive SSD 2TB. It really holds up during long sessions without slowing down. If you want something even more rugged, the SanDisk Professional G-DRIVE SSD 2TB is basically bulletproof. Both max out that 10Gbps port easily so you wont see any lag on PS4 games.

Look, for PS4 titles on the PS5, the USB 3.2 Gen 2 port is your real bottleneck. I personally use the Samsung T7 Shield 2TB Portable SSD because it handles heat better than the standard T7 during big transfers. The Crucial X9 Pro 2TB Portable SSD is another solid pick with consistent 1,050MB/s speeds. Honestly, anything over that 1,000MB/s mark is basically overkill tho... since the console wont utilize the extra bandwidth anyway.

tbh you dont need to spend a fortune to get something reliable. i have been using the Kingston XS1000 2TB External SSD for about six months now and honestly its been perfect. it is tiny so it doesnt take up any space behind the console and the speeds are plenty for ps4 titles. never had a crash or a slow load, which is all i really care about. another one i'm really happy with is the SK hynix Beetle X31 1TB Portable SSD. ngl it feels super well-built and stays cool even when i am moving 100gb files around. if you just want something that works well without the gamer tax these are solid bets. let me know if you need any help getting it formatted or anything... it is pretty straightforward tho.

Saved for later, ty!

Came here to say the same thing lol. Great minds think alike I guess.