Storage matters and if you’re still rocking a SATA HDD or SSD, you’re better off making the jump to an NVMe drive sooner rather than later. Thankfully, you can now pick up some of the fastest models on the market at welcome discounts, including WD_Black SN8100.
WD_Black SN8100
“WD_Black SN8100 pushes sequential speeds to new heights.” Read our review.
From Amazon US, WD_Black SN8100 1TB can be yours for $154.99, netting you a 25% ($53) saving off the drive’s list price. If you fancy something larger, you can pick up the 4TB variant for $429.99 complete with a 14% ($70 discount).
Meanwhile, on Amazon UK, 1TB and 4TB models are available for £144.98 and £399.98, respectively. Regardless of which region you’re buying WD_Black SN8100 in, you’ll be paying the lowest ever price for the drive in these capacities.
If your budget can stretch to the the more-expensive WD_Black SN8100 4TB, it’s the one I’d recommend getting. Not only does the drive boast more total storage, the drive’s sequential write performance is also substantially higher at 14,000MB/s (vs. 11,000MB/s), and you’re getting value in terms of gigabyte per dollar.
Whether you pick up the 1TB or 4TB model, though, you can expect zippy sequential read speeds of 14,900MB/s. In this regard, WD_Black SN8100 is the fastest SSD on the market bar none, delivering fantastic performance while loading games and more.
Note that the model I’m highlighting doesn’t come with a built-in heatsink. This isn’t a major problem as WD_Black SN8100 boasts great efficiency and thermals, but I’d recommend placing it under your motherboard’s heatsink for optimal performance. Alternatively, you could whack an aftermarket cooler on the drive which would also make it compatible with PS5.
Sandisk are now the sole caretakers of WD SSDs, prompting the discontinuation of the longstanding Western Digital Dashboard. However, the new Sandisk version is a suitable replacement that allows you to track drive health and update firmware on WD_Black SN8100 as and when you like.
Finally, a word on longevity. Sandisk rates WD_Black SN8100 endurance at 600TBW per TB, which is typical for most Gen 5 SSDs. Most users won’t hit such a lofty metric, though, making the welcome five-year warranty more worth paying attention to.
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