Check out Digital Foundry’s tests... I would suggest the Western Digital 4TB WD_BLACK P10 Game Drive cuz the Pro’s SATA bottleneck means expensive SSDs are basically overkill, you know?

hey, i feel u... warzone and rdr2 are literally storage killers lol. i've messed around with a few setups on my pro, so here's what i suggest based on my experience: 1. Samsung T7 Shield 2TB Portable SSD: Honestly, this is the best for fast loading. It's way more reliable cuz there are no moving parts, so u dont have to worry about bumping it. It's pricey tho...
2. Seagate Game Drive for PS4 4TB External Hard Drive: If u just need TONS of space for cheap, this works well. But i'd be cautious... mechanical drives are kinda fragile and can fail if they move while spinning. tbh i think the SSD is worth it for the speed, but it depends on ur budget. Just make sure u follow the official Sony guide for formatting just to be safe... i always double check those things before plugging anything in. basically, don't risk ur save data! good luck!

Honestly, most people ignore the best DIY upgrade for a PS4 Pro because they are scared of a screwdriver. Instead of just plugging in a pre-made external, you should look at swapping the internal drive. The stock HDD is a massive bottleneck for the entire OS. If you handle it yourself, you get much better value and better system-wide performance. Here are the two setups I recommend for a more professional DIY approach:

• Internal Upgrade with Crucial MX500 2TB 3D NAND SATA SSD: This is the gold standard for internal swaps. It has integrated power loss immunity and way better endurance than the cheap QLC drives found in many portable units. It makes the actual PS4 UI feel snappy, which an external drive wont do.
• DIY External using a Samsung 870 EVO and a UGREEN 2.5 Inch External Hard Drive Enclosure: If you prefer the external route, building your own ensures you arent getting a cheap DRAM-less drive inside. It is super easy to do and usually cheaper than buying the gaming branded stuff. Anyway, once you swap the internal, you can put your old drive in a cheap enclosure and use it for backups or lighter games. Basically, going the DIY route gives you way more control over the hardware quality.

I have spent way too much time benchmarking various controllers for my setup, and honestly, the market has shifted a lot lately. While the USB 3.1 bottleneck on the Pro is real, looking at I/O latency rather than just peak sequential speeds really changes the game for games like Warzone.

• Crucial X9 Pro Portable SSD: I moved to this after my old mechanical drive started clicking. It uses TLC NAND which is more durable for constant game updates compared to cheaper QLC drives. The random access times are where you actually see the benefit in UI snappiness and asset streaming in open-world games like RDR2. afaik it is one of the most stable drives in this price bracket.
• Toshiba Canvio Advance: If you are sticking with an HDD for pure capacity, I usually point people toward Toshiba. From a market reliability standpoint, their 2.5 inch platters have shown lower failure rates in my experience compared to some of the entry-level consumer stuff from other major brands.
• SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD: This is a solid mid-range pick if you want a balance of price and speed. Just make sure the firmware is up to date since some older batches had issues. Tbh, even if the Pro cannot hit max SSD speeds, the lack of seek time on an SSD makes the dashboard feel much faster. If you go HDD, stick to Toshiba for the better build quality imo.

Big if true

Interested in this too

Bump - same question here

TIL! Thanks for sharing