Sony’s PlayStation 5 is a phenomenal console, offering solid [email protected] performance, the next-gen DualSense controller with haptic feedback and adaptable trigger pressure and super-fast storage that allows for much faster loading in games. The problem with the latter is that it’s expensive, meaning the PS5 ships with just 825GB of storage with only 667.2GB usable – enough for a few games, but not an expansive library of PS5 titles.
The good news is that Sony pushed out a software update that allows the PS5 to take advantage of a second M.2 SSD. There are restrictions on what’ll work – it needs to be PCIe Gen 4 with read/write speeds of at least 5500MB/s and it’ll need a heatsink – but at least it’s a possibility. The SSDs were expensive at launch, but there’s a particularly good saving on Crucial’s 1TB P5 Plus that makes it a tempting Black Friday buy.
As part of Amazon’s Black Friday sales, you can pick up the Crucial PS5 Plus with 1TB of SSD storage for just £107.99, down from £157. That makes it the cheapest PS5-compatible SSD available right now in the UK, adding almost double the built-in storage of the console. You’ve also got the 500GB variant for just £61.99, and the top-end 2TB variant is £251.98, down from £320.
Get the Crucial P5 Plus (1TB) for £107.99 at Amazon
There is a catch though; the Crucial P5 Plus doesn’t ship with a heatsink, a required component for use in the PS5. While some claim to have used SSDs without heatsinks without issue, it’s worth following Sony’s advice to avoid damaging the SSD or your console.
Thankfully, you can pick up third-party heatsinks on Amazon fairly cheap. The Eluteng heatsink is affordable at £11.99, and it’s both easy to install and compatible with the PS5.
Get the Eluteng heatsink for £11.99 at Amazon
Combined with the price of the SSD, you’ve got a PS5-compatible 1TB SSD for just £119.98 – a huge saving compared to the likes of the WD Black SN850 with Heat Sink at £185.99.
The Crucial P5 Plus is a solid choice for a PS5 SSD too; in our Crucial P5 Plus review, we described the M.2 SSD as “more than a worthy successor to the P5” while providing “the PCIe 4.0 enhancement that many customers want”, although we did find that speeds were a little slow compared to the SN850.
That’ll matter more if you use it in a PC than a PS5 though; for gaming, it’ll more than do the job. If you need more information on the installation process, take a look at how to upgrade internal PS5 storage.
For more top deals this Black Friday, take a look at our selection of the best Black Friday tech deals. We’ve also got a more focused Black Friday gaming deals roundup if you’re looking for new gaming accessories to match your PS5.
