Possibly your gaming laptop computer doesn’t have sufficient storage. Otherwise you merely need a straightforward option to make your sport library moveable. An exterior SSD can repair each of those points (and extra) by offering a straightforward option to develop storage that you may tackle the go.
However selecting an exterior SSD means sorting by means of a dizzying array of choices, and making a poor alternative can depart you feeling exhausting executed by. Fortunate for you, we’ve executed the testing and may supply some sure-fire suggestions which might be assured to assist, and never hinder, your gaming setup.
Why it’s best to belief us: We’re PCWorld. Our reviewers have been placing laptop {hardware} by means of its paces for many years. Our exterior drive evaluations are thorough and rigorous, testing the boundaries of each product — from efficiency benchmarks to the practicalities of standard use. As customers ourselves, we all know what makes a product distinctive. For extra about our testing course of, scroll to the underside of this text.
Scroll under our suggestions to study different exterior SSDs for gaming that didn’t make our record.
Lexar SL600 Blaze – Finest 20Gbps exterior SSD for gaming
Professionals
- Good 20Gbps performer
- High bang for the buck
- 5-year guarantee
Cons
- 4TB mannequin not but out there
Value When Reviewed:
170 Euro
The competitors could be very shut within the high tier of 20Gbps exterior drives, with the big-name contenders buying and selling wins up and down the benchmark charts. However a winner is a winner, and in the long run, the Lexar overtook our earlier champ, Essential’s X10 Professional, even when solely by a hair.
The upshot is that you may anticipate glorious efficiency from the Lexar SL600. It additionally is available in a uniquely formed type issue, full with a gap to accommodate a lanyard, for simple toting. Players may respect that you may even add some bling by choosing the SL660 variant, which options RGB lighting inside its miniature deal with. The drive comes with the usual 5 yr guarantee.
When efficiency is that this intently matched amongst merchandise, the figuring out issue needs to be worth. And right here, too, the SL600 is neck-and-neck with the Essential X10 Professional, and priced barely to considerably cheaper than a few of its rivals, at the very least as of this writing — notably on the 2TB degree.
Learn our full
Lexar SL600 20Gbps USB SSD assessment
Teamgroup M200 – Finest funds 20Gbps exterior SSD for gaming
Professionals
- Quick on a regular basis efficiency
- Obtainable in as much as 8TB (ultimately) capability
- Attractively styled
Cons
- No TBW score
- Firm will change elements if shortages demand
- Writes gradual to 200MBps off cache
The Teamgroup M200 supplies glorious bang in your buck with 20Gbps switch charges and as much as 4TB of storage for a really affordable worth. It has nice on a regular basis efficiency, too.
Its slick military-style design is predicated on the CheyTac M200 sniper rifle—an ideal match for these late night time frag periods. Sadly, Teamgroup doesn’t present a TBW score or official IP score for the M200 so it’s tougher to match it as a complete to its rivals. Nevertheless the M200 is a quick, extraordinarily effectively priced exterior SSD with a gamer-friendly design that may look good and carry out effectively in virtually any setup.
Learn our full
Teamgroup T-Pressure M200 Transportable SSD 2TB assessment
PNY RP60 20Gbps USB SSD – Finest rugged 20Gbps exterior SSD for gaming
Professionals
- Good-looking, IP65-rated design (dust-proof, water resistant)
- Good 20Gbps efficiency
- Good flat Sort-C USB ribbon cable
Cons
- USB port plug tether is troublesome to reinsert.
In case you are likely to take your gaming drive in all places, and/otherwise you’re not essentially the most cautious particular person with {hardware}, a ruggedized exterior SSD is a sensible reply.
The PNY RP60 gives greater than only a rugged IP65-rated exterior that protects towards mud and water droplets; and whereas very good-looking and light-weight in addition; the drive can be an admirable performer, even besting one of many quickest 20Gbps drives we’ve examined — the Essential X10 Professional — in a few our assessments.
The RP60 can be competitively priced at $100 and $180 for 1TB and 2TB, respectively.
Learn our full
PNY RP60 20Gbps USB SSD assessment
Sabrent Rocket Nano V2 – Most moveable 20Gbps exterior SSD for gaming
Professionals
- Extraordinarily small profile
- Shock-absorbing silicone jacket
- High-flight packaging
- Good general efficiency
Cons
- A tad behind the 20Gbps curve performance-wise
In case you’re after a really small SSD that you may simply match right into a pocket, the Sabrent Rocket Nano V2 is that. This USB 3.2×2 20Gbps drive measures a petite 2.73 inches lengthy, 1.16-inches broad, and 0.44-inches thick. It weighs a dainty 1.7 ounces.
In fact, you’ll in all probability need to slide on its included shock-absorbing silicone jacket (proven in image), which is able to add .06 inches to all its dimensions, whereas giving it a badass look.
However appears to be like apart, the Nano V2 is a stable performer. It wasn’t fairly on the similar degree as our high picks in the whole lot, however it traded wins and losses throughout the pack. As an illustration it was second solely to the Essential X10 Professional in our 450GB write check. And it took the highest spot in CrystalDiskMark 8’s random writes, and was very aggressive in random reads.
This wee drive additionally is available in as much as 4TB capacities, making it an all-around good selection should you’re trying to get a number of storage and efficiency in a tiny package deal. We’re additionally keen on its five-year guarantee and the nifty steel field it is available in, which might be repurposed for different makes use of.
Learn our full
Sabrent Rocket Nano V2 assessment
Adata SE920 EX – Finest USB 4 exterior SSD for gaming
Professionals
- Quickest exterior storage we’ve examined (at 40Gbps)
- Reasonably priced for the ilk
- Fashionable enclosure
- Obtainable as much as 4TB
- Additionally quick on the Mac
Cons
- Pricier than USB 3.2×2 (20Gbps)
Value When Reviewed:
152,90 Euro
Finest Costs At this time:
€148.9
€154.9
149,99 €
149,99 €
151,89 €
161,37 €
161,37 €
161,37 €
169,13 €
€180.04
Finest Costs At this time:
Adata SE920 EX – Finest USB 4 exterior SSD for gaming
€148.9
€154.9
149,99 €
149,99 €
151,89 €
161,37 €
161,37 €
161,37 €
169,13 €
€180.04
A USB 4 exterior SSD isn’t for everybody. Not solely does your PC have to assist the spec as a way to make the most of the 40Gbps transfers, however you’ll additionally must be keen to pay a premium for the privilege.
In case you’re able to enter the membership, nevertheless, the Adata SE920 EX will reward you with the quickest USB 4 efficiency that we’ve skilled, and at a way more inexpensive worth than our earlier choose for USB 4, the OWC Specific 1M2 — we’re speaking $140 for a 1TB Adata SE920 versus $250 for the OWC drive. And in order for you a number of capability, the Adata SE920 EX comes with as much as 4TB, for an inexpensive $380.
In virtually each benchmark, the SE920 EX beat the OWC Specific 1M2 at 40Gbps efficiency, albeit by small margins. It additionally comes with a nifty built-in fan, which is activated by sliding open the enclosure. This stored our drive noticeably free of warmth throughout our benchmark assessments.
The SE920 EX can be fairly moveable at 4.13 inches lengthy by 2.52-inches broad by 0.62-inches thick, and weighing 7 ounces — one other benefit it has over the bulkier OWC Specific 1M2.
Ultimately, the selection for a USB 4 exterior SSD is obvious.
Various possibility: You may get record-breaking efficiency by rolling your individual USB 4 exterior SSD, utilizing Ugreen’s CM642 enclosure. In our assessments, the $110 enclosure mixed with an NVMe SSD bested the efficiency of the 2 exterior USB 4 SSDs above.
Learn our full
Adata SE920 USB 4 SSD assessment
Different exterior drive evaluations:
- Ugreen CM642 USB4: Quick, good-looking, rugged, and simple to make use of, Ugreen’s CM642 USB4 SSD enclosure is a good way to roll your individual high-performance exterior storage.
- Corsair Flash Survivor: In case you’re after an eminently moveable USB keep on with 10Gbps/NVMe pace that’s additionally weatherproofed, ruggedized, and appears burly as hell, that is the drive for you.
- Seagate Recreation Drive SSD: Focused at PS4/PS5 homeowners, the 10Gbps SSD could be very quick for its class, and attractively styled, full with a Ps brand, however it’s comparatively dear.
- Lexar Armor 700: Just like the PNY RP60 above, the Lexar Armor 700 is a 20Gbps drive that may face up to some abuse — excellent for the gamer on the go, or the accident-prone. Its IP66 weatherized physique is engaging, its efficiency is aggressive. It’s additionally a bit dear.
- Teamgroup PD20M: This little 20Gbps drive comes with a useful journey case and is likely one of the lightest moveable drives we’ve examined. The one drawback is, its efficiency slows significantly as soon as its 20GB of cache has been tapped. Finest for light-duty chores.
- Adata SD810: It is a stable 20Gbps drive, so long as you aren’t within the behavior of writing very giant quantities of knowledge to it frequently, as a result of in our assessments, the drive slowed down significantly in that state of affairs. That being mentioned, the 4TB capability is a very good worth at simply $300.
- Lexar SL500: A stablemate of the Lexar SL600 — our choose for greatest 20Gbps exterior drive — the SL500 stands out for its very slim and engaging type issue. It has virtually equivalent efficiency to the SL600, aside from performing slower than its sibling in our 48GB file writes.
How we check exterior SSD sport efficiency
The largest query you need to know is, how a lot does utilizing an exterior drive harm sport efficiency. To present us an concept of how a lot it issues, we used UL’s new 3DMark Storage Benchmark. To create the benchmark, UL primarily information the drive entry patterns throughout a number of widespread gaming duties to make “traces.” These drive-access traces are then run on the examined storage system a number of occasions to duplicate the patterns with out having to really load the sport.
For its check, 3DMark reproduces what occurs loading to the beginning menus of Battlefield V, Name of Responsibility: Black Ops 4, and Overwatch. 3DMark Storage additionally assessments utilizing OBS, or Open Broadcast System, to document Overwatch being performed at 1080p decision at 60fps, putting in The Outer Worlds from the Epic launcher, and saving a sport in The Outer Worlds. For the ultimate check, 3DMark Storage assessments copying the Steam folder for Counter-Strike: International Offensive from an exterior SSD to the goal drive.
We used a Twelfth-gen Intel Core i9-12900K working Home windows 11 on an Asus ROG Maximus Z690 Hero motherboard. The board options native Thunderbolt 4 and USB 3.2 10Gbps ports. We added a Silverstone ECU06 for USB 3.2 SuperSpeed 20Gbps assist. We then used a Vantec M.2 NVMe SSD to USB 3.2 Gen2x2 20G Sort C enclosure with a Western Digital SN700 NVMe SSD to check USB 3.2 20Gbps and 10Gbps efficiency. We additionally put in the identical SN700 right into a PCIe 3.0 riser card to check its native efficiency. This provides you an concept of how a lot you lose going from being put in contained in the laptop computer or PC in comparison with utilizing a USB port. For added distinction, we additionally ran 3DMark Storage on an older Plextor PX-512M7VG SATA SSD within a Silverstone MS09 SATA enclosure that was plugged right into a USB 3.2 10Gbps port. And since you need to understand how gradual a tough drive could be, we additionally ran the identical check on a Western Digital 14TB EasyStore exhausting drive plugged right into a USB 3.2 10Gbps port. The EasyStore is definitely restricted to USB 3.2 SuperSpeed 5Gbps.
IDG
What do you have to make of the above outcomes? Effectively, clearly should you can set up an SSD within your PC, you’ll get essentially the most efficiency out of it. However it’s best to contemplate a few of the context. In case you’re solely trying on the large lengthy purple bar on the high of the chart, contemplate that the actual check is measuring what would occur should you copied a big folder of information to the SSD. For most individuals, that’s solely executed occasionally.
The extra widespread state of affairs is ready for a sport to launch. Working an inner NVMe drive will nonetheless be sooner, however the hole closes slightly. Between the three widespread USB interfaces: USB 20Gbps, USB 10Gbps, and SATA on USB 10Gbps, the quickest is USB 3.2 20Gbps. With a USB 3.2 20Gbps SSD, you may see Battlefield V shave 25 % of the load time versus a USB 3.2 10Gbps drive. In fact, efficiency can be sport dependent. As an illustration, each Name of Responsibility and Battlefield see 45 % or so better bandwidth on the inner SSD, however with the much less graphically intense Overwatch, it’s nearer to 30 %.
The opposite shock is the efficiency of the SATA SSD versus the NVMe SSD when the NVMe SSD is in a USB 3.2 10Gbps port. In sport masses, saves, and set up eventualities, they’re pretty shut. The NVMe exterior SSD does speak in confidence to enormous lead over the slower SATA as soon as you progress to a activity the place you’re copying an enormous quantity of information—such because the CS:GO outcomes. However once more, how usually do you try this?
In fact we are able to’t depart this with out declaring simply horrible exhausting drives are. Would it not be extra improved with a sooner exhausting drive? Unlikely. The very minimal it’s best to use if storing video games on an exterior drive is a SATA SSD, so don’t run a sport out of your exterior exhausting drive except you want to attend for the whole lot.
