There's been a lot of talk and lot of comparisons being made between the Xbox Series X and PS5 ever since Sony unveiled a teardown of the latter yesterday, and one of those topics has centred around additional storage.
Specifically, we're talking the ability to play next-gen games off that storage, which Xbox offers in the way of a portable Expansion Card that plugs into the back of the console, while the PS5 requires unscrewing an area inside the system to locate the PCIe 4.0 M.2 SSD compatible storage expansion slot.
Here's a very brief look at how both of those work:
More questions need to be answered on the PS5 side about which SSD drives will be compatible with the system, and while Seagate is bringing out a £220/$220 1TB Expansion Card for the Xbox Series X|S at launch, Microsoft has also confirmed that "multiple options and different form factors and different sizes" will be offered for these in the future.
Basically, we're still don't have the full picture yet.
As a reminder though, here's how expandable storage in general will work on Xbox Series X/S:
You can play directly from the Storage Expansion Card and you will have the exact same experience and performance as if the game was running from the internal SSD. Not only does this apply to games optimized for Xbox Series X|S, but also your favorite backwards compatible Xbox One, Xbox 360 and original Xbox games. When backwards compatible games are played directly from either the internal SSD or the Storage Expansion Card you will see significant improvements in load times due to the next generation performance of Xbox Series X|S.
For now, we just want your thoughts on how these two expandable storage solutions stack up from a convenience point of view, as well as how you think they'll fare throughout the next generation. Let us know below!
Comments 59
We all know there will be a 3% traffic from outside who will love to crack open the lid and possibly make the warranty void. Now little Timmy’s grandmother will be easily able to buy a compatible PCIe4 m.2 drive correctly and install it on the board.
I think the Xbox solution is the simplest. I remember having to open up my ps3 to swap out the hdd on that and it was a pain. The hdd carage screws broke very easily if you weren’t careful.
Have they mentioned if someone has an external USB SSD drive with similar specs as the internal, can series optimized games be played off of that not just stored?
I'd go with whichever one is cheapest. £220 for 1TB is a no go straight off the bat so in my head its not even an option on the Xbox right now. If Sony charge similar then its a no for that too.
And if Sony's is like £10 cheaper its still a no. I'm talking £100 cheaper then i'll give you a clear preference.
I'm lucky enough to be able to afford both PS5 (and now I'm being convinced on the Xbox this gen) and Xbox but I'm still a long way from finding these storage prices acceptable.
@redd214 No external SSD will be able to exactly match the architecture of the internal or the expansion card. Maybe a thunderbolt 3/4 external nvme enclosure will be able to outmatch the speed but it’s just not only about that but also the hardware architecture of the system/XVA.
@AJDarkstar ahh gotcha so its a limitation of the usb connection not necessarily the drive. Make sense, learn something new everyday, thanks!
@AJDarkstar Yes I’ve seen the controlled environment breakdown video and according to it only removing the warranty tape will make the warranty void. But I’m not sure if it’s going to be hot swappable too.
The good thing about the XBox solution is, that you can have more than one expansion, which you can exchange on the fly.
Get a smaller one first and later on bigger ones, when prices go down.
So you have still a use for the smaller one you bought first.
It's definitely easier for Series X but PS5 SSD prices are unknown so don't have enough info for a real comparison.
lol wait until people go shopping for cards and find out.....that's really how much they cost lmao
@Grumblevolcano Microsoft's price is extremely accurate. tons of people are going to buy the wrong cards lol
Obviously, it's much easier and simpler on Series X/S. On PS5 you have to find a compatible SSD and open the console.
It will come down to price. Swapping a hard drive in a PS3 or PS4 is easy and this looks to be too. I'd rather have a cheaper hard drive that takes 10 mins to fit (a one off job) than a more expensive one that takes 2s to install.
In all likelihood, I wouldn't be able to afford a replacement/expansion drive for either machine, so I probably won't have to worry!
Xbox is simpler clearly.
But I have a External HDD to store so its really no big deal.
Others have said the same on other articles previously so should be no issue really...
Obviously, the Xbox way is better. Anytime you have to open the console as opposed to a simple, plug and play option......it’s obvious which one is better.
Once again, Sony baffles me on how they can make one dumb decision after another with the PS5.
@KelticDevil That would be true, except you don't have to "open the console". You slide off one side and take out 1 screw for the drive mount. It's very simple same as PS4 and PS3, it will take a couple of minutes max.
I agree the Xbox way is easier and it is hot swappable (although at £220 i'm not buying one let alone 2 of these)
Meanwhile the PS5 will have more drive options and prices are likely to come down more quickly even for a faster drive.
As a techy I prefer Sony's approach but can understand the merits for each.
@AJDarkstar Indeed. This is the one that surprises me most that Microsoft have only gone with 5Gbit/s USB 3.1 (around 625MB/s).
While in reality that will easily max out a typical external HDD with room to spare, it won't max out some faster external SSD's.
With games install's so large and transferring games a reality for many i'm surprised they didn't go with 10Gbit 3.2 Gen 2 or overkill 20Gbit/s USB-C 3.2 which are both faster and more future proof.
@themightyant They said that they didn't include USB-C (different shape) in order to support all Xbox One peripherals (except Kinect, obviously).
@BlueOcean It doesn't have to be either/or. You can still support ALL older peripherals but have one additional 10Gbit/s SuperSpeed USB port for external SSD/HDD
The expansion cards are already out of stock on the Microsoft Store which is something I didn’t expect
@Thretosix It's right next to the 120mm fan and vents there should be plenty of airflow
Obviously Series S/X has many advantages and not just the sheer ease of plug and play without having to fiddle around taking the side off, unscrewing a cover to the compartment, inserting an expansion, putting it all back together etc.
Being hot swappable, you can have multiple cards and just swap them in and out as required, take your library stored on one to a friends house or even swap back and forth between multiple consoles. You don't 'just' have to have one that is shaped like the example - you could have a massive capacity external SSD that has a plug that connects into that port for example - as long as it has the right data throughput. I know it could be 'expensive', but there is no limit to the amount of Storage you could own - just buy a 'top' up every time you need/want more. Maybe you can do that with PS5 too - but its a real pain to have to unplug everything, get the screwdriver out and swap SSD's just to play a different game stored on another drive, take your collection to a friends house or swap between multiple Consoles.
Arguably, the PS5 is a 'neater' solution - buried inside the console out of site - not that a small part of the card protruding out the back of the Series S/X - less than a HDMI or power cable - is an issue. But really, apart from the 'differences' in terms of SSD specs, that's the only advantage I can think of that Sony's design has.
@Thretosix In any case, you'd have to open the PS5 to install a compatible SSD so the Series X/S solution is much better. Both solutions are expensive but both will be cheaper in a few years.
Plug in on the back of console and I'm done. It don't get any better!
did i read that right my external SSD i use on my x1 wont be able to be used for series x games only backwarrds compat?
@themightyant thats not a vent next to it and the M.2 wont have airflow from what i have seen those fins next to it look like fake fins fo looks.
@Blessed_Koz It's definitely a vent and the whole structure of this upper portion is contoured to pull air in over the SSD
@themightyant "The SSD compartment is right next to the 120mm fan".
Next to but tucked in a hole.
@BlueOcean Room for a heatsink. Regardless I suspect Sony's hardware team know what they are doing. The whole of the PS5, like the Xbox Series consoles, has clearly been designed around cooling. Which is great for all.
As long as MS does seek more than one manufacturers and different “sizes”; I prefer their “memory card style” solution. Sony’s solution might not be proprietary but kills someone getting one for a present. Unless Sony ends up “branding” one after all.
@Darylb88 I think WD just announced one today, granted Sony hasn’t confirmed.
@AJDarkstar "oh it definitely won’t be hot-swappable on PS5. You wouldn’t want to go taking the panels off while it’s on."
Youtube.....finds a way.
I'm betting there aren't case intrusion switches on the panels. And technically the bus probably supports hot swapping. Whether you want to grab an nvme4 drive with your bare hands while it's running is a different question. But I can guarantee you there will be youtube videos of people trying it, and at least one lawsuit for being allowed to and experiencing second degree burns!
I don't think MS did it to encourage accessory purchases though. I think they did it after experiencing service/support/warranty issues with various USB drives on X1 to simplify and control compatibility ,and to provide an ease of use solution to just plug in drives. I think it also involves certifications. In order to get your UL and CE certs there are certain things that have to be covered. The shielding and body protections etc have to be in place to allow certain safeties for consumer access, which requires bulking up the size of the unit. If the Series boxes are designed to be small, that would have been a different challenge having to shield off internals with accessible panels to drop in internal drives.
It's one of the reasons many mobile devices have internal batteries versus consumer replaceable ones. They'd have to increase device thickness to undesirable levels if adding a replaceable battery, not because it's strictly necessary but to pass the certifications required for a shielded, isolated compartment and cover.
PS5 has space to spare inside the shuttle bay doors so it's not an issue.
@themightyant Yeah the oversized heat pipe and fan seem to indicate proper cooling inside PS5 although I prefer the Series X more compact cooling solution and design.
@Blessed_Koz that's correct. You can't run SeriesX|S games from a USB SSD/HDD, but you can store Series X|S games on it and you can run XBox One, X360, OG X-BOX games from it same as always. It's not fast enough for the Series X|S games, so those must be run on the internal or expansion cards only, but can be moved off to your USB drive for storage when you're not using them. The transfer should only take a few minutes on a fast USB SSD.
First PS5 SSD, it costs $250 (1TB with heatsink):
https://shop.westerndigital.com/products/internal-drives/wd-black-sn850-nvme-ssd#WDS100T1X0E-00AFY0
@AJDarkstar "are youtubers in the habit of sticking their hands in live electronics?"
Honestly, if they aren't doing it right now, it's only a matter of time.
is there only one space for the storage on the X? never mind i found a website with a 360 view yes only one space. Second question what is the port on the back near the top middle that has what looks like a padlock symbol next to it?
@VisitingComet1 It's one of those lock connectors for placing electronic devices in public buildings so they can't be stolen.
@BlueOcean ah thanks do you think in the future they will add a hub for more storage? I have the 1 terabyte x and two dad's that are 1 terabyte and about 485 gigs free on my current system. I just wonder how hard swapping out will be. Will the storage take forever to transfer off the usb to the internal? Anyhow sorry for bombarding you with questions.
@AJDarkstar so as long as I plan ahead it's not really an issue
@AJDarkstar You must be new to the internet. . If it's stupid and dangerous and can generate views, youtubers will do it.
The phone battery comparison is apt. It's about the extra chassis space to build the compartment to pass ul & ce. You can see that design in ps5. Xsx didn't have that space to play with.
And theirs the hot swapping and user confusion aspect to deal with. Not with g@m3rz. With ma Christmas shopper it's an issue. I'm surprised Sony went with that open spec. Better for nerds maybe, but I think that will be a headache for them with the masses.
I really don't think ms is profiting off these drives. A licensing fee, yes, but they'll also be putting it through testing internally. If they were vendor locked to Seagate alone that would have been concerning. And the ease of use and hot swapping makes them suied to the use much more. I like the solution. Well put it this way: i ordered 1tb drive for xsx that comes with 1tb. Im not ordering an m2 for my ps5 that comes with 825gb. Only one officially even exists and it's just less friendly to buy one to discard and then use another instead vs swapping my 1tb one in and out later on in the xb.
I had power state issues on x1x with e an extremely powered usb drive. 5200rpn unpowered drives are fine but powered had odd sleep behavior. Ended up buying the Seagate official xb drive. That was still flakey but better behaved. I think the proprietary solution vs external solves a lot of support problems and the costs on comparability testing.
That's not to say ps5 will experience those problems, but even as a tech nerd the nvme world is a confusing mess. To Joe consumer, the idea of checking compatibility lists doesn't even exist. I'm expecting a lot of people will buy the wrong drive. And I'm expecting a lot of people won't want to add a drive as it will seem "complicated".
In that sense, xb made the right choice. I have an xbox, here's the expansion drives for it, away i go. Ps5 brushes too close to pc style upgrades for what should be a plug and play device. Never overestimate the average consumers tech savvy.
I think thunderbolt would have been better but that alone adds costs.
I’m not buying any of the next gen Xbox models since I can literally play all their games on my PC, so it’s PS5 and PCiE drive for me.
@VisitingComet1 No worries.
@StonyKL pushsquare revealed a 1TB expansion ssd for $230+/-. And the Seagate for xbsx is $219+/-.
MS’s is easier, PS’s got the most probability of getting cheaper over time...
Both are fine!
@PhhhCough yeah more extreme prices. No chance I’ll be adding any of these so to me the article here is pointless. Q”Which one does it better?” A: None of them!
The most appealing is which ever ends up being the cheapest, for now they're the same but long term it looks likely the PS5's will be cheaper to expand
@PhhhCough "pushsquare revealed a 1TB expansion ssd for $230+/-. And the Seagate for xbsx is $219+/-".
Just to add to this, the expansion SSD with the heat sink for PS5 costs $250 and the expansion card for Xbox includes the heat sink for $220.
@carlos82 The Xbox expansion card is cheaper because it includes the heat sink for $30 less.
https://shop.westerndigital.com/products/internal-drives/wd-black-sn850-nvme-ssd#WDS100T1XHE-00AFY0
@BlueOcean oh ok, at these prices I won't be buying one for either and especially if they can install fast from a disc or transfer quickly from a normal external hard drive
Let me start by saying this probably doesn't apply to me, since I likely won't upgrade storage.
MS approach with modern day memory card is an obvious throwback to market manipulation days of PS and camera specific memory cards. Not sure how well people remember, but few years into lifecycle of a product there used to be cards with 4 times smaller capacity and average speed, that cost the same as standard memory. I hoped we were past those times.
Also, personally, I'm not a fan of plastic bits sticking out of my equipment, ever since my Razer headset dongle got broken
So I'm giving this one to PS, takes 2 mins to install, it's protected and part of a console body afterwards, and there should be a very wide range of disks available/compatible soonish.
@AJDarkstar Yep at the minute there does not seem to be a price advantage with the first announced PS5 1TB drive being slightly more expensive than the Xbox offering, however, this could change if the propriety nature of the Xbox design somehow eliminates competitive offerings.
@AJDarkstar True hopefully that proves to be worth the cost, I'm amazed at how well quick resume is performing on PS5, hopefully PS5 loading times will translate into something even more impressive.
No chance I'll disable it, I only play 1-3 games at a time, 5-8 second load times is a game changer for those juggling hobby, home and work time.
I think it depends on what your after. For simplicity it’s def the series x method. But for value it will be the ps5 method. With the ps5 ssd there’ll be different 3rd party’s which will make the ssd, that will eventually lead to price drops more consistently. With the series X, has there been any info on 3rd party external ssd? Otherwise the seagate ssd prob won’t have a price drop for a while at least.
I think overall the ps5 has the better idea here. They'll have more options eventually and probably cheaper in the long run. Proprietary memory never usually works out too well but we'll see how it all plays out.
Xbox has the simpler option.
PS will likely be cheaper over time due to competition.
Speeds between each doesn't really matter as long as it matches the existing internal.
@AJDarkstar this was just proven by Digital Foundry. There is little benefit to using NVME external USB storage over a typical SSD (except in one test, copying TO external, where again the gain isn’t likely worth the extra £££) for all other uses the 5Gbit/s USB bus seems to be the limiting factor. Shame they didn’t go 10Gbit/s.
Just to be 100% clear - it appears Microsoft have developed a fantastic console almost all the major things are covered, I have it preordered. Just a few relatively minor decisions like this are a little baffling.
@Thretosix On PS5 air is taken through the front and top (in vertical orientation) and exited out the back.
You can see the top behind the cover is deliberately contoured to funnel cool air in from the front and over the SSD enclosure.
The black plastic at 3:24 is blocked from the front because that is the exit vent. You can clearly see through the vent to the internals at 3:50.
Regardless we won’t really know for sure until this is tested but it more than satisfies my curiosity.
My point stands that I trust Sony’s R&D this time as the whole system looks to be designed around cooling much like Series X.
@AJDarkstar agreed although one of the takeaways from other videos was the vast improvement to standard HDD loading times over XBox One X (and even more for XBox One S and OG Unit) regardless SSD is the way forward
@Thretosix On noise I do trust Sony to have learnt from their mistakes with PS4, especially as it was pointed out by Cerny in his deep dive. Just as I trust Microsoft after the Xbox One launch debacle. They both live and learn and I don't expect the same mistakes as the previous gen from either. New ones? or older ones? or each others? That's a different story.
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