$1 cheaper than current cheapest deal which also requires Ebay Plus
PS5 compatible *recommended with additional heatsink
Specifications
I got this on the last eBay deal - just a warning that it runs hot and will throttle without a good double sided heatsink. Its quite thick so a lot of the cheap heatsinks won't be able to cool it, at least for a benchmark run that I tried.
i have this hdd, with a single-sided heatsink from the motherboard slapped against a 4080, running a game when the 4080 hits 60c the hdd doesn't go over 45c
(running as boot/game storage)
Gaming test is not the type of test you use to test SSD thermal throttle. To test thermal throttle, there needs to be significant data write and over a reasonably long period of time.
For people who can really take advantage of this SSD properly, they could run into the thermal throttle issue. Yes, there are apps and benchmark that can cause this, but in day to day usage, do they really reflect your usage patterns?
However, for general public, this SSD is an overkill. Sorry to disappoint you gamers, while you can stress top end GPU and maybe CPU to the limit, SSD is not something you can stress with gaming.
I agree it does run hot, so you cannot run it "naked". Be Quiet! makes a well priced M.2 heatsink with an integrated heatpipe: https://www.pccasegear.com/products/54595/be-quiet-mc1-pro-m…
The standard version (without the heatpipe is slightly cheaper: https://www.pccasegear.com/products/54594/be-quiet-mc1-m-2-s…
Hey @netsurfer, what's the best bang for buck SSD for gaming atm? I just can't catch up with tech anymore…
If 2TB is enough, get the cheapest 2TB TLC NVMe SSD:
PNY CS1031 2TB NVMe SSD Gen3x4 for $109 + postage (OZBer chatGPT mentioned this in a comment of another deal): This SSD has NAND lottery, it could be YMTC, Spectek 176L (basically Crucial, but inferior grade (basically not 100% perfect cells)), Toshiba NAND (maybe 112L) or something else. The most recent batch "seems" to be Toshiba 112L, but expect NAND lottery (so lower your expectation, expect you might get the NAND type you least like).
4TB, currently, there is none.
PNY CS2241 4TB M.2 NVMe SSD $229 Delivered was the benchmark. However, I personally don't like QLC SSDs. Gaming involves mostly reads so if you don't mind the initial copying from your existing large collection of steam library could take a while, it is likely still fine. So the idea is $229 or lower for 2TB.
Neither retailer for the two deals is known to have the best type of warranty service. However, my understanding is they will still at least provide the service. Both SSDs have 5 years warranty so buying from a good retailer is desirable.
If you have RTX 4090 top notch gaming setup, then it makes sense to get quality PCIe gen 4 x4 SSDs instead.
People having the ability to buy from Chinese sites for Chinese people only might indicate "they" can get cheaper SSDs. If you have friends with such capability, you can ask for their help if you want. However, if it is just $10 or $20 difference, I don't think it is worth the trouble. But ultimately, it is your decision to make.
hodl..