I wish I lying right now when I inform you that over the past couple of weeks, I've spotted PS5 SSDs like the WD BLACK 8TB SN850X for as much as $2,416.99 at some US retailers. While the sight of that price made my eyes water, there are at least alternatives out there.
The Seagate Astro Bot Limited Edition Game Drive launched late last year for $159.99 at Best Buy and PS Direct US, and has managed to stay at its launch price even amidst the rising costs of facing most internal M.2 SSDs. The best PS5 external hard drives don't share the same benefits as their internal counterparts, like the ability to run games straight off the bat. But I'd much sooner deal with their shortcomings than with prices that could pay off a chunk of my mortgage. And let's not forget, this limited edition drive is also one of the most adorable out there, so it's an even better choice for Astro Bot fans.
I get that it might be a bit egrecious of me to offer up an external hard drive as a cheaper solution to an internal SSD, but tough times call for tough choices. This limited edition drive from Seagate provides a huge 5TB of extra storage for PS5 and PS5 games, and the internal PS5 SSD equivalent cost of that would be upwards of at least $500 right now.
Internal drives don't typically come in 5TB models, but if you were looking for an example, Seagate's own FireCuda 530R SSD is currently listed as $671.95 at Amazon, and that only provides 4TB. Grabbing this adorable alternative can save you a huge chunk of change, and yet still give you all the space you need to store your PlayStation Plus downloads, your existing digital game library, and your favorite screenshots and game clips. I've got mine plugged into my chonky, launch-model PS5 right this very moment, and despite my ridiculously-sized digital backlog, I've barely managed to reach the 2TB mark.
Having that extra 5,000GB of space at just $159.99 (£149.99 at Currys in the UK) isn't just a relief at a time when storage costs are rising to the extremes of RAM pricing, but you get the added benefit of injecting the cute factor into your PS5 setup. Sure, not everyone actually cares about that, but I always find it pretty sad that PS5 SSDs cost so much and you never see them once you pop them in the M.2 slot on the back of the console.
The Astro Bot Game Drive, on the other hand, demands to be seen. The accompanying USB 3.0 cable is pretty small, so it needs to sit pretty close to your PS5. In the little over a month I've had it next to mine, I've been a-okay with that as an Astro Bot fan. There's a stunning blue strip of LED lighting that softly glows under the base of the drive when in use, and highlights the little blue eyes that peek across the edge. The entire thing is draped in adorable art featuring the TeamASOBI robo, which beautifully matches my official Astro Bot DualSense controller and makes me smile every time I see it - something internal M.2 drives never manage to muster.
Of course, adorable-ness aside, if I had to pick, I would always opt for an internal PS5 drive. It's much easier to run storage-demanding games like Marvel Rivals and Fortnite straight from the source than remember to transfer them back to the on-board drive each time you want to play. However, I was fortunate to grab the internal SSD for my PS5 before the prices started to rise, and not everyone can get hold of a time machine and do the same.
There are some remaining bastions of appropriate SSD pricing, like the Crucial P510 which provides its own heatsink and is still $139.99 at Amazon for now. It only provides 1TB, but you will be able run games straight from it without issue. If you need to have at least 4TB and beyond, that's when you're going to see those eye-watering inflated prices.
If you're desperate for more PS5 storage and don't quite have the budget prepared for the rising costs of PS5 SSDs, which could get worse in the months to come, this Seagate Game Drive should be on your radar. If you're not an Astro Bot fan, you can also grab the plain white Game Drive for $159.99 at Best Buy, but you will be missing out on a free pack of Astro Bot stickers. Just to let you know.
Check out our guides to the best Xbox Series X hard drives, the best Nintendo Switch 2 microSD Express Cards, and the best SSDs for gaming if you're after some new storage solutions for your platform of choice.
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