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The stage is set. PlayStation and Xbox have made their moves, and it’s only a matter of time before the next generation of PS5 and Xbox Series X and S are available. The next generation of console games is about to start in spectacular fashion and this is an exciting time for fans around the world. But while fans may be concerned about next-gen pricing for consoles and games, there is one factor that they are missing entirely. Case in point: storage on next-gen consoles.
Storage is one of the most important factors on any gaming platform, let alone on consoles. The SSD / HDD plays an important role in determining the speed of the platform, the loading times of the games, the number of games that can be stored, etc. But considering all this is common knowledge, what exactly is going to be different? in the next generation of consoles with regard to storage? The answer will not sit well with your wallet.
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Pricing for additional storage on next-gen consoles will be one of the most talked about features as the release date approaches. This is because these consoles take a generational leap in terms of storage technology, to acquire more, you will burn a considerable hole in your pocket. Let’s take a look at Xbox and PlayStation on a case-by-case basis to understand how it will work.
Additional storage will become a must for next-gen games
Although, before diving into the intricacies of the case, it is important to know why people will want to get additional storage in the first place. While there may be several other factors that play a role, one of the most prominent factors is the size of the next-gen games. The PS5 and Xbox Series X and S boast amazing graphics performance. This allows developers to make games a bit heavy on graphics, eventually increasing the overall size of the game.
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Take Call of Duty: Warzone, for example. Although the game belongs to the previous generation, it is more than 200 GB in size. Although all games may not be as heavy as this one, it still puts a lot into perspective. As games become more complex, detailed, and graphic-heavy, their overall size will increase. This is where the additional storage required for consoles comes into play.
Xbox Series X and S expandable storage costs almost as much as the S Series itself
For starters, let’s consider the Xbox Series X and S. The Series X has a 1TB SSD, while the S Series only has a 512GB SSD. They both use the Xbox Velocity architecture that enables ultra-fast loading times and a smoother transition between applications. Interestingly, these two consoles come with an expandable plug-n-play storage slot.
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To do this, Microsoft has designed an expandable storage drive, in collaboration with Seagate, to make life easier for everyone. But this expandable 1TB drive is priced at $ 219.99 each. Considering that the Xbox S series console costs $ 299, that seems like a lot. Also, there is no third-party option available as an alternative to this, which makes it a bit more troublesome. Although Xbox recently announced that external USB 3.1 drives will be compatible with the console, you will still have to store next-gen games on the internal SSD to play them.
PS5’s 825GB SSD is already insufficient
Sony’s case, on the other hand, is a bit more complicated. This is mainly because fans know that the PS5 has an expandable storage option, but in the form of an internal NVMe drive. The console’s IO does not show any external slot for the same as its Xbox counterpart, so the console will likely need to be opened to install it. This is the first major problem on Sony’s part, as there is no plug-n-play option.
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The PS5 uses a custom SSD that is much faster even than any other NVMe drive on the market. This means that third-party drives will be much slower when installed on the PS5. Additionally, they may or may not allow gamers to take full advantage of the console’s features. If you think these PCI 4.0 NVMe drives are cheap, think again. These drives range from $ 169 to $ 200 and up for 1TB of space. Considering that the PS5 only has 825GB of internal storage, these will definitely become a must for PS5 users.
Considering that the next-gen game updates will be even bigger, players will be running out of storage space soon. They will have no choice but to get additional storage as they will want to play a lot of different games. Xbox may have a way around this with its Game Pass Ultimate service. This will allow gamers to play the games on their Android and iOS devices through xCloud. But this will not allow them to have the console experience at that time.
As mentioned above, this will be a major talking point in the future as games with larger sizes become available. So if you were already saving to buy your favorite games at launch, you might want to start saving for additional storage as well.
