Best external SSD for gaming in 2023: top portable drives

The greatest exterior SSD for gaming is a comparatively cheap strategy to develop storage and velocity up your sport’s loading instances however with out the trouble of rummaging across the insides of your gaming PC. Merely plug one right into a free USB port, set up your sport, and play to your coronary heart’s content material.

Transportable SSDs don’t must be a bland field both, with Adata leaning into a definite RGB-lit honeycomb impact and Sandisk making a dust- and waterproof NVMe drive that matches into the palm of your hand. You possibly can even do it your self should you personal a spare inside NVMe due to an enclosure from Asus turning your present drive into a transportable storage system.

Transportable and exterior choices do include some caveats, after all, resembling slower speeds. They’re a marked enchancment over laborious drives, however you’ll need to seize the best SSD for gaming should you’re all about efficiency and make a journey to our information on how to install an SSD to verify it sits accurately.

So why purchase an exterior SSD? The benefit of a transportable SSD is you could swap it between gadgets with none fuss. With so many costs to select from and browse speeds starting from 540MB/s all the way in which as much as 2,800MB/s, we’ve rounded up a collection of drives for each utilization and funds so you’ll be able to select the very best exterior SSD for you.

Discover the very best exterior SSD for gaming in 2023:

• Greatest exterior SSD for gaming – Adata SE900G
• Greatest transportable SSD – Sandisk Excessive Transportable
• Quickest exterior SSD – Samsung X5
• Greatest NVMe enclosure – Asus ROG Strix Arion
• Greatest low-cost exterior SSD – Samsung T5
• Greatest SSD for Xbox Sequence X – Seagate Storage Growth Card

1. Adata SE900G

The greatest exterior SSD for gaming is the Adata SE900G.

Adata’s NVMe-based mannequin is without doubt one of the quickest exterior drives we’ve seen, with each the sequential learn and write speeds coming in at 2,000MB/s. It connects by way of a USB Sort-C cable, though Adata features a Sort-A adapter within the field to higher cater to extra gadgets. We’d advocate the 1TB capability mannequin, though it’s additionally out there as a 512GB or 2TB drive.

The RGB lighting overlaying the highest of the drive is a flashy contact, making it take a look at house with the best gaming keyboard and best gaming mouse.

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2. SanDisk Excessive Transportable

The greatest transportable SSD is the Sandisk Excessive Transportable.

Regardless of its diminutive measurement of two.07 x 3.97 inches, the Sandisk Excessive Transportable nonetheless packs a punch. Because of the NVMe drive below the hood, it’s able to swift sequential learn and write speeds of 1,050MB/s and 1,000MB/s respectively.

It may additionally take a beating with two-meter drop safety, and IP55 water and dirt resistance, making it the proper journey companion for the best gaming laptop – not that we advocate chucking it round.

It connects by way of USB Sort-C, though there’s a Sort-A adaptor included too. You possibly can choose the drive up in capacities starting from 500GB as much as a whopping 4TB. It really is transportable, and is designed with a gap within the nook as a way to clip it onto your keys or a bag.

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3. Samsung X5

The quickest exterior SSD is the Samsung X5.

The Samsung X5 is without doubt one of the quickest available on the market relating to outright velocity, however it has a premium price ticket hooked up and a few compatibility concerns with a Thunderbolt 3 connection. In case your pockets and laptop can help it, this drive is able to sequential learn and write speeds of two,800MB/s and a pair of,300 MB/s respectively, loading your video games and transferring your information within the blink of a watch.

The X5 continues to be surprisingly small at 4.7 x 2.4 inches, and the handsome shiny casing can be designed to resist drops of as much as two meters.

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4. Asus ROG Strix Arion

The greatest NVMe enclosure is the Asus ROG Strix Arion.

If you happen to’ve already received a spare inside NVMe drive, the Arion can convert into an exterior SSD that appears a deal with in comparison with different enclosures. The USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 connection transfers as much as 10Gb/s, letting it take full benefit of even the quickest NVMe fashions.

The aluminum casing additionally has some adjustable RGB lighting for further aptitude, whereas thermal pads inside assist to maintain temperatures low to keep away from thermal throttling.

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5. Samsung T5

The greatest low-cost exterior SSD is the Samsung T5.

The Samsung T5 makes use of SATA know-how over the zippier NVMe kind issue, however this helps to maintain the worth per GB low. In reality, it’s the very best funds exterior SSD that’s virtually 5 instances sooner than an exterior laborious drive, rated at 540MB/s sequential learn and 515MB/s sequential write speeds.

The all-metal physique provides it a stable really feel and helps it face up to drops of two meters. And, if safety is on the entrance of your thoughts, you should use Samsung’s software program to lock the drive with a password.

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6. Seagate Storage Growth Card

The greatest SSD for Xbox consoles is the Seagate Storage Growth Card.

The Xbox Sequence X / S received’t help you set up and play present technology video games on any random exterior SSD, as a substitute making use of the growth slot on the rear of the console. Seagate’s NVMe is at present the one mannequin that matches into Microsoft’s proprietary port and provides learn and write speeds similar to the console’s inside NVMe solid-state drive.

There’s no USB connection, nonetheless, so that is solely an exterior SSD for the newest Xbox consoles slightly than one in your PC.