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SSD prices are still sky-high. A drive that would have cost you $100 this time last year will now cost three or even four times that amount. Unfortunately, the reality is SSD rates aren't going to come crashing back down any time soon.
Analysts expect component markets to start stabilizing in a couple of years time, so if you're stuck for storage this weekend (and I mean really stuck for storage) there's a bullet to be bitten. Getting the right SSD price is more important than ever - and not all retailers are suffering the same. Newegg, for example, is generally running slightly cheaper on both storage and RAM prices right now, while Amazon has its moments outperforming its competitors as well.
Quick list
- WD Black SN850X | $219.18 at Newegg
- Samsung 990 Pro | $297.95 at Newegg
- Crucial T700 | $245 at Amazon
WD Black SN850X
The WD Black SN850X is the cheapest SSD from our top tested picks this weekend. This is by no means a sacrifice of a drive, though. It's a jack of all trades, combining stability, speed, and versatility across both PS5 and PC. We managed to swing sequential read speeds of just over the maximum rated 7,300MB/s with a peak temperature of 58 degrees (C) in our testing (much cooler than the original SN850).
Samsung 990 Pro
We said the 2TB stick was "as good as it gets for a Gen 4 drive" in our Samsung 990 Pro review, and since then it's held onto the top spot in our guides for good reason. It's super fast (this side of the Gen 5 divide, anyway) and available in up to 4TB - though I'd recommend sticking to patch-fixes rather than storage heavy investments for the moment. If you're going it alone in Europe, make sure you're not buying one of the many fake Samsung SSDs caught doing the rounds this month.
Crucial T700
We put the T700 Pro to the test last year, with a slightly faster read/write speed than the base T700. Really, the Pro model is designed to boost higher capacity drives - once you start getting to 4TB things are going to be a lot more noticeable between the two. Still, it's difficult to get your hands on any Crucial SSDs these days, after the company effectively noped out of the consumer market altogether.
If your PC can support a Gen 5 stick, though, this weekend's prices aren't too far off Gen 4 options.
Do you actually need a new SSD?
Right now, I'd only recommend grabbing a new SSD if your existing stick has failed you or you really can't clear up any more space. It seems silly to say, but I have to for my own peace of mind - if you've run out of storage, go back through your files and make sure there's nothing you can do to free some up.
Are there files that don't require the speed of an SSD that you can transfer over to another storage solution?
Do you have non-game files that can be uploaded to cloud-based storage while we wait for this whole thing to blow over?
Do you really need GTAV installed on so many devices?
I know, I know. You've already looked, I had to tell you to drive safe though.
We're also rounding up the best SSD for PS5 and the best external hard drives for gaming, though even slower storage is seeing similar price increases right now.
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