What are the best internal SSDs for PS5 and PS5 Pro?

Question

I finally managed to snag a PS5 Pro after saving up for months and honestly the 2TB internal storage is already looking a bit cramped with my library. Ive been looking around online and everyone seems to point towards the Samsung 990 Pro or the WD Black SN850X as the gold standards but Im getting a bit overwhelmed with the specs. I read on one forum that some of the beefier heatsinks dont actually fit the slim or the pro models properly without forcing the cover back on and thats the last thing I want to do with an expensive console.

Im based in London so Ive been looking at prices on Amazon UK and Scan and Ive got about £180 set aside for this. Im trying to figure out if there is actually any benefit to getting the absolute fastest drive available for the Pro specifically or if it just hits a bottleneck anyway? Some people say the SN850X runs cooler but then others swear by the 990 Pros endurance. Im mainly worried about future-proofing for when games like GTA VI come out and inevitably take up like 300GB on their own lol.

Does it really make a difference if I go for a slightly cheaper Gen4 drive or should I just stick to the top tier stuff to be safe? What are you guys actually using in your consoles right now that doesnt overheat during long sessions?

tank_yrOi · Accepted Answer

Saw this earlier and yeah, paying top dollar for big names is often a letdown. Unfortunately, I had issues with thermal throttling on some pricey ones recently... not as good as expected honestly. Fits your £180 budget too. Try these:

Lexar NM790 2TB SSD with Heatsink

Corsair MP600 Pro LPX 2TB M.2 NVMe SSD The NM790 is a beast. Its controller draws way less power, meaning less heat in that tight PS5 Pro bay.

Qrcodevam · Answer

Unfortunately, I wasted cash on speed I cant even feel.WD_BLACK SN850X 2TB with Heatsink is much cooler.The Samsung 990 Pro 2TB NVMe was not as good as expected.

Michaelnug · Answer

Just catching up on this thread and honestly, I have to slightly disagree with the idea that you need to spend the full budget on the big names. I actually had some issues with thermal throttling on some of the higher-end drives recently, and they were not as good as expected for the price premium. Unfortunately, you often end up paying for sequential speeds that the PS5 Pro just doesnt utilize in real-world gaming scenarios. Since youre in London, definitely check out the Lexar NM790 2TB PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD instead. It uses a much more efficient controller that runs incredibly cool even without a massive, bulky heatsink. Tbh, the Crucial T500 2TB NVMe SSD with Heatsink is another solid shout that fits the Pro perfectly without any clearance issues. Both will save you a decent chunk of that 180 quid while giving you basically identical load times to the fancy flagship stuff. Its all about that IOPS performance anyway, not just the marketing numbers on the box. You got this, let me know if the specs are still confusing!