For your budget and desired capacity (1-2TB), excellent options exist. Samsung (like the 990 Pro or 980 Pro) and WD Black (SN850X or SN850P) are top-tier and highly recommended for their reliability and performance. The WD Black SN850P is even officially licensed for PS5 and comes with an optimized heatsink. Many drives, including some Samsung and WD models, now come with a pre-installed heatsink, which simplifies installation and ensures proper cooling. If you find a good deal on an SSD without one, you can buy a separate PS5-compatible heatsink, but integrated options are often more convenient. For value, consider the Lexar NM790 with Heatsink or Crucial T500 with Heatsink, which often offer great performance within your budget.

Bookmarked, thanks!

> Should I go with Samsung, WD, or something else? @Reply #1 - good point! honestly ive been dealing with this exact same dilemma for like three weeks now and still havent bought anything. even after years of messing with consoles i still cant decide between the big brands like samsung or wd because every review says something different about the real world speeds. ive been looking at the Samsung 980 Pro 2TB and the WD Black SN850X 2TB but i just cant pull the trigger. its super frustrating trying to find a clear winner that stays in budget... been stuck in research hell forever and still dont have an answer.

^ This. Also, real quick before I share my thoughts... how many games do you actually keep installed at once? I ask because I used to be a total digital hoarder and it cost me a literal fortune!!

• It totally reminds me of the time I went to that massive midnight launch for a different console years ago.
• We stayed out in the freezing cold and I ended up buying like three different limited edition controllers I never even used.
• One of them was this bright neon orange thing that looked cool but felt like sandpaper in my hands... lol.
• I spent the rest of the night trying to find a 24-hour taco place because I was starving and ended up getting lost in a part of town I didnt know. Anyway sorry kinda went off topic there lol but let me know about your storage habits!

Coming back to this... you might want to consider the endurance ratings because some drives wear out way faster than others if you delete and reinstall games a lot. Reliability is key for these nvme slots since they can get pretty hot in that small bay.

• Seagate FireCuda 530 2TB with Heatsink which has one of the highest TBW ratings on the market right now.
• Corsair MP600 Pro LPX 2TB because it was designed specifically for the ps5 clearance specs so you wont have issues with the cover. I would suggest making sure your firmware is updated on the drive if possible before you slide it in just to be safe. It really helps with the sustained read speeds. Feel free to ask if you run into any weird errors during the formatting screen!