The Pros and Cons of Using a PS5 External Hard Drive
Your PS5 is a fantastic gaming console, but its standard internal storage device may not be sufficient for your needs. Your console may be plagued by a lack of storage space, thus you consider expanding it either by adding a secondary internal SSD or by just get an external HDD for your PS5.
Although having additional storage capacity for your PS5 is obviously beneficial, is a PS5 external hard drive the best option?
Well, if you’re considering purchasing an external hard drive for your PlayStation 5, consider the following advantages and disadvantages before making your selection.
Why You Should Buy a PS5 External Hard Drive
Let’s start with some of the great advantages that a PS5 external hard drive offers to you.
1. You’ll have a Portable Gaming Library
An external hard drive is ideal for storing your gaming library on the go. It allows you to take all of your digital games and gaming data with you wherever you go.
If you employ physical games, digital games, or both, this is a win-win situation. You can carry your save data to a friend’s house if you use physical games, and you won’t have to wait as long because their PS5 will install the game data if you use an external hard drive.
If you wish to play a digital game, simply connect your external hard drive to your friend’s PS5 and log into your PSN account. Just remember to log out when you’re done!
2. You’ll Have a PS5 With Extensive Storage Space
The PS5 can hold up to 8TB of external storage, which is far more than the less-than-1TB SSD that comes standard.
An external hard drive would eliminate the problem of having to delete games from your PS5 to free up space. You’ll quickly notice and enjoy the change, as your PS5 can now store more than just five games!
This is especially useful if you have a large digital collection because uninstalling and re-downloading digital games might take a long time.
3. PS5 External Hard Drive Is Very Easy to Set Up
Unlike an internal PS5 SSD, setting up an external hard drive for your PS5 is quite simple and quick.
The troubles formatting and setting up an external HDD for PS5 are too little, and you’ll be able to utilize your new PS5 external hard drive in a matter of minutes. The nicest part is that you won’t have to open your PS5 or worry about having the proper internal storage device measurements.
All you’ll need is a USB 3.0 or higher external hard disk with a USB-A connection that’s between 250GB and 8TB.
If it happens that you have some problems using an external HDD on PS5, please visit this very helpful article.
4. The Benefits Make Up for The Physical Size
As an external hard drive is a distinct device from your PS5 and so takes up physical space, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.
The fact that you can save hundreds of games on an external hard drive and take it with you everywhere you go offsets the fact that it takes up more room in your home. It may easily be placed next to or on top of your PlayStation 5.
5. An External SSD Is Ideal for Your PS4 & PS5 Game Collection
Although the PS4 console utilizes a slow classical hard disk drive, the PS5 has a super-fast SSD (Solid State Drive) that allows it to boot up and load games in a matter of seconds.
If you acquire an external SSD for your PS4, you’ll notice that your games load up lot faster than before, and you’ll be able to transfer these games to your PS5. By storing PS5 games on an external USB drive, you’ll be able to bridge the gap between your PS4 and PS5 libraries.
6. Backing Up Your PS5 Internal Storage
Even if you’re comfortable with your PS5’s internal storage, you should consider backing up your data using an external hard drive.
No one wants their data to be corrupted or lost. This can mean losing all of your game progress or re-downloading and installing a game from the ground up, including all software updates. And, with the amount of games growing, that won’t be pleasant.
By backing up your PS5’s internal data to an external hard drive, you can avoid all of this. It’s a wise decision.
Why You Should Avoid Getting a PS5 External Hard Drive
Having an external hard drive for your PS5 is very useful, but that does not come without flaws. If you wish to use an external hard drive with your PS5 console, here are some drawbacks to consider.
1. PS5 External HDD Is More Exposed
External hard drives, as the name implies, are just that: external.
This means that your PS5 external hard drive is more susceptible to damage than an internal one. Though this may not seem like a major deal, everyone’s gaming setup is different, so it’s something to consider.
2. Possibility of Data Corruption
You risk damaging your data and losing your game files if you detach your external hard drive from your PS5 without following the required method.
Thankfully, safely disconnecting your PS5’s external hard drive is simple; following these instructions ensures that you won’t lose countless hours of gaming progress.
3. Risk Of Losing the PS5 External HDD
External hard drives are small and take up little room, which is ideal. It also implies that you can quickly misplace them.
This problem is exacerbated if you frequently travel with your PS5 external hard drive. You might misplace it, or it might tumble out of your purse and vanish forever. You could even simply misplace it in your home and never see it again. Keep this in mind if you’re prone to misplacing stuff.
4. External SSDs Are More Expensive
External SSDs are lightning fast and will greatly enhance your gaming experience on your PS5. However, there is a significant price difference between an external SSD and a classical external HDD.
SSDs should get more affordable over time. However, if you were to choose between an external SSD and an HDD with the same storage capacity, the SSD would be significantly more expensive.
Choosing Best PS5 External HDD
External hard drives, while not without flaws, have a lot of advantages and can be a wonderful storage choice for your gaming needs.
Make sure you’ve done your homework before purchasing an external hard drive for your PS5. There are a variety of external hard drives to choose from, each with its own set of features. Select the best option for you.
Conclusion
Using an external hard drive with PS5 has its advantages and disadvantages, just like anything in this life. You should gauge your needs and think whether an external hard drive better fits your storage needs for PS5 or just adding an extra SSD chip is the thing that suits you more.